Portrait of a Friend and Insights into Economics, Literature, and Language

A Cherished Friendship

July is a really good friend of mine. She is my friend from school.

We're both in the same crowd, and we all go out quite often.

• July's short and very slim. She's got fair and beautiful green eyes.
• Charlie thinks she's quite attractive. Her hair is straight and shoulder-length. She's got a great sense of humor.
• She can be a bit bossy, but I don't mind because she's such great company. She's generous and helpful, and I can always count on her to be there when I need her. In her free time, she goes out with her friends and goes to parties.
• She is now studying in high school.
• In my opinion, she is the best person and the best friend.

Economics Fundamentals

Key Concepts

• Capital Substitution: Companies substituting labor with capital.
• Active Population: The ratio between the employed and active population.
• Labor Supply: When there are many suppliers and few demanders.
• Oligopoly: A market structure dominated by a few large suppliers (e.g., large fuel distributors).
• Monopoly: A market structure with a single supplier (e.g., the school cafeteria). A natural monopoly exists due to high barriers to entry. A cartel is a group of firms acting in collusion.
• Wage Increase: Few suppliers and many demanders lead to a wage increase.
• Demand for Natural Resources
• Interest Rates: If interest rates rise, fewer loans are requested.
• Seasonal Unemployment: Example: amusement park employees.

Labor Market

• Active Population (Employed): Workers employed by others or self-employed.
• Active Population (Unemployed): Workers actively seeking employment. The SEPE (Public State Employment Service) is a public body that measures unemployment and only considers those registered with it. The EPA (Active Population Survey) is a statistical study designed to capture data on the labor market, such as the unemployment rate.

Market Structures

• Monopoly: Control by one company over one type of market, preventing smaller companies from benefiting.
• Oligopoly: Several small businesses dominate one type of market; a small number of sellers work together to avoid competition.
• Perfect Competition: When there is a market equilibrium, no one has absolute power over the market.

Textual Analysis and Literary Concepts

Adequacy

Adequacy is when the text acquires value through how it adapts to the situation. It is a property of the text. A text is a total unit of oral or written communication, emitted by a sender in certain circumstances, responding to a communicative intention.

Romance

• Old Romances: Their diffusion is mainly oral; they have no known author, are anonymous, and their meter fluctuates and is unstable. They have verses of eight syllables and consonant rhyme.
• New Romances: They gained prominence in the 15th century and continue to this day. Their diffusion is written, they have a known author, and their meter is fixed (e.g., Lorca's "Romancero Gitano").
• Structure: The romance has no introduction or resolution, only a knot. Verses with rhyme have a special treatment, meaning the vast majority are in the present or imperfect preterite of the indicative mood.
• Classification: Historical or border romances (e.g., "Andalucía").

Gonzalo de Berceo

Berceo was born in La Rioja in the mid-13th century and belonged to the mester de clerecía. He was accused of being a copyist; he was the first author to put his name on his work, making him the first known Spanish writer and the greatest representative of the mester de clerecía and cuaderna vía. His best-known work is "Milagros de Nuestra Señora." Its introduction highlights allegory, a literary figure much stronger than metaphor, consisting of objects transforming into ideas in their pure state. Gesta are extensive narrations in verse that relate historical and legendary events surrounding a hero who represents the values of a people.

Medieval Lyric Poetry

Traditional Lyric

Traditional lyric poetry comprises anonymous songs transmitted orally, often with love as the central theme. They were sung during agricultural work, weddings, etc.

Learned Lyric

Learned lyric poetry is poetry by a known author, transmitted through writing. It is more elaborate and appeared later than traditional lyric poetry.

Jarxas

Jarxas are short poems written in Mozarabic, dealing with the theme of love from a female perspective. They date from the 11th century and are the oldest example of traditional Hispanic lyric poetry.

Cantigas de Amigo

Cantigas de amigo are the most valuable part of medieval Galician lyric poetry and represent traditional popular lyric poetry. They date from the 12th century, and their theme is love. The friend is the beloved; they express the lament of a girl in love, with references to nature.

Cantigas de Amor

In cantigas de amor, the author speaks, lamenting not being reciprocated by his lady. They show a clear influence of Provençal poetry and courtly love, with a courtly environment and a cultured style.

Acrostics

Acrostics are poems where the first letter of each verse forms a message or a word.

Alfonso X and the Castilian Language

Alfonso X, known as "The Wise," authored works such as "Lapidario" (on horoscopes), "Las Siete Partidas" (legal works), and "Cartas" (written in Galician). He reigned from 1252 to 1285. He simplified the spelling of Romance languages, removing ambiguities. He declared Castilian as the official language of Spain, leading to the decline of classical Latin, which became relegated to ecclesiastical spheres. He referred to the language in two ways:

• Correct Castilian
• Alfonsine Castilian

The Book of Good Love

The "Libro de Buen Amor" was written by Juan Ruiz, the Archpriest of Hita. He did not give it a title; it was left untitled and later named by Ramón Menéndez Pidal. It dates from the 14th century, the most heterogeneous century in Spanish literature. It contains poetry, novels, legends, and all genres mixed without order. For this reason, the author did not know what title to give it. Ramón Menéndez Pidal realized that the theme was good love. Juan Ruiz was afraid that his book would not be understood. It is full of irony and explores the idea of good love. Important characters in the book include Doña Urraca and La Trotaconventos.