Postwar Theater and 20th Century American Literature

The Theater of Postwar (Since 1939)

The theater experienced a general crisis after the war. Authors were scarce and suffered from strict censorship. The public and employers were not willing to embrace innovation, which led to a reduction in drama.

Triumphant Theater

It proposes a clear continuity with dramatic forms and themes from before the Civil War. High comedy is benaventina, does not innovate, and does not have a provision for a clear trend of rupture. It shows humorous theater. The most prominent representatives are Enrique Jardiel Poncela and Miguel Mihura.

Committed Theater

In the late 1940s, with the premiere of Historia de una Escalera by Antonio Buero Vallejo, an inflection occurs in the course of postwar theater. It breaks with the common escape to the possibilism of the time. It stands out, making a moderately critical theater that can train and reach the public. Buero opted for a riskier stage, but not reckless, an impossible theater to have the largest number of official bans.

Antonio Buero Vallejo (1916-2000)

Born in Guadalajara during the Civil War, he fought on the Republican side until he was arrested in 1939 and sentenced to death. In 1946, he met Miguel Hernández. He was released from jail on probation, and in 1949, he obtained the Lope de Vega Prize for Historia de una Escalera.

Work

His theater has an ethical character. Buero's works are based on the denial of the existence of blind fate and caprice (everything has its cause and, therefore, its remedy). Buero's work is divided into three stages.

• First time: Theater with traditional essence, respectful of all dramatic units. Highlights include En la Ardiente Oscuridad.
• Second time: Historical theater with a central theme: the fate of people in an unjust society. Highlights include Un Soñador para el Pueblo (1958).
• Third period: The viewer observes the story from within, from the viewpoint of a character.

Antonio Gala

His production covers all genres: theater (with which he rose to fame), essays, fiction, poetry, and journalism. Gala's work is essentially lyrical, concerned about the problems of human beings and their relations with society. He stands out for his mastery of language in different registers and his critical force. Notable works include Los Verdes Campos del Edén and El Sol en el Hormiguero.

The Spanish Theater in Recent Years

In recent years, our scene has been in a crisis: many theaters have closed, there are few authors, and works of quality and television representations disappear. The trends are:

• Independent groups remain (Els Joglars).
• The National Classical Theater Company was created to present the best of our classics to the current public.
• Works such as El Público by García Lorca and Valle-Inclán are represented for the first time.
• Fernando Fernán Gómez became known as a playwright.
• Our days are familiar with the rise of musical theater.

Twentieth-Century American Literature

The Novel

At the beginning of the second decade, the rise of nationalism will be seen, resulting in novels of exaltation of the earth, such as La Vorágine by the Colombian José Eustasio Rivera. Other authors will follow this same line and focus their narrative on indigenous issues.

Afterward, the avant-garde novel becomes important. Highlights include Las Lanzas Coloradas by Arturo Uslar Pietri.

From the 1940s onward, the fantasy novel catches on. It celebrates the fantastic in the everyday.

From the 1950s, we talk about magical realism. Highlights include Miguel Ángel Asturias' El Señor Presidente.

In the 1960s, there was the boom of the Latin American novel. The novels of these authors are beginning to be known and admired around the world.