20th-Century Spanish Poetry: An Overview
20th-Century Spanish Poetry
The Poetry of Contemporanea: Post-war Poetry
The period prior to the war was considered a second Golden Age, especially flourishing in poetry. After the war, many poets went into exile, leaving a cultural vacuum in the genre.
Poetry Previous:
- Predominantly individualistic.
- Defense of the minority character of poetry.
- Search for originality.
The style is bright. Individualism and originality greatly differentiate the poets. Poetry is characterized by dehumanization. There’s a belief that the poet should be a demigod. Idealism predominates.
Post-war Poetry:
- The writer is united with the world community.
- Poetry is directed mainly to the masses.
- The poet feels committed to what they say, no matter the style. There is less originality.
The style is dramatic and more human. The differences among poets are smaller. The main theme is humanity. Poets define themselves as equals among humans. The everyday, the normal, and the poetic would be combined. Realism and humanism predominate. There are grave concerns about existence.
Miguel Hernandez
Epilogue of January 27th. Born in Orihuela in 1910. He was self-taught. Died in 1942 in prison. His tone is vigorous, passionate, and deeply human. There’s a balance between emotion and restraint. His poetry is representative. He began with “Perito en Lunas” (1934). His full stage is represented by “El rayo que no cesa” (1936), whose themes are life, love, and death. During the war, he was on the Republican side. In prison, he wrote “Cancionero y romancero de ausencias”, his last work (1938-1941).
Poetry of Exile
The poets make up the generations of ’14, like Diez Canedo and Juan Ramon Jimenez, and the generations of ’27, like Alberti and others. The main topic is the lost homeland. They evoke illusions of the beginning, the fight, the defeat, and then memories and nostalgia.
1950s: Rooted Poetry
This is the group of ’36, whose poets published their first works before the war. Luis Rosales, Luis Felipe Vivanco, and Dionisio Ridruejo stand out. They received avant-garde influences, used classic metric forms, and had Unamuno and Ortega as mentors. They have an optimistic and hopeful vision. They rediscover religious themes, love, and intimacy, among others. Other poets formed the Youth Creator movement. They defend external musicality and the cultivation of formalism. They took Garcilaso as a model.
Uprooted Poetry
It opposes the Garcilaso followers and focuses its attention on the rehumanization of poetry. Less stylistic perfection and more emotional cries. The poems reflect on the conflicts that human existence poses. Gabriel Celaya, Blas de Otero, and Ramon Vicente Alexandre belong to this group. In 1944, Dámaso Alonso publishes “Shadow of Paradise”, whose theme is passionate love. Dámaso Alonso also publishes “Children of Wrath”, in which he breaks with the dominant trends and expresses the anguish of modern man trapped in a dehumanized civilization. The poems become cries of despair and denunciation. Classical composition in stanzas is abandoned, and free verse is imposed. Everyday language is used. The problems of contemporary man in anguish are revalued. Along with this, a deep love for others is expressed.
Poetry of the Fifties and Sixties
In the 50s, poetry emerges with a new concept of man committed to his destiny, poetry written in a social language, plain and clear, with a colloquial tone. It acquires a political commitment. Poetry serves to highlight the problems of Spain, social injustice, and the yearning for work. The most important poets were Gabriel Celaya, Blas de Otero, and Ramon Garciasol. In these years, younger poets propose a different style than the previous ones. They are interested in realistic, human poems without political commitment. They care about style and look for a rich and precise lexicon. They deal with the passage of time, daily life, friendship, and love. They reject the emotionalism of rooted poetry. Purification and concentration of the word are sought, but with a personal language. José Agustín Goytisolo, José Angel Valente, and Claudio Rodríguez stand out.
From the Novisimos to Our Days
In the 70s, the Novisimos burst in, whose main characteristic is not to worry about politics as a fundamental factor in poetry. They defend imagination and sensoriality and use a different language (new avant-garde). They reject social poetry, and their poems are hermetic. They believe in the coldness and autonomy of art and the self-sufficiency of the poem. Their topics are taken from classical mythology, comics, painting, or music. They deal with childhood, love, and personal matters. The most representative poets are Jesús Munárriz, Antonio Colinas, and Luis Alberto de Cuenca. In the newest production, these characteristics will be appreciated:
- Classicist trends. They are inspired by classical times, although they take advantage of free verse for reflection. They deal with intimate themes such as love and mythology. Miguel d’Ors.
- Surrealist trends. Free verse and versicle. Blanca Andreu.
- Neo-baroque trends. Winding writing, often in versicles, on human topics. Julio Llamazares.
Blas de Otero
Born in Bilbao in 1916. He dedicated himself to teaching before dedicating himself to poetry. He died in Madrid in 1976.
- 1st stage. It is existential poetry in which God is uprooted to protest against the evolution of his existence, which is between life and death. “Ángel fieramente humano” (1950) and “Redoble de conciencia” (1951).
- 2nd stage. It begins in 1955 with “Pido la paz y la palabra”. At this stage, he reclaims the dignity of humanity. He pours out his feelings about love and pain for Spain. His protest is part of hope.
- 3rd stage. From 1965, he looks for new poetic forms, uses open metrics, and there is a greater presence of intimacy and free language. “Historias fingidas y verdaderas”.