Romanticism in Spanish Literature

Posted on Sep 25, 2024 in Latin

Romanticism

Poetry and Prose Drama

Lyrical Poetry

  • Increased subjectivism; the poet pours out their emotions.
  • Nature and landscape reflect the poet’s soul.
  • Love themes abound, along with religious, historical, and other themes.

Narrative Poetry (Duque de Rivas, Espronceda, and Zorrilla)

  • Content: Historical or legendary events of the Middle Ages.
  • Verse: Traditional stanza forms.
  • Style: Bright, colorful imagery, and literary devices.

Romantic Theater (Features)

  • Refuses neoclassical rules.
  • Mixes comic elements.
  • Shows a predilection for historical-legendary and chivalrous drama.
  • Dramatists look back to classical theater.
  • Scenes reflect social concerns.
  • Hero and heroine are full of mystery and rebellion.
  • The same work can be in prose and verse.
  • Abundant burial and night environments.
  • The play is divided into 5 acts.

Romantic Prose

  • The work of Mesonero Romanos recreates distinct Madrid environments with an easy, entertaining style and rich, traditional language.
  • Estebanez Calderon uses a more elaborate language (Andalusian scenes).

José de Espronceda

Short Poems

Neoclassical and influenced by Ossian, short compositions with a romantic spirit of rebellion and protest against a conformist society.

Adult Poetry

  • The Student of Salamanca: A narrative poem in four parts. Félix de Montemar leaves his beloved Elvira, who later dies of love. He ends up in a crypt where he marries the ghost of his beloved and finally dies.
  • The Devil World: Influenced by Goethe, a philosophical and symbolic poem about the meaning of life.

The Duke of Rivas

Theater

Don Álvaro or the Force of Destiny: Alvarado is a mysterious character who accidentally kills his beloved’s father (Leonor). She believes he is dead and goes to Italy. He returns to do penance and finds himself in the same place as Leonor. Her brother finds Álvaro, they duel, and Leonor’s brother is seriously injured. She kills him, and Álvaro commits suicide out of despair.

José Zorrilla

  • Don Juan Tenorio: In Seville, Don Juan makes a bet with Mejía. Mejía offers to win a novice and kidnap a woman. Tenorio accepts and kidnaps Doña Inés. Tenorio falls for her. Don Gonzalo, her father, is killed by Tenorio in a duel. Tenorio flees. After a while, he returns to Seville and faces the specter of Don Gonzalo, who is the key to hell. But Doña Inés (who has also died) rescues him and frees his soul.

Mariano José de Larra

Articles of Customs

In short articles, Larra describes the lifestyle of Spanish society with a critical and concerned tone. Come Back Tomorrow.

Political Articles

Larra shows his liberal ideology but also his disappointment and disillusionment with the political situation in Spain. No One Goes Without Speaking to the Doorman.

Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer

  • Poetic work formed by a set of compositions (Rhymes): Short, intimate poems with simple and light verses. Only a few of these poems were published.
  • The Book of Sparrows: In four groups, 69 rhymes tell a love story.

Rosalía de Castro

  • Cantares Gallegos
  • Follas Novas
  • On the Banks of the Sar: A book of verse, full of bitterness and melancholy. She pours out her anguish and lament about existence in natural and easy-flowing language, fleeing artifice and adornment. Assonance dominates, and she tests new metric combinations.

Realism and Naturalism

The realistic novel movement occurs, especially in the last third of the nineteenth century, thanks to the influence of French narrative. Realistic novels are distinguished by:

  • Representing reality immediately and the everyday.
  • Expressing objectively.
  • Giving importance to description, characterization, and sometimes the psychological study of characters.
  • Discovering the great variety of environments.
  • Tending towards regional character, according to the authors.

Naturalism is a literary trend derived from realism, taken to the extreme. This movement is rooted especially in France.

Benito Pérez Galdós

Episodios Nacionales

Formed by 4 sets of 10 episodes. Galdós reflects a historical-romantic view of nineteenth-century Spain. The most attractive series is the first, more contemporary with the Spanish epic.

Novels

Galdós writes more than 20 novels. In Disinherited, the author leaves behind more abstract characters and creates more human figures, with greater relevance, and also represents social classes. Fortunata and Jacinta represents the Madrid trade of the time. Other works include Miau and Mercy, which moves among the beggars in the capital.