Spanish Poetry from 1936 to the Generation of 50
Spanish Poetry from 1936
Transition Poetry: Miguel Hernandez
Miguel Hernandez’s work serves as a bridge between the poetry of the Generation of ’27 and the post-Civil War generation.
MH – Life
A goat herder with limited formal education, his will and desire to learn (aprendre) led him to educate himself. In 1934, he moved to Madrid from Orihuela. His friendships with poets from the Generation of ’27 shaped his ideological and poetic evolution.
MH – Work
- “Perito en Lunas” (1933): A book with Gongorine influence, featuring some very clever stanzas.
- “El rayo que no cesa” (1936): He finds his own voice. He still uses classical and baroque forms, but doesn’t restrain the passion with which he addresses his favorite themes: life, love, and death.
- “Viento del pueblo” (1937) and “El hombre acecha” (1939): A simpler style, consistent with the patriotic and wartime themes that he explores.
- “Cancionero y romancero de ausencias” (1938-41): A posthumous book of rhymes, popular in tone, reflecting the anguish of his imprisonment and his longing for his wife and son.
Poetry in the 1940s
In the early post-war years, two distinct poetic tendencies emerged:
- Rooted Poetry: Characterized by an ordered worldview, formal beauty, traditional themes, and classical stanzas and meters. Authors include Luis Rosales, Leopoldo Panero, Luis Felipe Vivanco, and Dionisio Ridruejo.
- Uprooted Poetry: Marked by a critical and passionate existential tone, focusing on human themes. A key figure is Dámaso Alonso with his work “Hijos de la ira” (1944).
- Other Authors: Carlos Bousoño and Rafael Morales, among others.
Social Poetry: Blas de Otero
In the early 1950s, the predominant tone in poetry shifted. It offered a critical testimony of reality. This was social poetry, which didn’t express the personal feelings of the author but aimed to contribute to changing the world and society. The social poet prioritized the problems of humanity above all else.
Topics:
- General concern for Spain.
- Reporting on living conditions.
Style:
- Clear and simple.
- Conversational tone.
Authors:
- Gabriel Celaya
- José Hierro
- Blas de Otero
Blas de Otero:
Life and Personality:
Born in Bilbao, he was a major poet of his time, and his work summarizes the evolution of Spanish poetry from 1939 until his death. He was a lawyer and professor of literature, censored and banned on several occasions.
Stages:
- Existential: Marked by a shocking tone, focused on the anguished search for God, love, and the meaning of human existence. Key works include “Ángel fieramente humano” and “Redoble de conciencia”.
- Social: This stage represents his committed poetry, full of solidarity with Spain and its collective problems. Key works include “Pido la paz y la palabra”, “En este preciso instante”, and “Que trata de España”.
- Experimental: This stage marked an important change in form, closer to experimentalism, seen in “Hojas de Madrid”.
The Generation of 50: Jaime Gil de Biedma and José Ángel Valente
The Generation of 50 is a group of young poets who began publishing in the 1950s. They were younger than the social poets, although they shared a critical vision of reality, ethical attitudes, and a similar attention to the problems of the community.
They also showed a return to the eternal themes of poetry (love, pain, loneliness, and death) and other more personal themes (friendship, memory, family, and biography), which distanced them from social poetry.
Style:
Despite the differences between them, most of them employed a conscious and careful style, with greater attention to poetic forms.
Authors:
- Ángel González
- Jaime Gil de Biedma
- José Ángel Valente
Jaime Gil de Biedma:
Born in Barcelona, he has been a very influential poet for subsequent generations. His poetry was oriented towards unmasking the contradictions of the bourgeois, hence its civic character, which led him to skepticism and a negative view of reality. His notable works include “Compañeros de viaje” (1959), “Moralidades” (1966), and “Poemas póstumos” (1968).
José Ángel Valente:
Born in Orense, he was a tireless traveler, living in numerous European cities, including Paris and Geneva, where he worked as a teacher and translator. His poetry represents a constant search for knowledge of poetry and his own salvation.
In his early works, he attempts to find truth from experience, through a precise and sober verse. Key works include “A modo de esperanza” (1955) and “Poemas a Lázaro” (1960).
From 1966, with “La memoria y los signos” to “El inocente” (1970), he enters a destructive stage that aims to unmask the lies of the mundane. This is followed by a fragmentary stage in which short poems predominate, reflecting a dissected world, seen in “Treinta y siete fragmentos” (1972).
From 1979, he opens a new phase, where the receptive waiting for the word becomes essential. He incorporates the language of mysticism, following the lines of Saint John of the Cross and Juan Ramón Jiménez. His works from this period include “Mandorla” (1982), “Al alba el canto” (1992), and “Fragmentos de un libro futuro” (2000).