Catalan Literature: 20th Century Poetry and Novels

Catalan Poetry in the 1930s

During the thirties, poets like Tomàs Garcés, Marià Manent, and Clementina Arderiu consolidated their work, utilizing procedures that prolonged the poetic themes of Josep Carner. The first book by Pere Quart was published, representing a reaction against symbolist poetry. The most important poet of this period is the Majorcan Bartomeu Rosselló-Pòrcel, known for his work Imitació del foc, who died at the young age of twenty-five.

In Valencia, in contrast to traditional poetry influenced by the school of Teodor Llorente, innovative poetic positions appeared in the twenties and thirties. Poets like Bernat Artola and Francesc Almela i Vives resumed this tradition, fusing it with the work of classic Noucentist Catalan and Valencian poets. Avant-garde poets argued with those who advocated for populist poetry in Valencia. This group consisted of:

• Carles Salvador
• Maximilià Thous
• Enric Navarro

The Resurgence of the Catalan Novel

The resumption of the novel during the early 20th century involved debates regarding the lack of novels in Catalan and the potential dangers of this absence. This controversy ended with the publication of novels by modernist writers like Prudenci Bertrana and Joan Puig i Ferreter. Consequently, the novel became the dominant genre. New European and American critics became known through translations.

Several factors drove the genre, including the creation of literary prizes like the Crexells Prize and the appearance of the "A tot vent" collection, which published translations of classic and contemporary European novels. Josep Maria de Sagarra made a significant contribution with Vida privada, a chronicle of Barcelona in the twenties and thirties.

The Works of Joan Puig i Ferreter

Joan Puig i Ferreter became one of the most successful novelists. His works mixed fiction and autobiography, as his life served as the main subject of his novels, such as:

• Els tres al·lucinats (1926)
• El cercle màgic (1929)

His memoirs also reflect his experiences, including Servitud (1926), which covers his time in journalism, and his masterpiece, Camins de França (1934). From 1938 until his death, he wrote the vast novel cycle El pelegrí apassionat in twelve volumes, pouring in his personal experiences for synthesis and justification. His characters—tortured, unbalanced, obsessed, and paradoxical—are reminiscent of the works of Tolstoy and Dostoyevsky.