Spanish Romanticism: Espronceda and Bécquer Masterpieces

Spanish Romantic Authors

José de Espronceda: The Exalted Romantic

José de Espronceda is the quintessential representative of Spanish Romanticism. His literary evolution was marked by a liberal spirit, transitioning from Neoclassicism to a more exalted Romanticism. While he is primarily celebrated for his poetry, he also wrote the historical novel Sancho Saldaña.

Major Lyric and Narrative Works

His lyrical production is divided into two main categories:

• Social and Political Songs: These poems idealize marginalized characters of society. These figures live by their own moral codes and symbolize absolute freedom, as seen in the famous Song of the Pirate.
• Narrative Poems: This category includes El Diablo Mundo and El Estudiante de Salamanca.

El Diablo Mundo and El Estudiante de Salamanca

El Diablo Mundo is a massive narrative poem of more than 8,000 verses that remained unfinished, showcasing Espronceda's creative freedom. El Estudiante de Salamanca consists of nearly 2,000 polymetric verses. It recounts a legend the author claims to have heard. The action begins in Salamanca, a city that is not merely described but transformed into a strange, unpredictable atmosphere as the work progresses.

Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer: Intimate Romanticism

Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer, whose childhood was marked by abandonment, worked as a journalist and editor for various newspapers where he published his stories and poems.

Prose: The Legends

His most representative prose work is a collection of approximately 20 stories known as Leyendas (Legends), rooted in the medieval literary tradition. In these tales, character description is secondary to the mystery and action. These Romantic legends often feature inexplicable or supernatural elements. Women in these stories are often portrayed as beautiful but dangerous, leading their lovers toward destruction within historical settings.

Poetry: The Rhymes

Bécquer’s Rimas (Rhymes) consist of 79 short poems characterized by assonance rhyme. The central theme is love, presented with deep sentimentality through four distinct stages:

• Infatuation
• Love-passion
• Deception
• Abandonment

Techniques and Influences

Bécquer utilized polymetric structures and often closed his poems with a final verse that summarized the theme. His style relies on the repetition of words and symbolist procedures, creating a gentle rhythm full of connotation. His poetry was influenced by:

• Popular Poetry: Direct, brief, and based on metric repetition.
• Symbolism: Using experiences to speak of ineffable feelings through symbols like the wind, light, and waves.

Bécquer does not write about abstract ideas but about raw feelings, using a simple yet carefully crafted language. He presents love as an unattainable absolute ideal. His Rimas are generally organized into four groups:

1. Reflections on poetry: Rhymes 1–11
2. Exaltation of love: Rhymes 12–29
3. The broken heart: Rhymes 30–51
4. Feelings of pain and death: Rhymes 52–79