Romanticism and Modernism in Literature
Romanticism
After the Napoleonic War (War of Independence), many romantics had to go into exile. But with the death of Fernando VII, Romanticism was officially proclaimed in Spain, influencing Romantic writers. Spanish Romanticism drew from English sources (more auditory and externalizing) and German sources (more intimate and spiritualized).
General Issues
- The Romantic spirit suffers from the limitations imposed by the outside world on its desires, living in a constant feeling of incompleteness and not fully embracing the world.
- The Romantic sought real or imagined escape from the surrounding world, looking for times and places of mental refuge (withdrawal).
- The Romantic spirit exalts the self through individualism, separating the individual from the world to reaffirm their subjectivism.
- The spirit is free, without coercion, often objecting to societal norms.
- Nature is a reflection of the Romantic spirit’s state (tormented, happy, suffering, relaxed…). The scenery often changes to accompany this state.
- José de Espronceda (Romantic poetry), The Student of Salamanca.
- Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer, Rhymes.
- The Duke of Rivas (Romantic drama), Don Álvaro, or the Force of Destiny.
- José Zorrilla (Romantic drama), Don Juan Tenorio.
- Ramón Mesonero Romanos (Romantic prose), Panorama matritense.
- José de Larra (Romantic prose), Figaro.
- Gil y Carrasco (Romantic historical novel), The Lord of Bembibre.
Modernism
A literary and cultural movement taking place between 1885 and 1914, reacting against the rational structures of Realism. It was a heterogeneous movement that emerged in various countries, resulting in unique nuances in each area. There are two important references:
- Latin America (Rubén Darío).
- Parnassianism (Gautier) and Symbolism (Baudelaire).
Parnassianism broke radically with realistic bourgeois taste, advocating ‘art for art’s sake’. Gautier sought to separate poetry from other social disciplines.
Symbolism brought a re-humanization of poetic art, where a material symbol (as used by Baudelaire) attempts to explain something abstract about the inner life of human beings.
Spanish Modernism was influenced by poets from various traditions: Hispanic, French, English, and Spanish.
General Issues
- Disquiet: The Modernist poet suffers because they do not feel reflected in the world they inhabit; they do not fight but escape through art.
- Escapism: It is an escapist movement, seeking refuge in space and time.
- Cosmopolitanism: The poet was cosmopolitan, a citizen of the world.
- Love and Eroticism: These are main themes in these works.
- Hispanic American Identity: Hispanic American poets sought to understand their origins and indigenous past, which sometimes led to a rejection of Spanish culture, viewed as imperialist.
- Hispanic Influence: It was quickly recognized that Spanish influence was also positive.
Aesthetics and Language
Aesthetics is the discipline that studies beauty. Modernism partook of a duality: on one hand, a sweet and delicate beauty; on the other, a beauty externalizing the sensible world.
Mastery of language was projected in the varied use of syntax and literary figures. Therefore, this movement was sometimes called the ‘Realm of the Senses’.
Regarding meter, verses were often hendecasyllables (11 syllables) and dodecasyllables (12 syllables). Lines of high art, especially those with an even number of syllables, often had to be analyzed in two hemistichs.
Stanzas included Alexandrine triplets (14 syllables).
An influential factor was the use of accent, particularly with words stressed on the antepenultimate syllable (esdrújulos), penultimate syllable (llanos), and final syllable (agudos).