Spanish Generation of ’27: Poets and Evolution
The Generation of ’27: A Literary Movement
If any group deserves the name of a generation, it is this one, although each member has their own characteristics. It comprises, among others, Pedro Salinas, Jorge Guillén, Gerardo Diego, Dámaso Alonso, Vicente Aleixandre, Federico García Lorca, Luis Cernuda, Rafael Alberti, Emilio Prados, and Manuel Altolaguirre.
The Generation of ’27 as a Literary Movement
The members of the Generation of ’27 were born between 1891 (Salinas) and 1905 (Altolaguirre). They had similar intellectual training. Most were academics, some became teachers, and almost all passed through the Student Residence.
The generational event that united them was the celebration of the tercentenary of the death of the Cordoban poet Luis de Góngora in 1927. They opposed those who did not recognize Góngora’s talent. They held a tribute at the Ateneo de Sevilla, invited by the poet and bullfighter Ignacio Sánchez Mejías. They collaborated in the same publications, such as the Journal of the West.
From 1920 to 1936, their lives were very close. There was no leader. Some speak of Juan Ramón Jiménez, but it seems clear that, despite his great influence, he was not a leader. They did not rise against the previous generation. They were actually very respectful of the Spanish literary tradition. There was no unique style, but all shared a desire to renew poetic language.
Aesthetic Affinities
The authors of the Generation of ’27 are characterized by:
- A balance between feelings and reason.
- Pure poetry with a more human touch.
- Poetry conceived as the brainchild of labor.
- Proposing an art valid for minorities and majorities, joining the cultured, the avant-garde, and the popular.
They brought together the best of all previous generations: they were attracted to avant-garde experimentation (Lorca, Alberti), declared themselves heirs of the previous generation (admiring Juan Ramón, Unamuno, Rubén Darío), and the symbolist poetry of Bécquer. They felt great passion for the classics, such as Manrique and Lope de Vega.
Stages in its Evolution
Three major stages can be noted:
Until 1927
This stage was characterized by the influence of Bécquer, Modernism, and the avant-garde, especially Cubism and Ultraism. At the same time, influenced by Paul Valéry and Juan Ramón Jiménez, they were oriented toward the dehumanization of pure poetry itself. There were also human influences, especially through neopopular lyricism (Rafael Alberti). The thirst for formal perfection led to classicism, especially from 1925 to 1927.
From 1927 to the Civil War
A certain weariness of the previous dehumanized formalism began to be felt, and a process of re-humanization began. The first Surrealist works appeared. New human themes emerged, such as love. Some poets, due to social concerns, became interested in politics.
After the War
After the Civil War, the poetic group fell apart. Federico García Lorca was shot in 1936. The rest were dispersed: Luis Cernuda, Rafael Alberti, Pedro Salinas, and Jorge Guillén went into exile. In their production, the subject of the lost homeland appeared repeatedly. In Spain, only Gerardo Diego, Dámaso Alonso, and Vicente Aleixandre remained, writing poetry of existential anguish.
Jorge Guillén
Guillén’s life and work match that of Juan Ramón Jiménez. He renders it in a book titled Our Air, which is divided into five cycles: Cántico, Clamor, Homenaje, Y otros poemas, and Final. The first three stand out.
In Cántico, three hundred poems are collected, reaffirming the author’s mood toward reality: “The world is well done.” It gives us a worldview devoid of drama in which love is the zenith of existence. He speaks of light, birds, trees, the sea, and elements of everyday reality, such as an armchair or coffee.