Spanish Romanticism: Key Features, Authors, and Works
Understanding Spanish Romanticism
Romanticism was a significant cultural and political movement in Europe and America during the late 18th and 19th centuries. It introduced a new way of understanding reality, emphasizing the sentiments, ideals, dreams, and fantasies of human beings.
General Features of Romanticism
- Break with Neoclassicism: Driven by a desire for freedom, Romanticism moved away from the closed, ordered, and rational ideals of Neoclassicism. It embraced the nocturnal, the irrational, and the exotic.
- New Conception of the Individual: The Romantic character often sought a better world, took refuge in the mysterious and supernatural, and frequently displayed antisocial traits such as individualism, a desire for freedom, nationalism, and idealism.
- Search for a New Reality: Romantics sought a more beautiful, dignified, and poetic reality through imagination and evasion. This led to settings like the Middle Ages, distant or exotic landscapes, imaginary lands, and mysterious places.
The Romantic Individual
- Intimacy: Expresses deep personal feelings, often with a pessimistic tone.
- Freedom: Feels unrecognized or constrained by society and passionately seeks personal and political freedom.
- Rebellion: Confrontation with the world and societal norms often leads to rebellion and marginalization.
- Landscape: The natural landscape reflects the individual’s mood, often featuring desolate, wild, nocturnal, or exotic settings.
- National Past: Shows a strong interest in the national past, seeking to recall lost historical or cultural values.
- Philosophical and Political Issues: Engages with profound philosophical and political questions of the time.
Features of Romantic Lyric Poetry
- Subjectivism: Poetry primarily expresses the poet’s personal feelings, emotions, and moods.
- Topics: Common themes include love (often passionate or tragic), freedom, death, nature, and the past, sometimes presented in a narrative form.
- Form: Characterized by experimentation with meter, lines, stanzas, and traditional forms; often mixes different elements.
- Musicality: Emphasis on the rhythmic and sound qualities of language, often using intense adjectives and evocative imagery.
Key Romantic Poets
José Espronceda (1808-1842)
Born near Badajoz, Espronceda was involved in secret societies opposing absolutism, leading to imprisonment and exile. He embodied the rebellious, idealistic Romantic figure. A major representative of Spanish Romanticism, he worked in several genres but excelled in poetry, with famous works like ‘The Pirate Song’ (‘Canción del pirata’) and ‘Hymn to the Sun’ (‘Himno al sol’).
Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer (1836-1870)
From Seville, Bécquer’s brief life produced fundamental works in Spanish poetry, most famously his ‘Rhymes’ (‘Rimas’). His intimate, melancholic style, often considered ‘post-Romantic’, departs somewhat from the high Romanticism of Espronceda, favoring simpler, more direct language.
Features of Romantic Prose
- Costumbrismo: Articles and sketches describing popular environments, local customs, lifestyles, and often focusing on typical or marginalized figures.
- Historical Novels: Following the model of Sir Walter Scott, these novels explored Spain’s heroic national past.
- Journalistic Articles: Critical essays and articles, notably by Larra, addressing social and political issues.
Key Romantic Prose Writer
Mariano José de Larra (1809-1837)
From Madrid, Larra (‘Fígaro’) is renowned for his journalistic articles. Starting with costumbrismo, he addressed contemporary political, social, and cultural issues with sharp critique. He also wrote a historical novel (‘El doncel de don Enrique el Doliente’) and drama (‘Macías’). His style is concise, clear, ironic, and satirical, famously criticizing Spain’s problems.
Features of Romantic Drama
- Rejection of the Three Unities: Romantic plays disregard the Neoclassical unities of time, place, and action. They often feature diverse settings and span extended periods, sometimes even a character’s lifetime.
- Mixture of Tragic and Comic: Contrasting tones and elements often appear within the same play.
- Mixed Prose and Verse: Dialogue frequently alternates between prose and verse.
- Structure: Often structured in five acts, breaking the traditional three-act division.
- Abandonment of Didacticism: The primary aim is to evoke emotion and move the audience, rather than to teach a moral lesson.
- Topics: Common themes include passionate and often doomed love, fate, honor, vengeance, and rebellion.
- Staging: Emphasis on dramatic effects, spectacle, and sensationalism (e.g., duels, supernatural elements, dramatic settings).
- Characters: Heroes are typically mysterious, rebellious social misfits, driven by powerful passions.
Key Romantic Playwrights
Duke of Rivas (Ángel de Saavedra) (1791-1865)
From Córdoba, Saavedra participated in the War of Independence and the Cortes of Cádiz. Exiled for his liberal politics, he later became a prominent figure and member of the Royal Spanish Academy (RAE). His play ‘Don Álvaro or the Force of Destiny’ (‘Don Álvaro o la fuerza del sino’) (1835) is considered a cornerstone of Spanish Romantic drama, dealing with fate, honor, and tragic love.
José Zorrilla (1817-1893)
From Valladolid, Zorrilla was highly popular for his poetry and drama, often drawing on Spanish legends, history, and culture. His most famous work is the play ‘Don Juan Tenorio’ (1844). In his version, the legendary seducer Don Juan is ultimately saved by the pure, idealized love of Doña Inés.
Argumentative Texts
An argumentative text aims to persuade the reader of certain ideas based on reason and evidence.
Structure of Argumentative Texts
- Introduction: Presents the topic, provides context, and aims to capture the reader’s interest.
- Thesis Statement: Clearly states the main idea, claim, or position that the text will argue.
- Argumentation: Develops and justifies the thesis with supporting arguments, reasons, evidence, and examples.
- Conclusion: Summarizes the main points of the argument, reinforces the thesis, and provides a final thought or call to action.