Spanish Literary Movements: G.27, Lorca, and Vanguardism
Characteristics of Romance Poetry
Romance poetry utilizes rhyming pairs, features many verses, and often has an odd, loose structure.
Key Imagery and Symbolism
- Moon: Death
- Sea: Location of death
- Horse: Carries passion and death
- Drum: Crying
- Gypsy: A myth representing the contact between man and nature
- Jewelry: Death
Rhetorical Devices in Poetry
Commonly used devices include:
- Metaphors
- Rhetorical exclamations
- Personifications
- Anaphora (repetition of words)
- Hyperbole (exaggeration)
- Synesthesia (mixing of senses)
- Asyndeton (without conjunctions)
- Epithet (obvious quality)
Symbolism of Copper
Copper is often associated with the gypsy, anvils, songs, and the olive land.
Current Theater Triumphs
The contemporary theater scene features innovative new approaches.
Ramón del Valle-Inclán: Evolution and Esperpento
Valle-Inclán evolved from a decadent comedy trilogy to the barbaric primitive style, culminating in the artificial distancing technique known as Esperpento.
Federico García Lorca: Experimental and Tragic Theater
Lorca developed both experimental theater and tragic theater, exemplified by works like Doña Rosita the Spinster.
Analysis of The House of Bernarda Alba
Key elements of The House of Bernarda Alba:
- Argument: The home functions as a jail.
- Themes: Authoritarianism and rebellion.
- Techniques: Dialogue and detailed characterization of characters.
- Setting: Focus on space, scenery, and weather.
- Events: The narrative begins with an initial calm before conflict.
The Vanguard Movements (Vanguardias)
Vanguard movements shared an aesthetic tradition, aiming to upset all directions following the First World War.
Core Vanguard Principles
- Antirealism: Breaks with traditional ideas of reality.
- Primitivism: Focuses on historical and fundamental elements.
- Irrationalism: Considered a pillar of progress.
- Desire for Originality: Seeking the new for the sake of being new.
Major Vanguard Movements
Futurism
Futurism championed the violent exaltation of strength, utilizing onomatopoeia, nonverbal elements, and typographical changes.
Dadaism
Dada, often described as the "babbling drunk," sought an original innocence related to the primitive. It employed phonetic poetry characterized by an absurd and provocative tone.
Surrealism
Surrealism advocated for the liberation of man from reason and morality. It focused on dreams and automatic poetry, allowing the subconscious to dictate the writing process.
Greguerías
Greguerías are short, witty phrases. They utilize unusual metaphors, personifications, or plays on words to create sense and humor.
Ultraism
Ultraism was a vanguard movement of poetry in Castilian. It influenced the future through original metaphors, the removal of punctuation, and unique visual arrangements of words.
The Generation of '27 (G.27)
The members of the G.27 typically came from bourgeois families with a liberal spirit and solid literary education, often working as literature teachers.
Aesthetic and Historical Context
They shared a common aesthetic, successfully mixing the traditional with the modern. They maintained traditional themes.
The group flourished during the eras of Primo de Rivera and the Second Republic, but remained united until the murder of Lorca. The Spanish Civil War and subsequent exile separated the remaining members.
Key Poetic Styles and Works
- Neopopularism: Utilized resources and metric forms of popular poetry.
- Gypsy Ballads (Lorca)
- A Sailor on Shore (Rafael Alberti)
- Pure Poetry: Focused on aesthetic perfection and intellectual depth.
- Song (Jorge Guillén)
- The Voice to You Properly and Reasonably of Love (Pedro Salinas)
- Surrealism: Explored the subconscious and irrational.
- The Reality and Desire (Luis Cernuda)
- Poet in New York (Lorca)
- About the Angels (Alberti)
- Destruction or Love (Vicente Aleixandre)