Catalan Poetry: Key Figures and Masterpieces
Bonaventura Carles Aribau: *The Fatherland*
Bonaventura Carles Aribau (1789-1862) was a promoter of European liberal Romanticism. He was a journalist, but his ideology was not revolutionary. In the mid-twenties, he lived in Madrid and worked for Gaspar de Remisa (a banker). At the end of his life, after disappointments and poor returns, he went back to Barcelona. He is the symbol of the *Renaixença*, as he wanted to join the home language. He wrote *Oda a la Pàtria* in 1832, and it was published in 1833. It was a birthday poem made for his employer (in his foreign language), a poem of circumstances, and then it was released. It was so popular that people learned it by heart. *Renaixença*.
Miquel Costa i Llobera: *The Pine of Formentor*
Miquel Costa i Llobera (1854-1922) began with Romanticism but evolved into the twentieth century. He wrote the poem *El Pi de Formentor* in 1885. He was one of the main figures of the Mallorcan School. In 1904, he was president of the *Jocs Florals*. In 1906, he read the presidential speech of the *Jocs Florals* (a contest to promote the language) in Barcelona. Romanticism.
Joan Maragall: *The Blind Cow*, *Ode to Spain*
Joan Maragall (1860-1911). There was a family conflict because they wanted him to continue the family business (industrial textiles), but he wanted to devote himself to literature. In 1900, he began publishing his articles in the *Diari de Barcelona*. He was a vitalist with influences from Nietzsche. He had 13 children with Clara Noble. He represents a great evolution from the poetry of the nineteenth century to twentieth-century modernity. He introduced aspects of Romanticism to Modernism. Modernism.
Joan Alcover: *La Balanguera*
Joan Alcover (1854-1926) started writing in Spanish, influenced by Romanticism. The death of his wife and many of their children greatly influenced his poetry. He created very human and relatable poetry. In 1909, he was proclaimed *Mestre en Gai Saber*. In 1951, a volume of his complete works was published. Modernism.
Josep Carner: *Dubious Ditties*
Josep Carner (1884-1970) was a poet but also engaged in narrative. He was a journalist and translator, as well as a Catalan nationalist politician. Along with Eugeni d’Ors, he is one of the promoters of Noucentisme. He was exiled for defending the Republic. He has a wide and diverse body of work, especially plays on cultural issues. Twentieth century.
Joan Salvat-Papasseit: *The Poem of the Rose to the Lips*
Joan Salvat-Papasseit (1894-1924) was a poet committed to a progressive ideology. He had a vision and was a radical author. He suffered from tuberculosis. The topics he touched on were everyday reality. He was born into a proletarian family. He began working at 12 years old and was a self-taught artist. Twentieth century.
Bartomeu Rosselló-Pòrcel: *Mallorca During the Civil War*
Bartomeu Rosselló-Pòrcel (1913-1938) had a wide but not very intense body of work. He looked at trends in European poetry and had a very particular vision of the world. He was from a modest family. As a young man, he published numerous articles. He died of tuberculosis. He wrote the poem in 1938. Post-symbolism.
Màrius Torres: *The Distant City*
Màrius Torres (1910-1935) was a poet of great depth and musicality. Tuberculosis (he died at age 32) would influence his work. He brought his poetry to a spiritual level and was influenced by the French symbolists. He was from a family in Lleida, and his father was a Catalan MEP. He was a doctor. Symbolism.
Pere Quart: *Ballads of Exile*, *Paid Holidays*
Pere Quart (1899-1986) was the pseudonym of Joan Oliver. His poetry was critical of power, using sarcasm and irony. He came from an industrial bourgeois family in Sabadell. He was the fourth of eleven siblings, of whom he was the only survivor. He studied law. Twentieth century.