Catalan Culture and Literature After the Spanish Civil War

Post-War Catalan Culture

The Spanish Civil War was a crisis for Catalan culture, initiating a process of 'espanyolitzacio' (Spanish assimilation). Culture developed in three main areas:

• Public culture: Aimed at reaching people within the allowed framework.
• Underground culture: Practiced privately, often at home.
• Culture of exile: Developed by Catalans living abroad.

The goals were to preserve the language and institutions, restore social and cultural prestige, revive cultural contacts, group disoriented individuals, and avoid ideological and linguistic capitulation.

The Writers' Dilemma

The disorientation of Catalan intellectuals after the war and the disappearance of significant figures, coupled with a decrease in readership due to repression, led to writers abandoning the Catalan language. A stage of liberalization began in the 1950s.

Catalan Literature After the War

Repression:

• 1939-1946: Underground literature
• 1946-1955: International recognition of the Franco regime; a period of liberalization begins.
• 1955-1977: Attempts to assimilate Catalan culture.
• 1970-1980: Authors of this period are bilingual and self-aware.

Literature in Exile

The success of literature in exile was due to the effective organization of exiled writers, which facilitated:

• Magazines
• Conferences for networking
• Editions published abroad and distributed clandestinely
• Translations

Literary Genres

Poetry

Poetry was crucial during the war, ensuring continuity of production outside of Spain and more easily avoiding censorship. The Catalan language became a key element in poetic production, with Carles Riba serving as a model.

Theater

Theater was suppressed until 1946 and began to recover from 1955 onwards.

The Novel

The novel was a genre in crisis during the 20th century. Large investments were needed, and censorship was easily applied. The novel faced many problems, including difficulties in avoiding censorship, which led to defections among writers. It wasn't until 1962 that a collection of translated novels was authorized, with only two editions until 1960. Prohibitions led to a loss of audience, and the dictatorship delayed the adoption of new trends.

Types of Novels:

• Psychological (Villalonga and Merce Rodoreda)
• Existentialism (Pedrolo and Campaigns)
• Fantastic (Perucho, Calderas and Sarsadenas)