Cada uno según su estadoel atuendo en los libros de caballerías: materialidad y funciones

Abstract

This thesis offers a first approximation to the subject of clothing and textiles in a carefully chosen selection of fifteen Spanish chivalric books, all dating from the first half of the sixteenth century, the moment when this literary genre reached the summit. The study provides a quantitative analysis of all textile and clothing terms appearing in the corpus. All of these terms are listed and deeply analyzed taking into account historical documents and recent scholarly investigation as well as the actual chivalric books. Another volume including all the quotations from the corpus serves as an invaluable source of information to fully realize the recurring presence of these references in this literary genre. The study includes information about the selected corpus, fashion trends of the time, textile decoration techniques, colors and their meanings, and more. This investigation contributes to the deeper understanding of clothing and its importance in society. Through a detailed analysis of the literary references provided, key concepts in sixteenth century society come to life. By reading this study, the modern reader will find hidden meanings which show how literature cannot be separated from the context in which it was produced if it is to be fully enjoyed. Clothing and textiles play an important role in chivalric books and through them we can apprehend a faint idea to the social relations, ceremonies, beliefs and controversies of the time. All in all, this study proposes to read chivalric books focusing on the material aspects of society, as a way to discover the role clothing and textiles play in chivalric books from an economic, social and cultural perspective.