20th Century Spanish Poetry: From Transition to Experimentation
Spanish Poetry from 1936
Transition Poetry: Miguel Hernandez
Miguel Hernandez’s work serves as a bridge between the poetry of the Generation of ’27 and the poetry of the post-Civil War generation.
MH – Life
A goat herder with little formal education, his will and desire to learn led him to educate himself. In 1934, he moved to Madrid from Orihuela. His friendships with poets from the Generation of ’27 determined his ideological and poetic evolution.
MH – Work
- “Perito en Lunas” (1933): A book with Gongoristic influence, featuring some very clever stanzas.
- “El rayo que no cesa” (1936): He finds his own voice. He still uses classical and baroque forms, but does not restrain the passion with which he addresses his favorite themes: life, love, and death.
- “Viento del pueblo” (1937) and “El hombre acecha” (1939): A simpler style, consistent with the patriotic and wartime themes that he explores.
- “Cancionero y romancero de ausencias” (1938-41): A posthumous book of poems, popular in their rhymes, about the anguish of jail and his longing for his wife and son.
Poetry in the 1940s
In the early postwar years, two distinct poetic tendencies emerged:
- Rooted Poetry: Characterized by an ordered worldview, formal beauty, traditional themes, classical stanzas, and meters. Authors include Luis Rosales, Leopoldo Panero, Luis Felipe Vivanco, and Dionisio Ridruejo.
- Uprooted Poetry: With a critical and passionate existential tone, focused on human themes. Dámaso Alonso’s “Hijos de la ira” (1944) is a key example.
- Outside these tendencies: Authors like Carlos Bousoño and Rafael Morales.
Social Poetry: Blas de Otero
In the early 1950s, the predominant tone of poetry shifted. It offered a critical testimony of reality. This was social poetry, in which the poet did not express personal feelings but aimed to contribute to changing the world and society. The poet prioritized the problems of humanity above all else.
Topics: General concern for Spain and reporting on living conditions.
Style: Clear and simple, with a conversational tone.
Authors: Gabriel Celaya, José Hierro, and Blas de Otero.
Blas de Otero
- Life and Personality: Born in Bilbao, he was a major poet of his time, and his work summarizes the evolution of Spanish poetry from 1939 until his death. He was a lawyer and professor of literature, censored and banned on several occasions.
- Stages:
- Existential: Marked by a shocking tone, focused on the anguished search for God, love, and the meaning of human existence. Works include “Ángel fieramente humano” and “Redoble de conciencia”.
- Social: This stage represents committed poetry, full of solidarity with Spain and its collective problems. Key works include “Pido la paz y la palabra”, “En castellano”, and “Que trata de España”.
- Experimental: An important change in form, closer to experimentalism, is seen in “Hojas de Madrid”.
The Generation of 50: Jaime Gil de Biedma and José Ángel Valente
The Generation of 50 is a group of young poets who began publishing in the 1950s. They were younger than the social poets, although they shared a critical vision of reality, ethical attitudes, and a similar attention to the problems of the community.
Themes: A return to the eternal themes of poetry (love, pain, loneliness, and death) and other more personal themes (friendship, memory, family, and biography), which distanced them from social poetry.
Style: Despite the differences between them, most display a conscious style and a more careful use of language and poetic forms.
Authors: Ángel González, Jaime Gil de Biedma, and José Ángel Valente, among others.
Jaime Gil de Biedma
Born in Barcelona, he has been a very influential poet for the current generation. His poetry was oriented towards unmasking the contradictions of the bourgeoisie, hence its civic character, which led him to skepticism and a negative view of reality. Among his books are: “Compañeros de viaje” (1959), “Moralidades” (1966), and “Poemas póstumos” (1968).
José Ángel Valente
Born in Orense, he was an avid traveler, living in numerous European cities, including Paris and Geneva, where he worked as a teacher and translator. His poetry is a constant inquiry into language with the purpose of achieving knowledge through poetry and his own salvation.
In his early works, he attempts to find truth from experience, characterized by precise and sober verse. These include “A modo de esperanza” (1955) and “Poemas a Lázaro” (1960).
From 1966, with “La memoria y el signo” to “El inocente” (1970), he enters a destructive stage that aims to unmask the lies of the mundane world.
A fragmentary stage begins after this, in which short poems predominate, reflecting a dissected world, as seen in “Treinta y siete fragmentos” (1972).
From 1979, a new phase opens. The Pontic steppe and the receptive waiting for the word become essential. He incorporates the language of mysticism along the lines of San Juan de la Cruz and Juan Ramón Jiménez. His works from this period include: “Mandorla” (1982), “Al alba el cantor” (1992), and “Fragmentos de un libro futuro” (2000).