Spanish Romanticism Poetry and Theater Analysis

Second Half of the 19th Century

Poetry: Based on Feelings

Topics

• Love, frustration, and the ineffable inner world.
• Style: Short poems, assonance rhyme.
• Techniques: Anaphora and parallelism.
• Sensations conveyed through connotations and symbols.

Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer

• Themes: Frustration, impossible love, loneliness, anguish.
• Style: Lyrical poetry with rhymes.

Romantic Theater

Characteristics

• Drama that rejects classical rules regarding place, time, and action.
• Literary model: The tragic impossible love, typical of the Golden Age.
• Characters: Passionate, liberal, and rebellious heroes who die when confronting societal rules.
• Settings: Sepulchral environments, often at night.
• Language: Rhetoric predominates.
• Structure: Metrical and strophic variety, mixing prose and verse.
• Goal: To move the viewer emotionally.

Don Juan Tenorio by José Zorrilla

• It opposes classical determinism with Romanticism.
• Based on "The Trickster of Seville" by Tirso de Molina (17th Century).
• A universal myth, alongside Celestina and Quijote.
• Represents Romantic rebellion.
• Love is treated as a personal challenge.
• A popular theater piece featuring varied scenery and sounds.

Rosalía de Castro

• Wrote works in both Galician and Castilian.
• Presents an anguished vision of nostalgia for the reality of the homeland.

José de Espronceda

• Fought against absolutism.
• Female singer (marginal figures, incorporating rebellion and freedom, e.g., "Pirate Song").
• Narrative poems with a philosophical character (e.g., "The Devil in the World").
• Recreates the myth of Don Juan in "The Student of Salamanca."

The Student of Salamanca

D. Félix fools D. Elvira, who dies for love. D. Diego challenges D. Félix and dies attempting to avenge her. Don Félix experiences supernatural visions and ultimately dies.

Mariano José de Larra

• Active in Madrid.
• Wrote for two newspapers: "El Duende Satírico del Día" (1828) and "El Pobrecito Hablador" (1832).
• Published articles under the pseudonym "Figaro" starting in 1833.
• Committed suicide in 1837 due to love troubles.
• Newspaper articles analyzed Spanish customs and the country's situation.
• Sometimes used narrative anecdotes to defend his thesis.

"Vuelva Mañana" (Come Back Tomorrow)

A foreign friend visits Spain for administrative matters. He begins searching for a genealogist to inquire about his name. The author and friends witness the incompetence involved. The friend gives up and returns to his country. (The friend is referred to as Monsieur Sans Délai).