Generation of ’98: Spain’s Literary Renaissance
Generation of ’98: A Literary Overview
Introduction
The Generation of ’98, a group of influential Spanish intellectuals, emerged during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. These writers and thinkers grappled with Spain’s declining status after the Spanish-American War, seeking to understand the nation’s identity and its future. This document explores some of the key figures of this generation and their contributions to Spanish literature.
Miguel de Unamuno (1864-1936)
Considered a leader of the Generation of ’98, Miguel de Unamuno was a prominent intellectual. Born in Bilbao, he spent much of his life in Salamanca, working as a professor and rector at its university. Exiled to Fuerteventura and France from 1924 to 1930 for criticizing Primo de Rivera’s dictatorship, Unamuno initially supported the Republic but later became critical of both it and Franco’s uprising. His profound philological and literary knowledge made him a significant influence on his contemporaries and subsequent writers.
Unamuno’s diverse works spanned poetry, novels, plays, and essays. His deep concern for Spain led him to explore its history, landscape, and people. He famously declared, “It pains me to speak of Spain, I am Spanish, Spanish by birth, education, body, spirit, tongue and even by profession and occupation, especially Spanish and above all!”
This concern inspired essays like Around Casticism (1895), On the Land of Portugal and Spain (1911), and Spanish Adventures and Visions (1922). In Life of Don Quixote and Sancho (1905), he analyzed Cervantes’ masterpiece, highlighting Don Quixote’s idealism as a potential catalyst for national renewal. Unamuno’s philosophical essays, The Tragic Sense of Life (1913) and The Agony of Christianity (1925), explored the meaning of life and death, foreshadowing existentialist thought. His novels, while not his most celebrated works, include Peace in War (1897), Mist (1914), Abel Sánchez (1917), Aunt Tula (1921), and his masterpiece, San Manuel Bueno, Martyr (1931). Unamuno’s sober yet expressive language, incorporating popular terms, established him as a pillar of 20th-century Spanish language.
Ángel Ganivet (1865-1898)
Considered a precursor or early member of the Generation of ’98, Ángel Ganivet’s work reflects the era’s intellectual concerns. A philosopher, lawyer, and consul, he tragically ended his life in Riga. His Epistolary (1904) documents his friendship with Unamuno and includes their discussions on Spain’s future. His journalistic contributions to Defender of Granada resulted in The Beautiful Granada (1896) and Finnish Letters (1899). Ganivet’s seminal work, Idearium Español (1897), analyzes Spain’s history, its challenges, and its position in Europe, advocating for spiritual renewal. His novels include The Conquest of the Mayan Kingdom by the Last Conqueror Pío Cid (1897) and its sequel, The Tireless Work of Pío Cid, Creator (1897). Ganivet’s focus on political and national issues connects him to the Generation of ’98.
Pío Baroja (1872-1956)
Pío Baroja, though born in San Sebastián, spent most of his life in Madrid. Despite training as a physician, he dedicated himself to literature. A solitary figure with a pessimistic worldview, he believed that action was the only justification for life. Baroja’s novels, characterized by naturalness and spontaneity, often incorporate digressions and personal reflections. His concise descriptions and realistic dialogues reveal the influence of 19th-century realism. His characters, often at odds with society, embrace action and movement. Baroja wrote over sixty novels, essays, and memoirs (From the Last Lap of the Road, 1944). His novels are often grouped into trilogies, including “The Struggle for Life” (The Search, Weed, and Red Dawn), “Basque Land” (Aizgorri House, The Firstborn of Labraz, and The Adventurer Zalacaín), “Race” (Wandering Lady, The City of Fog, and The Tree of Knowledge), “Cities” (Caesar or Nothing, The World Is Like This, and Perverted Sensuality), “The Fantastic Life” (Adventures, Inventions and Mystification of Silvestre Paradox, Paradox, King, and Way of Perfection), “Last” (The Fair of the Discrete, Last Romantics, and Grotesque Tragedies), and “The Sea” (The Concerns of Shanti Andia). His twenty-two-novel series, Memories of a Man of Action (1913-1935), chronicles the adventures of his ancestor, Eugenio de Aviraneta. Baroja’s simple style and creative talent significantly impacted the 20th-century Spanish novel.
José Martínez Ruiz ‘Azorín’ (1873-1967)
Born in Monóvar (Alicante), José Martínez Ruiz, known as Azorín, spent much of his life in Madrid, working as a journalist and writer. His ideology shifted from revolutionary to conservative, embracing traditional Catholicism. His writing reflects a nostalgia for the past and a preoccupation with the passage of time. Azorín’s style is characterized by simple, clear sentences, lyrical descriptions, and a rich vocabulary, often reviving forgotten words. His essays explore Spanish places and figures (Peoples, Route of Don Quixote, Castilla) and offer literary criticism (Spanish Reading, Classic and Modern, Beyond the Classics). His novels, often autobiographical and lacking strong plots, include The Will, Antonio Azorín, Confessions of a Little Philosopher, Don Juan, and Doña Inés. His plays, such as The Invisible Guest, were less successful.
Ramiro de Maeztu (1874-1936)
Ramiro de Maeztu, a lesser-known figure of the Generation of ’98, primarily wrote essays. In Towards Another Spain (1899), he analyzes Spain’s decline. His later work, Defense of Hispanicity (1934), celebrates the Spanish empire. He also wrote literary criticism, notably Don Quixote, Don Juan and Celestina (1926). He was executed in 1936.
Antonio Machado (1875-1939)
Known primarily as a poet, Antonio Machado’s prose is less extensive. His two volumes of Juan de Mairena (1934-1939) present the thoughts of a fictional poet-philosopher on political and literary topics, offering insights into Machado’s own ideology.
Ramón del Valle-Inclán (1866-1936)
Ramón del Valle-Inclán, a unique figure in Spanish literature, cultivated an eccentric persona. Born in Villanueva de Arosa, he abandoned law studies and embraced a bohemian lifestyle. His early works, the Sonatas (1902-1905), exemplify modernist prose, depicting the amorous adventures of the Marquis de Bradomin. His later works evolved from modernism to the grotesque, a style characterized by distorted reality and social critique. His plays, including the Barbaric Comedy and Bohemian Lights, showcase his innovative theatrical techniques. His novels, such as Tirano Banderas and the “Iberian Ring” trilogy, further explore the grotesque. Valle-Inclán’s masterful use of language and his evolution from modernism to the grotesque cemented his place as a major figure in 20th-century Spanish literature.