Catalan and Valencian Culture: 19th and 20th Centuries
Cultural, Linguistic, and Political Shifts in the 19th and 20th Centuries
The 19th century meant a profound cultural, political, social, and economic transformation. In the cultural sphere, it was the century of Romanticism, a movement that influenced the Renaixença. On the political side, it was marked by the Peninsular War (1808-1812), caused by the Napoleonic invasion, and the Carlist Wars. This period of instability did not end until the Bourbon Restoration in 1874. Financially, it was a period of great growth, with an increased population and new cultivation techniques that were invested in factories. Industrialization was lower in Valencia than in Catalonia, as the Valencian economy was based on agriculture. In Catalonia, the industrial revolution triumphed, which meant the triumph of the Renaixença at the political and literary levels. In Valencia, in contrast, the efforts of the agrarian bourgeoisie were reduced only to the recovery of the cultured and literary use of the language by an intellectual elite.
The Renaixença and the Revival of the Language
During the first half of the 19th century, the Renaixença attempted to return to the social prestige and literary language of the Middle Ages through the reconstruction of a serious literature in our language. Learned efforts to restore cultured and literary uses of the language in Catalonia became a national movement demanding the transformation of Catalan society and culture in the 19th century. However, reaching a consensus on the language model that had to be used was a difficult task.
- Populists: They were supporters of the use of a spoken Valencian from the streets (E. Escalante and C. Llombart).
- Cultists: University-educated supporters of the use of a learned and archaizing language (Llorente and T. V. Querol).
In 1878, C. Llombart and T. Llorente created the cultural society Lo Rat Penat with two sides. The intention of bringing together these literary movements is reflected from the mid-19th century until the early 20th century in Europe:
- Romanticism: Predominance of feeling and imagination.
- Realism: Incorporation of social reality as a literary form.
- Modernism: Modernization of society through the cultural action of artists.
- Noucentisme: Modernizing society but making modernist society disappear.
- Avant-garde: Breaks with the previous tradition, emphasizing the importance of imagination and artistic freedom without rules.
Renaixença and Romanticism
Romanticism was born at the end of the 18th century in Germany and England. In the first half of the 19th century, it spread throughout Europe.
Features:
- Subjectivism: Defense of subjectivism, originality, and freedom of creation. Artistic creation is done through inspiration and imagination.
- Nationalism: There is an exaltation of political freedom and national peoples. It values the folklore and traditions of each country.
- Freedom in Creation: Mixing genres and styles: prose and verse, comedy with tragedy.
Timeline of the Renaixença:
One of the most important works is “L’Oda a la Pàtria” by Bonaventura Carles Aribau. Three stages (chronology):
- Start: It relates to the Romantic literary news from France.
- Maturity: The Floral Games in Valencia and the establishment of the Renaixença in 1859.
- Plenitude: C. Llombart founded the journal “Lo Rat Penat”. Because of the figure of Llorente, all the nationalist protest attitude of the movement ceased. The momentum of the Renaixença made possible the recovery process of our language, culture, and literature. With Modernism in the 1890s, the Renaixença ended, but it did not disappear in the 20th century.
Themes within his poetry:
The nation, language, landscape, and folk poetry.
Jacint Verdaguer
His work has distinctly Romantic roots. He was the most profound popular poet of the Renaixença. Works: “L’Atlàntida” and “Canigó”.
Constantí Llombart
He founded the publication “Lo Rat Penat” and brought together two sides: one formed by progressive poets and the other by conservative poets. Notable work: “Lo darrer agermanat”.
Teodor Llorente
Founder of “Lo Rat Penat”. His poetry was based mainly on the pillars of the Floral Games poetry, that is, country, faith, and love. Works: “Llibret de versos” (1885), “Cartas de un soldado” (1896), “La Barraca”.