15 examples of COPLAS

the couplets They are a very popular type of poem in the Spanish tradition and have been around since the 17th century. These are poetic compositions that are usually intended to be sung by the people. Many of them use colloquial language of the moment in which society finds itself and have come down to us today through oral tradition.

In this lesson from a PROFESSOR we want to explain in detail what is it and examples of couplets, so that you recognize them whenever you find yourself in front of one.

Before starting with the examples of couplets, we are going to know better what this literary text consists of.the couplet it's a kind of poem which is written in quartets (stanzas of four lines) and that are very easy to take to the music world. Most of the verses that we know, we have learned through Popular songs. Many of them have been used as songs for children, easy to learn.

In the couplets they narrate very passionate stories, which can be from very happy to very sad like heartbreak or death. This type of poems, apart from having been used in tales or stories, can also be used to narrate historical events or customs.

It is usual for the authors of the couplets to be unknown, since they are poems that pass from generation to generation orally. But some of them have been written by well-known authors in Spanish literature, such as Rafael de León, Manuel López Quiroga, Antonio Quintero and Federico Garcia Lorca.

we leave you with some examples of couplets, so you can see what its structure is like.

Couplet for me everything is beautiful

For me everything is beautiful

for me everything is the same,

I am a lucky man

that always sings when waking up.

Couplet I don't know what the wind says

I don't know what the wind says

I don't know what the sea says

But when I look at the horizon

I always start to cry.

Couplet In life there are six pillars

In life there are six pillars,

that you should follow them,

always sow respect

and in your life be happy.

Copla to break a piñata

Give it, give it, give it

Do not loose the focus

because if you lose it

you lose your way.

You already gave him one

you already gave him two,

you already gave him three

and your time is up.

carnival couplet

my beloved little box,

we should both sing:

you with your soft harmony

me with my unequal voice.

This year for carnival

my implement does not have a girth;

as I want I will pass,

like vinchuca in the quincha.

During the day I go to work

at night I go out to sing,

singing like the coyuyo

announcing the carnival.

When the carnival arrives

I don't have lunch or dinner at all;

I keep myself with the couplets,

I fall asleep with the tune.

Nine days to enjoy them

to the carnival. Achalay!

From the Saturday before

until Sunday i' Pujllay.

Copla spreadsby Ruben Dario

The white cat! in bed

maya, bends, extends.

A ruby ​​red ignites

on the balloons of the chest.

the untied hair

the divine back aroman.

Under the shirt they show

two swans with black necks.

Princess of my madness,

that your hair unties,

say, why the white cats

do you like dark silks?

Couplet All those who sing well

All those who sing well sing indoors

and I, since I sing badly, I sing to the night watchman and to the wind.

When I take the guitar and cross it in my arms,

I feel like my work is over right away.

Couplet women's love

women's love

It's like that of the chickens

that in missing the rooster

they come close to any chicken.

women's love

It's like a fire in a haystack:

once it has been turned on

can no longer be turned off.

Now that you have been able to know examples of couplets, we are going to discover a variant. The popular couplet is a poem in which you work with a very colloquial and direct language, that will help us understand the society of a moment in a specific region of Spain. The concept of popular copla refers to a type of stanza that has been created thanks to the tradition of the town. It is usually made up of four octosyllable lines with assonance or consonant rhyme.

The most popular types of couplets are the following.

Minor art couplets and examples

The couplets of minor art are those that are composed of verses of eight syllables or less. They are the most traditional and well-known and it is possible to differentiate between three types of couplets of minor art:

• Romance: They have lines of eight syllables, and the rhymes are between the second and fourth lines, while the first and third are free.
• Seguidilla: The first and third lines have seven syllables and free rhyme, while the second and fourth lines have five syllables and rhyme assonance.
• Round: They have octosyllabic verses, where the first verse rhymes with the fourth, and the second verse with the third.

couplet of Apparently wants the boldness

Apparently wants the boldness

of your crazy look,

to the boy who puts the coconut

and then he is afraid of her.

Examples of couplets of major art

They are made up of eight dodecasyllable lines, that is, twelve syllables each.

For example:

couplet of Labyrinth of Fortune by Juan de Mena

To the very arrogant don Juan the second

to the one with whom Jupiter was so jealous

that so much of the world made him

how much he made himself from heaven;

to the great king of Spain, to César novelo

who with Fortune is well fortunate;

to him in whom virtue and reign fit

to him the knee rooted to the ground.

The couplets are composed of stanzas of 4 lines. There can be as many stanzas as the author needs to develop the theme that he wants to treat.

Example of a couplet of a stanza

couplet of At sunset I sing

At sunset I sing

a praise to heaven,

But I don't have my rhyme

and then I regret.

Example of a couplet of two stanzas

Couplet heaven is from heaven

Heaven is from heaven

the cloud is chalk.

the face of the toad

It makes me laugh.

the moon is cheese

and the sun is sun.

the face of the toad

it gives me a lot of cough.

Example of a couplet of three stanzas

Couplet from sunday to sunday

from sunday to sunday

I see your face

when you go to mass

in the morning.

cute little sky

I would like to

that all week

sunday out

from sunday to sunday

I see your face

when will it be sunday

holy virgin!

Example of a couplet with more than three stanzas

couplet of Mr. Cat

There was Mr. Don Gato

sitting on your roof

meow, meow, meow

sitting on his roof.

He has received a letter

in case he wants to be married,

meow, meow, meow

in case he wants to be married.

with a white kitten

niece of a brown cat

meow, meow, meow

niece of a brown cat.

The cat to go see her

has fallen from the roof,

meow, meow, meow

has fallen from the roof

He has broken seven ribs,

the backbone and the tail,

meow, meow, meow

the spine and the tail.

They already take him to bury

down the street of the fish,

meow, meow, meow

down fish street.

To the smell of sardines

the cat has risen,

meow, meow, meow

the cat has risen.

That's why people say

seven lives has a cat,

meow, meow, meow

seven lives has a cat.

It is important to know the main features of couplets, to be able to recognize one when you find it or write your own poetic piece. These are the characteristics of the couplets:

• They belong to the oral tradition of the towns and regions of Spain. That is why it is common for people from the same area know the same couplets, while when you change region, these popular poems usually change.
• As they have passed from generation to generation orally, it is possible to meet several versions of the same copla, in which words, melodies or even entire verses change.
• The couplets are made up of stanzas of 4 lines, which are usually octosyllabic and rhyming assonance or consonance.
• There are three types of couplets of minor art in which the rhyme will be affected: romance (8-8a 8-8a), seguidilla (7-5a 7-5a) and redondilla (8a 8b 8b 8a).
• They can be performed before an audience, no matter how small, with or without instruments.
• They are simple stories that contain morals and funny anecdotes.

Couplets can be about different themes, but they almost always convey a strong emotional charge, so that the reader or listener arouses her emotions and feelings. The couplets usually generate a sentimental movement. By using common street language, the people felt very identified with this type of poetry and the author was directly linked to the society of the time.

Another of the objectives of the coplas was generate a "fun" In the public. For this reason, many of them have sarcasm, phrases with double intentions, grotesque words, etc. All this in order to make the viewer laugh out loud.

As the years have gone by, the verses have been changing their themes to the needs of society at the time. That is why you will be able to find couplets that address all these topics: love, heartbreak, death, religion, daily life, etc.

We hope this article has helped you understand the couplets further and you have been able to see some clear examples. If you are interested in continuing to learn more about this topic or something similar, do not hesitate to consult our writing section.