Understanding Modernism in Latin American Literature

Modernism is a literary movement of aesthetic renovation that has its origin in Latin America in the 1880s with the publication of the works of Cuban writer José Martí. Modernist writers were inspired by:

1. Some Spanish Romantic writers, primarily in Bécquer.
2. Also remarkable is the influence of French literature of the second half of the nineteenth century, particularly Parnassianism and, above all, the Symbolists.

Parnassianism features:

1. Defends the ideal of "art for art" and that art and beauty are the only comforts in life.
2. Desires perfection in form.
3. Exhibits a taste for topics such as Greek mythology, the exotic East, and ancient civilizations.

Symbolism accused Parnassianism of coldness and scholarship. It is characterized by:

1. Providing poetry with great musicality.
2. Encouraging subjectivism.
3. Using symbols.
4. Employing synesthesias.
5. Innovating metrics.

FEATURES:

• Cosmopolitanism: The modernists feel enchanted by the charm of Paris and Eastern countries.
• Search for formal beauty: Poetry is the supreme art that must unite the colors of painting, the plasticity of sculpture, and the sounds of music.
• Protection of freedom and originality: This is essential in the creative process.

Modernist themes revolve around two cores:

• The flight to distant times and places: ancient Greece with its heroes, gods, etc.
• The expression of intimacy, sometimes with sensuality and vitality; at other times, intimacy expresses sadness, melancholy, and nostalgia in an autumnal atmosphere and decadent evening.

The modernist style aesthetics was a profound renewal in metrics, language, and expressive resources:

• The modernists enriched the metric (lines, verses, and rhythm), "resurrecting" the frame by reforming the sonnet or devising new stanzas. Favorite verses include the Alexandrian, the dodecasyllabic, and the endecasyllable.
• To contribute to the rhythm and sonority of the poems, the verse is used with metrical feet.
• Many poetic lexicons incorporated neologisms, archaisms, cultism, and foreign voices.
• All the more important resources contribute to expressive musicality, color, and sensuality. Synesthesia is widely used by the modernists.
• Modernists have main symbols such as swans, the color blue, rivers, and sources. Each author creates their own symbols.