The Generation of ’27: A Literary Renaissance in Spain

Posted on May 20, 2024 in Latin

I. The Generation of ’27

The term “Generation of ’27” refers to a group of poets that emerged in the 1920s in Spain. The name originates from the year 1927, when a tribute to the poet Luis de Góngora was held, with the participation of almost all the poets associated with this group.

II. Characteristics of the Generation

  1. Similar Ages and Backgrounds: They were of similar ages and possessed a great literary and intellectual curiosity. Moreover, their affluent family backgrounds allowed them to pursue poetry.
  2. Liberal Attitudes: Overall, they held liberal political attitudes and supported the Republic during the Spanish Civil War.
  3. Shared Spaces and Events: They established strong friendships at the Residencia de Estudiantes (Student Residence) in Madrid. They actively participated in cultural events, such as the celebration of Góngora’s tercentenary.
  4. Collaboration and Publications: They collaborated in the same journals, notably Revista de Occidente (Western Magazine).
  5. Modernization of Poetry: They shared a desire to modernize Spanish poetry. They recognized the influence of poets like Juan Ramón Jiménez and the philosopher José Ortega y Gasset.
  6. Generational Language and Style: They created a distinct generational language and style. They attached importance to metaphor and cultivated a refined aesthetic in their poetry.
  7. Admiration for Classics and Modernity: They shared an admiration for both classical and modern literature.

Synthesis of Tradition and Vanguard

The Generation of ’27 uniquely combined traditional and innovative elements, blending a taste for popular and high culture, and showing interest in both Hispanic and European literature.

  1. Traditional Literature: They valued both the cultured and the popular in traditional literature. Among the classical authors, they favored Manrique, Garcilaso de la Vega, Fray Luis de León, and especially Francisco de Quevedo and Luis de Góngora.
  2. Popular Literature: They appreciated the Spanish songbooks, ballads, and folk songs, particularly those used by Lope de Vega and Góngora.
  3. Recent Poetry: They showed interest in the works of Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer, Rubén Darío, and Juan Ramón Jiménez.

From the avant-garde movements, they embraced the new, the original, and the provocative, incorporating elements of wit, humor, and a willingness to break with conventions.

III. Stages of the Generation

  1. Initial Stage (until 1927): This period was marked by the influence of Juan Ramón Jiménez’s ideal of pure poetry and the growing impact of avant-garde movements.
  2. From 1928 to the Civil War: With the influence of Surrealism, a rehumanization of lyric poetry emerged, expressing the anguish, defiance, and social concerns of the poets.
  3. After the Civil War: Poetry after the Civil War was characterized by existential angst, social and ethical concerns, and the experience of exile.

Poetic Contributions of the Generation of ’27

  1. Emphasis on Imagery: The image became the foundation of poetic expression.
  2. Metric Innovations: They incorporated free verse and the”versícul” (short verse), previously explored by Juan Ramón Jiménez. They also combined traditional verse forms with modern language.

IV. Key Figures of the Generation

Pedro Salinas

Pedro Salinas wrote intellectual poetry characterized by an anti-rhetorical style, using everyday language. He also wrote avant-garde theater, short stories, and essays on literature. His career can be divided into three stages:

  1. Avant-garde Influence: Works like Presagios (Omens) and Seguro azar (Certain Chance) show the influence of avant-garde movements.
  2. Love Poetry: The theme of love dominates this stage, with works like La voz a ti debida (The Voice Due to You) and Razón de amor (Reason of Love), making him a renowned love poet of the group. His language is conceptual and dense, using paradoxes and playful ideas.
  3. Exile and Contemplation: This stage corresponds to works written in exile, such as El contemplado (The Contemplated) and Confianza (Trust).

Jorge Guillén

In his first stage, Jorge Guillén is considered a leading representative of pure poetry. He wrote intellectual and dehumanized poetry, along with numerous essays on literature. His career is also marked by distinct stages:

  1. Pure Poetry: Represented by Cántico (Song), this stage shows a vital and optimistic attitude. His style is elaborate and dense, combining intellectualized language with classical verse forms.
  2. Protest and Chaos: Clamor (Clamor), consisting of three parts including Maremagnum, represents a profound shift. Protest against chaos and destruction emerges, with the sea becoming a prominent symbol.
  3. Softened Pessimism: Homenaje (Tribute) marks a softening of the pessimistic tone.

Gerardo Diego

Gerardo Diego’s most characteristic feature is his combination of diverse styles. His work simultaneously presents avant-garde and classical elements, the cultured and the popular, and traditional forms alongside free verse. His themes often focus on his inner world, emotions, experiences, memories, and religious themes.

His avant-garde work, such as Imagen (Image), aligns with Creationism. He also blends traditional and Creationist elements in works like Manual de espumas (Manual of Foams).

His traditional work is diverse in themes and forms, using sonnets, songs, romances, and other forms. He emphasizes themes of love, the city of Soria, and other personal experiences.

Rafael Alberti

Rafael Alberti’s work is characterized by a variety of topics and styles, mastery of poetic technique, and prolific output. He cultivated poetry, prose, and drama.

He wrote political theater (Noche de guerra en el Museo del Prado – Night of War in the Prado Museum) and avant-garde poetic theater.

His prose memoir, La arboleda perdida (The Lost Grove), is a notable work.

His poetry is distinguished by four stages:

  1. Neo-Popular Poetry: Works like Marinero en tierra (Sailor Ashore) and La amante (The Lover) recreate forms of popular lyrics.
  2. Avant-Garde: Cal y canto (Lime and Stone) and Sobre los ángeles (Concerning the Angels) exemplify his avant-garde phase.
  3. Committed Poetry: With El poeta en la calle (The Poet in the Street), he begins a revolutionary poetry that denounces injustice and repression.
  4. Poetry of Exile: The theme of exile predominates in works like Pleamar (High Tide) and Retornos de lo vivo lejano (Returns from the Living Distance).

Luis Cernuda

Luis Cernuda’s poetry is consistently intimate and romantic in tone. It explores the contrast between desire and reality. The clash between his aspirations and his existence leads to feelings of loneliness, longing for a different world, and the desire for beauty and love. His style emphasizes the purification of images and a dense, emotional expression. He uses spoken language and a colloquial tone.

His career is marked by four stages:

  1. Early Works: His early works are characterized by two types of poetry: pure poetry (Perfil del aire – Profile of Air) and classicist poetry (eclogues, elegies, and odes).
  2. Surrealist Influence: After his stay in France, Surrealist influence appears in works like Un río, un amor (A River, a Love) and Los placeres prohibidos (Forbidden Pleasures).
  3. Civil War Period: This stage is represented by Las nubes (The Clouds).
  4. Exile and Loneliness: In exile, he composed poetry that accentuates the theme of loneliness, intertwined with the experience of exile. Vivir sin estar viviendo (Living Without Being Alive) is a prominent work from this period.

Vicente Aleixandre

Vicente Aleixandre’s style is characterized by a wealth of images that allude to the cosmos and nature, and the use of free verse approaching the”versículo” His poetic career is distinguished by three stages:

  1. Initial Stage: Represented by Ámbito (Scope).
  2. Surrealist Pessimism: This stage reveals a radical pessimism, reflecting on the pain and anguish of human existence. He aims to merge with the cosmos to become insensitive to suffering. Espadas como labios (Swords as Lips) and La destrucción o el amor (Destruction or Love) are notable works from this period.
  3. Humanistic Focus: Represented by Historia del corazón (History of the Heart), this stage focuses on human beings and their place in the community.

Dámaso Alonso

Dámaso Alonso dedicated himself to both poetry and literary criticism. His poetry is initially part of the aesthetics of the Generation of ’27, seen in books like Poemas puros: Poemillas de la ciudad (Pure Poems: Little Poems of the City). He later evolves into an existential poetry with Hijos de la ira (Children of Wrath), a significant work of postwar Spanish poetry.

Miguel Hernández

Miguel Hernández is often considered a poet of transition, bridging the Generation of ’27 with later poetic movements.

Federico García Lorca

Federico García Lorca was a prominent poet and playwright. His work presents recurring themes of love, frustration, and tragic fate. He often portrays marginalized individuals doomed to loneliness and death.

  1. Poetic Drama: Lorca’s theater is a form of poetic drama that presents a stylized reality. It generally presents a single theme: the confrontation between the individual and their environment. Notable plays include Bodas de sangre (Blood Wedding), Yerma, and La casa de Bernarda Alba (The House of Bernarda Alba).
  2. Tragic and Dramatic Poetry: Lorca’s poetry is both playful and tragic. It is dramatic because he often expresses himself through characters, and tragic because it reflects a sense of fatalism. Alongside the theme of tragic destiny, frustration and impossible desire are central.

His poetic career is distinguished by two stages:

  1. Fusion of Influences: This stage is characterized by the fusion of popular and high culture, tradition and modernity. His style combines traditional elements with innovative techniques. Romancero gitano (Gypsy Ballads) is a prominent work from this period.
  2. Surrealist Influence: Represented by Poeta en Nueva York (Poet in New York), this stage incorporates Surrealist influences.

Other notable works include Llanto por Ignacio Sánchez Mejías (Lament for Ignacio Sánchez Mejías), a powerful elegy.