Romantic Lyricism of Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer: An Analysis
ITEM 2: Romantic Lyricism of Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer
Historical Context of Romanticism
Napoleon’s expansionist policies in Europe spread the ideals of the French Revolution (liberty, equality, fraternity). However, this expansion led to a reaction from traditional monarchies and values (religion, throne, home) and the exaltation of nationalist sentiments reaffirming historic identities against the invader. This environment in Europe during the first half of the nineteenth century gave rise to Romanticism.
As an artistic and literary movement, Romanticism is characterized by a reaction against the excesses of the Neoclassical period and its imposition of strict rules and regulations, its emphasis on believable and educational art.
Characteristics of Romanticism
Romanticism exalts individualism and the absolute freedom of the artist and inspiration. Established fees and rules were rejected, and genre barriers were broken down.
Idealism:
Romanticism rejects vulgar reality, which contrasts with its ideals. It fosters a restlessness that produces a vital desire to escape to other exotic places or other times less pragmatic and more idealistic. Sometimes, it produces rebellion against the establishment, which is manifested in the exaltation of marginal characters – mysterious individuals outside social conventions and symbols of freedom, like the pirate or the beggar.
Nature is seen as free and powerful, while man feels weak and diminished, subject to destiny. Nature often reflects the intimacy of the bewildered artist, with abounding moonlit nights, desolate landscapes, and ruins.
This taste for the individual, for what is different, leads to an appreciation for the individuality of each country, its characteristics and customs, and its languages (the upsurge of nationalism).
In Summary:
Romanticism exalts individual freedom and expresses dissatisfaction with the current situation. This dissatisfaction was understood by some as a release from the rationalist ideals that the Enlightenment of the eighteenth century had tried to impose, signifying a return to traditional, patriotic, and religious values. Others saw it as a need to deepen the new values of equality and progress that had not been properly developed by the new regime.
- Traditional Romanticism aimed to restore the Old Regime.
- Liberal or revolutionary Romanticism aimed to develop new values.
Romanticism arrived in Spain late and superficially due to the absolutism of Fernando VII. Many liberals had to go into exile and did not return to Spain until his death, bringing with them the Romantic ideas learned in Europe.
Genres of Romanticism
In prose, the historical novel set in the legendary Middle Ages flourished, along with newspaper articles, some political, others depicting customs and popular types. The theater did not follow classical rules. Its themes revolved around destiny, honor, and love, aiming to educate emotionally. Significant authors include the Duke of Rivas, Antonio García Gutiérrez, and José Zorrilla.
However, the genre that best fits the characteristics of Romanticism is poetry, whether narrative or lyrical, which allows for the expression of the poet’s aspirations and frustrations. Romantic poets felt free and unfettered, writing only according to the impulses of inspiration. They employed spectacular forms, sonorous voices, and strong rhythms. Romantic poems are usually polymers and polystrophic, rescuing forgotten metrics such as popular ballads and inventing others. Drama and intensity dominate, moving away from the restraint of “good taste” of the previous century.
Romantic poetry can be classified into two periods:
- The first period is characterized by a more general dissatisfaction with life. Its main representatives are Espronceda, the Duke of Rivas, and Zorrilla.
- The second period corresponds to post-Romantic writing, with the rise of realism. Poetry becomes more moderate and acquires a prosaic tone, preferring an intimate, short, and simple lyricism, as seen in Rosalía de Castro and Bécquer.
Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer
Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer is a paradigm of the unfortunate Romantic: orphaned since childhood, he lived poorly writing articles and collaborations. He contracted tuberculosis, obtained a bureaucratic position from which he was laid off, and lost his poetry collection in a revolt as he prepared it for publication. He married Casta Esteban, with whom he was unhappy and eventually separated.
Bécquer wrote Legends in prose with the characteristics of traditional Romanticism and Letters from My Cell, a collection of articles written during his stay in the monastery of Veruela.
Rimas
Bécquer’s Rimas appeared posthumously and are characterized by intimate lyricism, formal simplicity, and depth of feeling, following the line of traditional poetry. The rhymes are short, assonant, simple in form, and very careful in their composition, based on parallelism, symmetry, subtle but marked rhythm, an intimate tone (often in the form of personal conversation), and the great importance of symbols.
They are divided into four groups:
- 1-8: Poetry
- 9-29: Hopeful love
- 30-51: Disillusioned and lost love
- 52-76: Loneliness, pain, and death