Modernism vs. Generation of '98: Themes and Style

Modernism and the Generation of '98

Modernism (Rubén Darío)

This movement is concerned with the pursuit of:

1. Beauty, spirituality, and the expression of feelings.
2. Escaping the ugly and vulgar reality to exotic worlds and ideals.
3. Defending a refined and sensual style, emphasizing the musicality of language that awakens the senses.
4. Primarily utilizing the lyric genre (poetry).

The Generation of '98

This movement focuses on:

1. The situation in Spain, expressing pessimism regarding the country's direction.
2. Seeking the essence of Spain in the literature of the past and the Castilian landscape.
3. Enacting a sober and simple style with great power of significance (depth of meaning).
4. Cultivating all literary genres.

Shared Characteristics of Both Movements

• Maintain a rebellious and nonconformist attitude toward reality.
• Defend a renewal against Realist aesthetics.

Modernism: Metrics, Style, and Themes

Metrics and Style

Modernism shows an obsession with forms, pursuing musicality and rhythm:

• Metrics: Uses new decasyllabic and dodecasyllabic verses, and recovers the Alexandrian verse (14 syllables). Acute rhyme is frequently used to enhance sound.
• Style: Elevated and refined, full of cultismos (learned words) and figures of speech.

Key Modernist Themes

• Sensuality: Exalts hedonism and sensual pleasure through nature, women, perfumes, and music.
• Exoticism: To evade reality, creates scenarios of distant places or the distant past.
• Universalism: Preference for cosmopolitan, aristocratic, and rich language.
• Inwardness and Melancholy: The author projects moods and feelings onto landscapes and objects.

Key Figures and Context

Juan Ramón Jiménez: The Pursuit of Pure Poetry

This Spanish writer is considered a key figure in Modernism. His work is highly personal and transcends classification. He evolved toward a pure poetry, characterized by the pursuit of formal perfection and beauty. Poetry itself is the focus of his work, in which the poet is seen as a god who creates and seeks beauty. His work was significantly marked after meeting Rubén Darío.

The Generation of '98: Definition and Context

This group of Spanish writers emerged in the late nineteenth century. They are considered a "generation" because they shared:

• Similar age and training.
• Personal relationships.
• The defining event of the Disaster of '98.

Their primary goal was to propose solutions to the national crisis.

Generation of '98 Themes

• The Situation in Spain:
  • Appreciation for the literature of the past.
  • Study of history to find the essence of the country.
  • Description of the Castilian landscape, where they project their mood.
• Existentialism.