Generation of ’27: Spanish Literary Movement, Authors & Themes
The Generation of ’27
The Generation of ’27 groups a number of writers who blend Spanish literary tradition with avant-garde trends. The year 1927 marks the 300th anniversary of Góngora’s death, a key figure for this group. Prominent authors include: Pedro Salinas, Jorge Guillén, Gerardo Diego, Vicente Aleixandre, Federico García Lorca, Dámaso Alonso, Luis Cernuda, Rafael Alberti, Emilio Prados, Manuel Altolaguirre, and Miguel Hernández.
Key Characteristics
- Birth dates close in time.
- Reference
Medieval Spanish Literature: Forms, Authors, and Works
Key Features of Medieval Literature
Literature creates a fictional and believable world. It makes aesthetic use of language intentionally. Its function is to amuse, entertain, and communicate ideas. Communication is delayed (no dialog). The context is very important to understand the work. Its formal channels are verse and prose. Frequent use of stylistic devices (metaphor, hyperbaton, etc.) occurs. Genres include epic or narrative, lyric, and dramatic (plus didactic in the 18th century). Until the
Read MoreSpanish Literature: 1898 Generation to Avant-Garde
Representatives of the Generation of ’98
Miguel de Unamuno: In his first novel, Peace in War, he realistically portrays reality. However, in his subsequent writings, such as Nivola, he joins philosophy with literature and is concerned with Spain and the struggle between faith and reason. Among his highlights are Nivola, La Tía Tula, Abel Sánchez, Fog, and San Manuel Bueno, Martyr.
Pío Baroja: He starts from realism but introduces renovating elements. He participates in the action and introduces
Read MoreApuleius’ The Golden Ass: A Roman Picaresque Novel
Apuleius (114 – after 170): The Golden Ass
Apuleius was an African, born in Madaura. He came from a wealthy family and furthered his studies in Rome and Athens. He traveled extensively throughout Greece, Rome, the East, and Egypt, becoming interested in the arts, religious and magical rites, and science.
He eventually became a priest in Carthage.
He enjoyed great fame as a magician due to his knowledge of magic. He opposed Christianity and was given many titles (contemporary), but enjoyed great significance
Read MoreCastilian Epic Poetry: The Song of Mio Cid
Read MoreThe Epic Poem
The epic poem is a poetic expression composed of a series of narratives in verse. Epics recount the exploits of a hero. They formed part of oral culture and memory and were recited by minstrels. The epic emerged in Castile in the 12th century.
Features of the Epic Poem
- Historical Character: The world of the epics is that of warriors and battle heroes. These heroes are sometimes adorned with superhuman virtues.
- Hero Figure: The hero embodies the fate of his people and spreads the ideals
Spanish Theater Before 1936: Benavente, Valle-Inclán, and Lorca
Pre-Theater 1936
In the theater before the Civil War, two orientations are distinguished: a commercial theater and a theater of renovation. The commercial theater includes works that respond to the more conventional tastes of the audience of the time:
- Bourgeois ambiance comedies (Roses of Autumn) and rural melodramas (The Unloved) by Jacinto Benavente.
- Comic drama by Carlos Arniches (Caciques) and brothers Serafín and Joaquín Álvarez Quintero (Those of Cain).
Two works stand out above the others:
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