Journalistic Genres and 20th Century Literature

Posted on Sep 21, 2024 in Latin

Journalistic Genres

Types of Journalistic Texts

According to their objectives, journalistic texts can be classified into different genres:

  • Information through news: This genre focuses on delivering factual information about recent events.
  • Information and interpretation: This includes genres like stories, reportages, and interviews that provide context and analysis along with information.
  • Opinion and commentary: This genre includes articles, editorials, and criticisms that express subjective viewpoints on various topics.

News

News is the reporting of a recent event. It typically covers topics such as politics (international, national, regional, local), economics, social issues, culture, arts, literature, film, sports, etc. Every news story has a specific structure:

  1. Headline: A required element that summarizes the main point of the story. It can be accompanied by a subheading.
  2. Lead: Located in the first paragraph, it comprises the most important information of the story (who, what, when, where, why, and how).
  3. Body: Contains the details of the story, starting with the most significant information and moving to less important details. It may also include quotes, background information, and other relevant context.

News stories often utilize typography and printing techniques to highlight certain aspects, such as:

  • Distribution of information in columns
  • Use of different font types (capital letters, italics, bold)
  • Variation in font sizes

Information and Interpretation Genres

These genres, also known as hybrid genres, include:

  • Chronicle: A narrative that provides an assessment or evaluation of current affairs, including their background and consequences. It combines objective reporting with subjective interpretation. Examples include war chronicles, court chronicles, and film chronicles.
  • Story: A narrative that expands on a specific event or topic, which may not necessarily be current. It requires thorough research and careful selection of the subject matter.
  • Reportage: Similar to a story but with greater length, it incorporates the reporter’s perspective and allows for more freedom of expression. Reportages can be classified based on their length (short, long, serialized), subject matter (society, customs, events), and the journalist’s approach (event-driven, action-oriented, interview-based).
  • Interview: A dialogue between two people, the interviewer and the interviewee, where the interviewer seeks information or insights from the interviewee. Interviews can be classified as opinion interviews, news interviews, and personality or portrait interviews.

Opinion Genres

The main opinion genres in journalism are:

  • Article or Opinion Piece: A signed contribution that presents a subjective viewpoint on a specific topic. It is often written by a columnist and may include the author’s name and photograph.
  • Editorial: An unsigned piece that expresses the newspaper’s stance on a particular issue. It is characterized by the following features:
    1. Represents the ideological position of the publishing company.
    2. Addresses current issues.
    3. Appears prominently in the newspaper.
    4. Follows a specific structure, often a pyramid scheme with the climax at the end.
    5. Strives for objectivity while incorporating subjective elements.

20th Century Literature until 1939

Modernism and the Generation of ’27

Before the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939), several renewal movements emerged, including Modernism and the Generation of ’27, which together constitute the Silver Age of Spanish literature.

Modernism

Modernism was a literary movement primarily led by Spanish and Latin American poets. Following the Disaster of 1898, in which Spain lost its last overseas colonies, these poets sought to escape reality and revitalize poetic language. Prominent figures in Modernism include:

  • Salvador Rueda (precursor)
  • Rubén Darío (leader and guide)
  • Manuel Machado
  • Francisco Villaespesa
  • Eduardo Marquina

Other writers who initially aligned with Modernism but later evolved their styles include:

  • Juan Ramón Jiménez (associated with Novecentismo)
  • Antonio Machado (embraced themes of the Generation of ’98)
  • Ramón María del Valle-Inclán (moved beyond Modernist approaches)

Characteristics of Modernism

  1. Aesthetic focus: A constant pursuit of formal beauty and pure art, drawing inspiration from various sources such as Greco-Roman classics, Medieval art, and traditionalism.
  2. Sensory richness: Emphasis on sensory experiences like color, musicality, and even synesthesia, achieved through masterful command of language at all levels (phonetic, morphosyntactic, and lexical).
  3. Symbolism: Predominance of symbols representing deeper realities, such as life.
  4. Metric influence: Notable Greco-Roman influence, particularly a preference for long verses like the Alexandrine, which was incorporated into sonnets.
  5. Themes: Exploration of the poet’s inner and outer world, often reflecting on suffering, reminiscent of Romanticism. This focus on personal emotions is referred to as intimate Modernism.

Generation of ’27

The Generation of ’27 was a group of poet friends who shared common influences and were distinguished by their innovative approach to poetic form. Their key characteristics include:

  1. Influences: They drew inspiration from Luis de Góngora (known for his elaborate metaphors), Juan Ramón Jiménez (advocate of pure poetry and free verse), classical Spanish poetry, and avant-garde movements.
  2. Formal innovation: They incorporated colloquial language, adapted metaphors to contemporary expression, and experimented with metric synthesis, combining classical and free verse forms.
  3. Poetic evolution: Their poetic journey can be divided into three stages:
    1. Towards pure poetry (until 1927): Driven by a pursuit of formal perfection and classical metrics. This period saw the emergence of popular poetry (e.g., Federico García Lorca’s “Book of Poems” and Rafael Alberti’s “Sailor Ashore“).
    2. Towards human poetry (1927-Civil War): Focused on human emotions, existential concerns, and the desire for wholeness and love (e.g., Pedro Salinas’ “Reason for Love” and Luis Cernuda’s “Forbidden Pleasures“). This stage saw a renewed emphasis on free verse. A notable example is Federico García Lorca’s “Poet in New York“.
    3. Towards social poetry (post-Civil War): Poetry became more human-centered (e.g., Dámaso Alonso’s “Children of Wrath“) and oriented towards social and political themes.

Impact of the Spanish Civil War

The Spanish Civil War (1936-1939) marked a violent rupture with the artistic progress achieved up to that point. The efforts to transform Spanish literature with innovative techniques and representative themes were disrupted. However, Miguel Hernández served as a bridge between pre-war poetry and the poetry that emerged during and after the conflict. The post-war literary landscape was bleak, with the loss of prominent writers like Miguel de Unamuno.