Spanish Pre-War Context and Literature History

General Characteristics of Pre-War Spain

During the first third of the twentieth century, the political situation was unstable, produced by a systemic political crisis alongside industrial and economic development in Catalonia and the Basque Country, where the workers' movement emerged.

Two social classes appeared: the bourgeoisie and the high-middle class. This class shift produced a demographic growth and emigration to cities, alongside the rejection of rationalism and positivism.

Philosophical currents influenced the culture of this era:

• Vitalism by Friedrich Nietzsche
• Psychoanalysis by Sigmund Freud

This epoch is characterized by a pessimistic and distressed vision of human existence, which manifested as human existentialism.

Literature Prior to 1936

Features

• Preoccupation with Spain and the human problem
• New style and creation

Literary Movements

• Modernism (late 19th and early 20th centuries)
• Generation of '98 (1898)
• Noucentisme (1910)
• Generation of '27 (starting in 1927, with the death of Góngora)

During this period, avant-garde movements also developed.

Pre-War Poetry: Modernism and the Generation of '98

Modernism

This cultural and spiritual movement developed at the end of the 19th and early twentieth centuries. It was Hispano-American, related to the emergence of our literature, and connected to Parnassianism and Symbolism with French sources.

Its aesthetic purpose was to seek the sensuality of art and express symbols and feelings. Common themes included love, eroticism, artistic pursuits, and romantic disquiet. It utilized hendecasyllable verses, free verse, and alexandrines, leading to the renewal and enrichment of poetic language.

Authors: Rubén Darío, Manuel Machado, Juan Ramón Jiménez.

Generation of '98

This movement arose following the ultimate loss of Spain's overseas colonies (Cuba and the Philippines).

Its purpose was the critical analysis and reflection of common terms, human problems, and Spanish national identity. Existential and religious concerns were central, featuring a simple and sober style where authors used traditional, castizo words and cultivated classic genres.

Authors: Azorín, Antonio Machado, Pío Baroja, Ramiro de Maeztu.

Antonio Machado

He was one of the great poets of the century. His works deal with themes such as death, God, and time, with love as a secondary theme. His first poems discuss the search for love, dedicated to his deceased wife, Leonor Izquierdo, which provided great consolation.

His poetic production is divided into several stages:

• Intimate Modernism: Complemented by traditional symbols where assonance predominates.
• Noventayochista Position: Features studies of Castilian landscapes using classic meters and consonant rhyme.
• Folklore Tradition: Seen in his book Nuevas Canciones.

His poetry of the civil war was composed of twenty poems. He died in France at the end of the Spanish Civil War.