Spanish Generation of 14: Literary Characteristics and Key Authors

The Spanish Generation of 14

Located between the Generation of '98 and the Generation of '27, the Spanish cultural scene of the early century incorporated very young authors, mostly born in the 1880s, who are grouped in the so-called Generation of 14. This new generation was dominated by new ideological orientations and a new spirit in literature. Spanish art and reality were no longer those of Modernism or '98, but still not the breakdown of the proximate Avant-gardes. Among its members there are various affinities, but it is their purist zeal which represents the most significant common note.

Noucentisme: Timeline and Context

Noucentisme was born in the first decade of the 20th century, reached maturity by 1914, coexisted with the Avant-garde of the 1920s, and commenced its ideological and aesthetic decline with the politicization of literature starting in 1930. Perhaps its maximum heyday was in the six years between 1917 and 1923.

Aesthetic and Literary Foundations

These ideas were presented by Jose Ortega y Gasset in two particular essays, both from 1925: The Dehumanization of Art and Ideas About the Novel. The first offers an analysis of Avant-gardism from a very Noucentista approach. Ortega notes the anti-minority character of the new art, dividing the public into two kinds of people: those who understand and those who do not. He claims that new artists are anti-human in the sense that they pursue pure aesthetic emotion and formal perfection, despising the merely human.

In the other essay, Ideas About the Novel, he performs a similar analysis applied to the narrative genre. Both essays became important references for many writers of the time, although not all responded to this new dehumanized art.

Core Aesthetics of the Movement

• 1st Reaction: Against nineteenth-century sequels; rejection of trivial realism.
• 2nd Feature: Escape from sentimentality.
• 3rd Shift: Abandoning the impassioned and vehement style.
• 4th Element: Intellectualism, a product of the concern to avoid sentimentality.
• 5th Goal: Ideal of pure art—art as aesthetic pleasure.
• 6th Concern: Meticulous attention to language.

Literary Genres: The Novel

Ramón Pérez de Ayala

Pérez de Ayala focused on experimentation in both his writing style and in issues of marked intellectual dye. He innovated the narrative techniques he used. His stages include:

Autobiographical Novels

The author recounts his own educational experiences with the Jesuits or the bohemian life of Copla.

Lyrical Novel and Social Renewal

Includes works like Prometheus (1914–1920), focusing on social criticism and narrative renewal.

Intellectual Novels

Dominant in the 1920s, these are highly intellectual and deal with subjects such as love and honor (e.g., Belarmino y Apolonio).

Gabriel Miró

Miró was trained by Jesuits, which marked a part of his literary production. His works are characterized by:

Formalist and Lyrical Novels

• Prevalence of sensations.
• Great care of language.
• Exhaustive description.

Notable novels include El Señor de Bembézar (lyricism), Nuestro Padre San Daniel (Bishop Leper), and short stories like El libro de Sigüenza y las hogueras.