20th Century Spanish Literature: Movements and Authors
20th Century Spanish Literature
Early 20th Century Literature
In the early years of the 20th century, aestheticism and anti-realist movements, initiated in the late 19th century, flourished. These movements were characterized by their cult of beauty and included:
- The Pre-Raphaelite movement in Britain
- Parnassianism and Symbolism in France
- Modernism in Hispanic America and Spain
The interwar avant-garde consolidated and violently broke with previous aesthetic art, proposing a radically different and anti-sentimental future. Futurism in Italy declared anti-romanticism. Cubism presented a decomposed image, offering a fragmented vision of reality. Dadaism claimed the child’s world before all logic. Surrealism was based on the theories of Freud.
Modernist Literature
Modernist literature was characterized by:
- Diversity of Influences: Romanticism (Bécquer and Rosalía de Castro), French Symbolism and Parnassianism, and American Modernism (Rubén Darío’s brilliance and sensuality).
- Root Issues: Withdrawal, uprooting, evasion, and existential concerns.
- Style: A modernist renewal of language, preferring expressive resources.
The modernists excelled in lyrical poetry and poetic prose. Notable writers include Antonio Machado, Juan Ramón Jiménez, and Rubén Darío.
Generation of ’98
Background: Influenced by current literary thinkers, liberal reformers, or regenerationists.
Trajectory: Evolution from radical youth positions to more conservative positions in maturity.
Ethical Stance: Preoccupation with social and cultural problems led to reflection on Spanish society.
The Spanish Issue: Arose when they tried to understand the crisis that defined Spain at the end of the century.
Existential Concerns: Reflected in their aesthetics, leaning towards simplicity.
Language: Emphasis on clarity and conciseness.
Theater of the Early 20th Century
In the first third of the century, high comedy, costumbrista theater, and poetic drama triumphed. Writers like Unamuno, Azorín, and Valle-Inclán experimented with new dramatic forms. High comedy featured current issues with a critical tone expressed in an elegant and poetic language. Modernist drama was inspired by Romantic drama, historical theater, or manners theater, recreating colorful environments with popular and funny characters.
Novel (Valle-Inclán)
Valle-Inclán’s Sonatas represent the culmination of Spanish modernist prose.
Poetry (Valle-Inclán)
Fragrance, a trilogy composed of The Passenger, Legend of Don Juan Manuel, and The Flute of Pan, is a key work in his lyrical poetry.
Miguel de Unamuno
Unamuno’s work pursues expressiveness and encourages reflection with a harsh and vivid tone. His writings present a great unity through the repetition of themes and a passionate style. The themes in his works reveal his personal concerns about Spain and his regenerationist reflections.
Theater
Unamuno’s theater is reminiscent of classical philosophical tragedy. La Tía Tula explores two major themes: the connection to the landscape and existential concerns.
Novel
His novels reflect his concerns, removing everything not essential to the story. This cleansing of elements produces innovative findings, suppressing allusions to landscape and the circumstances surrounding the characters.
Essay
Unamuno’s essays are written in a passionate tone. Two themes predominate: reflection on Spain and existential concerns.
Pío Baroja
Baroja wrote numerous novels, short stories, memoirs, and essays. He stands out as the foremost novelist of his time, especially brilliant in portraying characters, describing environments, and writing dialogues. He conceived the novel as a genre that could include all others: philosophical reflection, adventure, description, etc. His characters tend to be rebellious. He presents two types of characters: active and passive. Suburban environments, the lives of the poor, and their social, political, and economic problems predominate. His style is characterized by its simplicity, reflecting the living language and using an anti-rhetorical language.
Noucentisme
Intellectuals: Defend rationality and intellectual rigor. They usually have a solid education.
Europeanism: Advocate for the intellectual modernization of the country and its relationship with European culture.
Presence in Cultural and Political Life: Take advantage of the levers of power to influence society and trust in the work of revitalizing cultured minorities.
Universalist Ideal: They show their preference for urban culture.
Aestheticism: The artwork is conceived as a self-contained and beautiful object.
Formal Preoccupation: They admire the intellectual rigor of a job well done in all fields, especially art.
Noucentista Literature
Noucentista writers promoted the penetration of the avant-garde while defending an intellectual art style. The Noucentista style is dehumanized and shows a marked formal concern. It avoids carelessness and tends towards a selective language aimed at a minority.
Noucentista Essay and Journalism
Noucentisme saw a great development of the essay. Noucentista essays predominantly feature a thoughtful and objective tone, eliminating subjectivity and vehemence. The subjects are varied (scientific, historical, political, and aesthetic).
José Ortega y Gasset
Ortega y Gasset is considered the inspiration for the 1913 group that formed the Revista de Occidente, which welcomed the most innovative artistic and philosophical contributions. He wrote philosophical essays, but his cultural influence is due to his reflections on Spain and aesthetics. In his reflections on Spain, he criticizes the country’s isolation and advocates for a Europeanist aesthetic. His works include The Dehumanization of Art and Ideas about the Novel. The former was an analysis of new art but became a theoretical justification of the avant-garde, influencing the Generation of ’27.
Avant-Garde Movements
The avant-garde movements in Europe began around World War I and triumphed in the 1920s. The avant-garde had a rapid reception in Spain. The most developed avant-garde movements were Creationism and Surrealism, both born in Paris. The peak of the avant-garde occurred in the 1930s when many were inclined towards a more human and committed avant-garde poetry. Two periods are distinguished:
Birth and Rise of Modernism: The first signs appeared around 1908 with Ramón Gómez de la Serna. The “isms” proliferated around 1918, with manifestos and magazines, and Ultraism and Creationism gained fleeting success. These movements collected the recreational and vital tone of the Dadaists as well as the worship of machines.
Surrealism and Rehumanization: Surrealism’s influence led to rehumanization, emphasizing emotions, angst, and rebellion against modern society. It was the most fruitful movement and the most influential on the Generation of ’27. Its imprint is reflected in formal and imaginative freedom and new images created through irrational associations without logical meaning but with a huge emotional charge.
Generation of ’27
Main Features:
- Similar ages
- Liberal attitudes in politics
- Friendship formed during their time as students
- Participation in cultural events
- Eagerness to modernize poetry
- Creation of a generational language
- Shared admiration for classic and modern literature
Federico García Lorca
Lorca was an excellent poet and playwright. His work presents some constant themes: love, frustration, and tragic destiny. Marginalized beings doomed to pain, loneliness, and death abound.
Poetry
Lorca’s poetry is dramatic and tragic. Two stages are distinguished in his poetic career:
- The first stage blends popular and high culture, tradition, and modernity.
- The second stage shows Surrealist influence.
Rafael Alberti
Alberti is characterized by a variety of themes and styles, mastery of technique, and prolific output. He is related to Lorca for his avant-garde and traditional influences. Four stages are distinguished in his poetry:
- Neopopularism (Sailor on Land)
- Avant-Garde (Sobre los ángeles)
- Committed Poetry (El poeta en la calle)
- Poetry of Exile (Pleamar)
Miguel Hernández
The most characteristic features of Hernández’s poetry are metaphorical richness and a passionate tone. He combines the popular with the cultured. In his first stage, he admires Góngora. In his mature stage, his constant themes are love, life, and death. Classical sonnets predominate, obliging the poet to synthesize the theme and concentrate his overflowing passion. His last stage includes social poetry (Viento del pueblo) and prison poetry, written in his collection Cancionero y romancero de ausencias.