ABSTRACT
Francisco Manuel de Melo born at Lisbon, occupies a distinguished place among Portuguese writers as well as among Spanish; he enjoys the rare privilege of being regarded as a classic in both literatures. Melo's most important Spanish work is unquestionably his Historia de los movimientos y separacion de Cataluña, commonly called Guerra de Cataluna. It appeared under the pseudonym of Clemente Libertino. The novel, like the drama, continued to be a favorite branch, especially in the form of studies of contemporary manners. Attempts were made to rejuvenate the picaresque narrative, almost always autobiographic, by new devices, frequently bad. The World of Pythagoras by Antonio Enriquez Gomez presents a novel form of moral romance. Dona Maria de Zayas y Sotomayor is slightly earlier. Born in Madrid, she received honorable mention from Lope in his Laurel de Apolo, and from Montalván in Para todos, but, as we know, praise came easy to them.
