Spanish Literature and Theater in the Post-War Era (1940s-50s)

The Spanish Novel: 1940s-1950s

The Existential Novel

The existential novel is a literary genre featuring maverick characters who are often confused and frustrated. A key example is The Family of Pascual Duarte by Camilo José Cela, which initiated a trend known as tremendismo. This movement also includes the early work of Miguel Delibes, such as The Shadow of the Cypress is Long. Two other notable yet hard-to-classify works from this period are Javier Mariño and The Living Forest.

The Social Novel of the 1950s

Several external factors favored a shift in Spanish narrative during this time. A new generation of writers emerged who had not participated in the Civil War, and press censorship was often circumvented through fiction. Key figures include:

• Ignacio Aldecoa
• Carmen Martín Gaite
• Jesús Fernández Santos

The publication of The Hive marks the transition from the existential to the social novel. Common themes included:

• The harshness of rural life (Los Bravos)
• Labor conflicts (Central Eléctrica)
• The miseries of urban life (The Hive)
• The emptiness of bourgeois life (El Jarama)

These works are characterized by simple language, sparse descriptions, a focus on a collective protagonist, and the importance of dialogue. Based on these features, critics have distinguished between objectivism and critical realism. The social novel was a response to historical circumstances, but its authors acknowledged that its failure to reach a wider audience made it an ineffective weapon for social combat.

Spanish Theater: 1940s-1950s

In post-war Spain, political circumstances heavily influenced the stage. While exiled playwrights like Rafael Alberti (political theater), Max Aub (plays on Nazism), and Alejandro Casona (poetic drama like Our Natacha) continued their work abroad, theatrical life within Spain was centered in Madrid and Barcelona and developed into several distinct styles.

Bourgeois Theater

This style, heir to the high comedy of Jacinto Benavente, was aimed at an affluent audience. Its themes revolved around love, marriage, and family, consistently defending traditional values. It was often a comedy of escapism, featuring lighthearted plots and happy endings. These plays presented a poetic world driven by folly or fantasy, sometimes containing ideological arguments or celebrating historical heroism.

Humorous Theater

This was an intellectual style of comedic theater, bordering on the absurd. Its most representative work is Three Top Hats by Miguel Mihura. After the war, Mihura toned down the absurdist and critical elements in his plays. Another important figure was Enrique Jardiel Poncela, known for his 'theater of the improbable,' exemplified by works like Eloise Is Under an Almond Tree.

Existential and Social Theater

This form of theater reflected the social malaise of the time, featuring realistic environments and humble characters. Its principal architects were Antonio Buero Vallejo and Alfonso Sastre.