Ruiz, Juan

Ruiz, Juan (hwän rēth`), 1283?–1350?, Spanish poet, musician, and archpriest of Hita. Ruiz suffered 13 years in prison, during which time he revised his masterpiece, El Libro de buen amor (c.1330, tr. The Book of Good Love, 1933). This is a miscellany in verse of fables; autobiographic adventures in the picaresque style; and adaptations of medieval, classical, and Arab stories and apologues—all forming a vivid and unified satirical panorama of medieval society. He is considered the Spanish Chaucer.

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Ruiz, Juan

(born c. 1283, Alcalá, Spain—died c. 1350) Spanish poet and cleric. Educated at Toledo, Ruiz was serving as a village archpriest when he finished his masterpiece, The Book of Good Love (1330, expanded 1343). Perhaps the most important long poem in medieval Spanish literature, it contains 12 narrative poems, each describing a different love affair. Its title refers to the distinction the author makes between the (good) love of God and carnal love. Drawing on material from an impressive range of literary and other sources, it presents a vigorous, high-spirited, satirical glimpse of medieval life.