The Culture of Cursilería: Bad Taste, Kitsch, and Class in Modern Spain

by Noël Valis, Noël Valis

Not easily translated, the Spanish terms cursi and cursiler í a refer to a cultural phenomenon widely prevalent in Spanish society since the nineteenth century. Like "kitsch," cursi evokes the idea of bad taste, but it also suggests one who has pretensions of refinement and elegance without possessing them. In The Culture of Cursiler í a, Noël Valis examines the social meanings of cursi, viewing it as a window into modern Spanish history and particularly into the development of middle-class culture. Valis finds evidence in literature, cultural objects, and popular customs to
argue that cursilería has its roots in a sense of cultural inadequacy felt by the lower middle classes in nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century Spain. The Spain of this era, popularly viewed as the European power most resistant to economic and social modernization, is characterized by Valis as suffering from nostalgia for a bygone, romanticized society that structured itself on strict class delineations. With the development of an economic middle class during the latter half of the nineteenth century, these designations began to break down, and individuals across all levels of the middle class exaggerated their own social status in an attempt to protect their cultural capital. While the resulting manifestations of cursiler í a were often provincial, indeed backward, the concept was—and still is—closely associated with a sense of home. Ultimately, Valis shows how cursilería embodied the disparity between old ways and new, and how in its awkward manners, airs of pretension, and graceless anxieties it represents Spain's uneasy surrender to the forces of modernity.

The Culture of Cursiler í a will interest students and scholars of Latin America, cultural studies, Spanish literature, and modernity.

424 pages, Paperback

First published December 26, 2002

Reviews

[Floresia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesante, pero muy repetitivo, no hay un hilo que seguir, muy confuso

[Cristina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Increíble obra sobre la historia de España en el siglo XIX.
Pega un repaso impresionante a un montón de cuestiones.
Quizás echo en falta un poco más de recalco en los elementos más visuales pero la cantidad de información que da es asombrosa y todos sus análisis acertadísimos.

Estoy muy contenta de haber podido leer este libro ☺