Rosalía de Castro and Influences. A Dialogue between the Center and the Periphery

Abstract

Rosalía de Castro (1837-1885) holds a canonic role in both Castilian and Galician literature. A vision of her authorial identity is proposed in terms of Itamar Even-Zohar’s Polysystem Theory, which understands literary translation as a fundamental factor in the concept of influence. Subsequently, an exercise in comparative literature will be presented in which de Castro’s Works are examined in relation to those of other authors of her time, which will shed light on the nature of her role, both in center-periphery relations and in the constitution of a European literature. De Castro’s unsuspected sources of literary inspiration will then be discussed. Lastly it will be considered how de Castro’s body of work has escaped from any traditional classification whatsoever, as its sphere of action is, for all intents and purposes, the border space.