Spanish Literature: The Revolutionary Novels of 1902

The Novels of 1902

In 1902, the publication of four novels marked the beginning of the revival of the novel in the first third of the 20th century. In these novels, we find some common traits:

• The will to overcome realism: The expression of subjectivity and the inner world of characters prevails against the reflection of external reality typical of the 19th-century novel.
• Pessimism and awareness of senselessness: The protagonists' existence, often apathetic and disoriented, was characterized by a lack of deep convictions and a willingness to live. Suicide is, therefore, a common ending in these stories.
• Concern for Spanish reality: They criticize the excessive power of the Church and the Army, despotism, and ignorance, while proposing regenerationist measures.

Pío Baroja

Pío Baroja wrote over 50 novels, taking the observation of reality as a starting point, though without the ambition of objectivity. In Baroja's novels, life is conceived as a continuing struggle that has no final purpose. His characters battle the anguish this causes by surrendering to dynamism and continuous adventure. Some titles manifesting this vision of existence are La busca, Zalacaín the Adventurer, and The Concerns of Shanti Andía, or the series of twenty volumes titled Memoirs of a Man of Action.

However, Pío Baroja's greatest achievement is The Tree of Knowledge (El árbol de la ciencia). It tells the epic life of Andrés Hurtado, a physician who fails in his intention to find answers to his existential concerns in science. Suffering can be relieved only by the pursuit of ataraxia. The protagonist's eventual suicide confirms the pessimism that pervades the author's novels. Both The Tree of Knowledge and the other novels mentioned reveal Baroja's extraordinary narrative ability, whose style is characterized by short sentences and a lack of rhetorical resources.

Miguel de Unamuno

Miguel de Unamuno conceives the novel as a channel for the expression of philosophical problems. The existential questions that arise in his novels include:

• The longing for immortality: This leads human beings to believe in God and eternal life, even though reason contradicts this belief. This is the main theme of the novella San Manuel Bueno, Martyr, featuring a priest who has lost his faith but believes that the comfort provided by religion is necessary for the people.
• The conception of life as fiction: Augusto Pérez, the star of Fog (Niebla), faces his creator—Unamuno himself—and tries to control a life which is nothing more than a story in the author's imagination. This establishes a parallel between the character's relationship with its author and man's relationship with God.
• Concern for the reality of Spain.