Portuguese Language and Literature in the 18th Century: Margins Between Rennaissance, Baroque and Neo-Classicism

The century of King John V the Magnanimous inspired, in a confluence of early vectors, the most varied works of literary and/or historical character, such as the Corpus Illustrium Poetarum Lusitanorum, a reliquary of the Portuguese poets who wrote in Latin. We do not intend to make a thorough analysis of the early texts of the Corpus, but a quick reading seems fruitful for an understanding of the objectives of the oratorian compilers. Thus, the prolegomena of C. I. P. L. They embody a true structural philosophy of the work that leads us through the intricacies of the architecture of this ?temple of Latinity?. The first volume of the Corpus offers us a frontispiece that indicates ab initio the 'temple porch'. The indications that we obtain refer to the typology of the work: it is a compilation, a Thesaurus, similar to many that appeared in the same century under the influence of the Baroque, such as the Apollo Postilion and the Renaissance Phoenix or under the influence of royal patronage and the spirit of the Royal Academy of History. This work is fundamental for the understanding and study of the Portuguese language, literature and culture in the eighteenth century.