Spanish Poetry: Post-Civil War Generations & Trends
Coexistence of Generations in Spanish Poetry
After the Civil War, the Generation of 98 and 27 wrote from exile, paving the way for several generations of poets with different perspectives on their reality.
Poetic Trends
Defining main styles and currents is difficult due to overlapping influences and authors of various ages writing similar poetry. However, the following trends can be distinguished:
Formalism
Books from this current had a nationalistic approach and aimed to uplift spirits. (Dionysus Ridruego, Luis Rosales, and Luis Felipe Vivanco) This is the Generation of 36. Formalist poets grouped around magazines like Escorial and Garcilaso. These and other literary magazines consciously tried to offset the limitations of the literary and political environment, as well as the loss of exiles. These poets wrote a type of poetry with delicate sentimentality, cold and evasive, detached from the problems of the time. They were politically aligned with the new regime.
The Cordoba Canticle group, promoted by Ricardo Molina, Juan Bernier, and García Baena, sought to break with Garcilaso’s classicism and align with the Generation of 27.
Realist Poetry
Espadaña magazine quickly became a voice for new, anti-formalist attitudes, revealing a concern for contemporary social problems and individual suffering. Its aim was to write for the people, rejecting pure art and seeking poetry concerned with human suffering. (Tremenda)
Victoriano Cremer, Eugenio de Nora, Gabriel Celaya, and Blas de Otero emphasized form, rhythm, and tone to create pieces reflecting their circumstances.
Testimonial Poetry
Several poets of the Generation of 36 published poetry with a less artistic and more intimate tone, emphasizing individual experience and reader participation. Religious poetry became more important. (Blas de Otero with Spiritual Canticle). Angel also wrote fiercely, strengthening human consciousness, with an agonizing search for a religious vision. José Hierro offered an intense sense of loss and the perception of the terrible effects of time.
Other poets include: Rafael Morales, Vicente Gaos, José Luis Cano, Eugenio de Nora, and Ramón de Garcisol.
Indeterminacy: Positivism and Surrealism
In 1945, several poets and artists sought to create Postismo. Their attitude represented a defense of creativity against the establishment, emphasizing free association and the absurd logic of surrealism. (Eduardo Chicharro, Alejandro Carriedo, Carlos Edmundo)
Social and Political Poetry
The shift to social and political poetry occurred as censorship became less rigorous. Poetry seemed to be the only environment where protest could be expressed, provided it did not directly attack the regime. Blas de Otero stood out with Ask for Peace and The Word, and Gabriel Celaya with Cantos Iberians.
New Directions in Spanish Poetry
The Generation of 50 emerged at the School of Barcelona with Carlos Barral, Gil de Viedma, and José Agustín Goytisolo, and in Madrid with Ángel González, José Ángel Valente, and Francisco Brines Caballero Bonald. They showed more concern for the human condition.