Oviedo, España
El propio Meléndez Valdés señala en 1797 que la contemplación de la inmensidad, variedad, orden del universo y cadena de los seres es uno de los principales asuntos de su poesía filosófica y una vía de renovación de la poesía española. Este trabajo identifica tales asuntos con la estética de lo sublime cósmico que signa la poesía filosófica europea contemporánea; rastrea las lecturas en que Meléndez pudo forjar su cultura sobre este motivo, más allá de los poetas europeos de referencia; constata su presencia sostenida en numerosos poemas a lo largo de toda la trayectoria literaria del poeta (1780-1814), y los analiza a la luz del contexto literario, filosófico y religioso de lo sublime cósmico
Meléndez himself indicated in 1797 that contemplation of the immensity, variety and order of the universe and its place in the great chain of being was one of the main subjects of his own philosophical poetry and a means of renewing Spanish poetry in general. The present study identifies this subject matter with the aesthetics of the cosmic sublime which characterizes a major strand of contemporary European philosophical poetry. In particular, the article highlights specific texts –in addition to ones from the European poets traditionally cited– which may have contributed to Meléndez’s concept of the cosmic sublime, and draws attention to the presence of this thematic strand throughout Meléndez’s poetic career (1780-1814), analyzing the chosen poems from the perspective of the literary, philosophical and religious context of the cosmic sublime