Generation of '27: Key Poets, Themes, and Influences

The Generation of '27: Key Poets, Themes, and Influences

Federico García Lorca's works are characterized by a blend of inspiration and technique, revolving around central themes such as the tragic destiny of humanity and the impossibility of complete human fulfillment. In his early phase, influenced by Bécquer, Machado, and Juan Ramón Jiménez, he aimed to convey a tragic perspective on love and death, exemplified in Gypsy Ballads. Later, breaking with traditional verse in Poet in New York, he reflected the impact of the city and warned against a dehumanized world. He was also significantly influenced by Rafael Alberti and Surrealism.

We can distinguish a lyrical neo-populism in which he speaks of his nostalgic sea (Sailor on Earth) and Surrealism, which responds to a religious crisis and life of the poet, writes about the Angels, who symbolize the cruelty, despair, death, Luis Cernuda ... was influenced by some Romantic writers like Keats and Becquer, his work is based on the desire, reality and, above all, unhappy in love (The Reality and Desire). Another influenced by the Surrealist poet Vicente Aleixandre was that after the war, wrote Shade of Paradise. In the same period, Damaso Alonso wrote a work of existential and social nature (Sons of Wrath). Pedro Salinas is the poet of love, but anti-romantic and intellectualized manner, emphasizes voice due to you. Jorge Guillen is the highest representative of pure poetry, before the war, expressed his enthusiasm over the world (Song), and then protest against the horrors and miseries of the historical moment (Cry). Gerardo Diego favors the vanguard, which leads him to start in Creationism, and cultivated both poetry ultraist creationist (Manual foams) as classical and traditional (Lark truth). Although age belongs to the next generation, Miguel Hernandez can be included in it as a great follower. In its avant-garde stage grown dehumanized poetry, with Ray never ceases shows obsessions with love, life and death. Later, going through a time of painful circumstances is a social history of poetry and committed.

The Gathering of 1927

In 1927, a group of poets gathered to honor Góngora. Prominent figures included Pedro Salinas, Jorge Guillén, Rafael Alberti, Federico García Lorca, Luis Cernuda, Dámaso Alonso, Vicente Aleixandre, and Gerardo Diego. Most came from upper-middle-class backgrounds and resided at the Residencia de Estudiantes in Madrid. They were influenced by José Ortega y Gasset, Juan Ramón Jiménez, and Ramón Menéndez Pidal, and interacted with artists like Dalí and Buñuel. They contributed to significant journals such as South and Littoral.

Style and Characteristics

Stylistically, they did not reject previous movements but sought to renew poetic language. While overlaps existed, each poet maintained a unique personal style. A defining characteristic of this generation is the balance between opposing elements: intellectual and emotional, aesthetic purity and human authenticity, tradition and renewal.

Three Stages of the Generation

This generation can be divided into three stages:

1. The first stage, up to 1927, saw the influence of early avant-garde movements, Bécquerian tones, and modernism, with a focus on pure poetry.
2. The second stage, until 1936, involved a more humanized poetry, concerned with pain, joy, and memories.
3. After the Civil War, the group dispersed; Lorca died, while Salinas, Guillén, Cernuda, and Alberti went into exile. Some remained in Spain.

Influences on the Generation

The works of these authors were significantly influenced by:

• Tradition, leading them to explore the best of Spanish literature (Góngora, Quevedo, Rubén Darío, Bécquer).
• Spanish folk poetry, which they termed neopopularismo, aiming to capture the essence of traditional lyricism, songs, and ballads.
• Figures like Juan Ramón Jiménez, Antonio Machado, Miguel de Unamuno, Ramón Gómez de la Serna, and various French influences.

Avant-Garde Movements

They engaged with avant-garde movements, processing or critiquing society. Prominent movements included Surrealism (Rafael Alberti's On the Angels and Lorca's Poet in New York), Futurism, Calligrams, and Expressionism.