Spanish Lyric Poetry: Postwar Period to the 1970s
Spanish Lyric Poetry: From the Postwar Period to the Late 1950s
As was happening in other literary genres, there was also a major change following the Civil War. However, there were some bridges between poetry before and after the war. Two of the poets of the Generation of ’27 who remained in Spain became role models for young writers:
- Dámaso Alonso, whose Hijos de la ira (1944) started a trend of existential poetry.
- Vicente Aleixandre, whose History of the Heart (1954) became the model for postwar
Generation of ’98: Key Authors and Literary Works
Generation of ’98
Definition and Origin
The Generation of ’98 was a Spanish literary movement named after the “Disaster of ’98.” It proposed an aesthetic renovation of literature and socio-cultural regeneration of the country. The movement meets the criteria to be considered a generation, and the origin of the generation can be traced to three manifestos (Azorín, Baroja, Machado).
Features
- A taste for both the castizo (traditional Spanish) and Europeanism: A desire to Europeanize Spain while retaining
Spanish Literature: Lazarillo, Quixote, and Baroque Authors
Lazarillo de Tormes
Lazarillo de Tormes: As directed in the preface, the work is addressed to “Your Grace”. The structure consists of a prologue and 7 treatises.
Lazarillo’s Masters:
- Blind Man: A stingy and bad master. (Greed)
- Cleric: Greedy and evil master. (Petty)
- Hidalgo: A good person but ruined, a ruined knight. (False Honor)
- Friar: A bad person.
- Pardoner: Sells bulls. (Lazarillo learns to lie because of him)
- Water Bearer: Carrying water, the best master.
- Town Crier: Becomes a guide through an archpriest.
Spanish Poets: Cernuda, Alonso, and Aleixandre
Luis Cernuda (1902-1963)
Luis Cernuda was born in Seville. He went into exile after the Civil War, living in England and America, and finally died in Mexico. His work is characterized by a grave tone, a deep and sincere passionate intimacy (homosexual), and an often elegiac poetry that conveys authenticity. His verses are lyrically dense and offer the desolate feeling of the poet in a rough or violent and nostalgic context.
Key Works:
- Reality and Desire (1936): Includes all his work up to that point,
Modernism in Catalan Literature: Art, Society, and Key Figures
The Dawn of the 20th Century: A Changing World
The advances of industrial civilization were transforming modern life. The Belle Époque, a euphoric period of peace, creativity, and technological development, was led by the European bourgeoisie. However, a state of tension and aggressive criticism existed among intellectuals against the injustices of capitalism in the metropolis and the colonies of imperialism. This period stimulated the progress of science and technology, but was followed by World
Read MoreSpanish and European 20th Century Literature: Key Authors
**Lírica: Gender Literary in the 20th Century**
**Cultivators**
- a) Those who seek the essence of poetry (pure poets).
- b) Those who use poetry to express their inner turmoil (existentialists) or feelings of the collective.
- c) Those who break sharply with tradition (Vanguard).
**In Europe**
- a) Pure poets such as Mallarmé and Paul Valéry.
- b) Poets with social anxiety such as Rilke and Yeats.
- c) Those who seek a total liberation of man, like Paul Éluard and Neruda.