Chè per tal variar natura è bella : Cervantine Variations on the Topic of Love Seafaring = Chè per tal variar natura è bella : variaciones cervantinas sobre el tópico de la navegación amorosa

In the studies about the topic of love seafaring, Cervantes’ poetry is only mentioned for the ‘romance’ by don Luis inserted in Don Quixote or for the sonnet by the enamoured Portuguese inserted in the Persiles. Nevertheless, it is a very recurrent topic in the inserted poetry of the alcalaíno. However, beyond the quantitative aspect, the importance of Cervantes for the studies about the topic lies in the fact that he does not simply repeat the metaphors crystallized by the tradition, but he transforms them. From the insertion process itself, the topic is recontextualized in the light of the stories of its fictional authors, but also, several of them carry out different variations and innovative twists in the use of the topic, broadening the expressive limits of the tradition they inherited. The purpose of this article is to carry out a detailed analysis of the topic in Cervantes’ inserted poetry, framing it in the coordinates of the Petrarchan tradition –Italian and Spanish– from where it starts to determine his poetical innovations regarding the use of the topic.