Galician Literature: Brotherhoods of Speech & 20th Century
The Brotherhoods of Speech and Galician Literature
The early 20th century brought significant social changes to Sao Paulo. This period saw agrarian claims for redemption and forums, leading to the decline of the nobility. In cities, an industrial and commercial bourgeoisie emerged, requiring manpower, which increased migration from rural areas to urban centers and gave rise to the proletariat. Emigration to America remained as intense as in the previous century.
From a literary perspective, we can identify two periods: before 1916, characterized by the repetition of Renaissance themes and forms (customs, rurality, etc.), and the period that began with the Brotherhood of Speech. This latter period marked the opening of Galician literature to genres beyond poetry, including narrative, theater, essays, scientific research, and politics. Early authors include Antonio Noriega Varela (poetry), Manuel García Barros (Ken Keir) (prose), and San José Luis Romero and Javier Prado Rodrigues (theater).
Antonio Noriega Varela
Noriega Varela stands out, particularly for his poetry, focusing on rural Galicia. His work, initially published as Montañeses in 1904 and later expanded and revised, explores two main themes: a focus on rural Galicia and an intimate poetry that draws closer to nature, adopting a lyrical and emotive style influenced by Portuguese nostalgia.
The First Brotherhood of Speech
The creation of the first Brotherhood of Speech in Corunna in 1916 by Antón Vilar Ponte, marked a new era in Galician literature. Intellectuals published the journal Our Land, established publishing houses like Céltiga and Home, and strengthened nationalist ideology, based on language and culture. They also emphasized theater as a means of ideological and cultural awareness for the lower classes.
Key Figures of the Brotherhoods
Notable figures include Júlio Dantas (poetry), Joseph East Meis (narrative), R. Dantas and Armando hill Valledor (theater), and John Vicente Viqueira and Antón Vilar Ponte (essays). Júlio Dantas is a particularly relevant figure, working primarily in poetry and theater.
Júlio Dantas’s Poetic Works
Dantas’s poetry, while rooted in Renaissance forms, embraced aesthetic modernism (R. Dario) and European Romantic poets (Heine, Bécquer). His poetry explores three themes: civic awareness, intimate reflections on nature and love, and traditional customs. Key titles include The Land Asobalhada (1917) and The Rose of Hundred Sheets (1927).
Dantas’s Narrative and Theater
In narrative poetry, Dantas reconstructed the mythical past, adapting the Matter of Britain for Galicia. His narrative poem The Night Estrelecida (1926), composed of three sagas, aimed to highlight the dignity of Galician culture. His style is characterized by symbolism, rich adjectives, modernist elements, and a combination of romance and paired Alexandrian metrics. In theater, Dantas also sought to honor the past, notably through the figure of Marshal Pardo de Cela in Marshal (1926).