Definition of Generation 27

During the dictatorship of Primo de Rivera in the 1920s, one of the most brilliant poetic generations of the world emerged in Spain. literature Spanish. It is known as the Generation of 27 and its most prominent representatives are the following: Federico García Lorca, Pedro Salinas, Jorge Guillén, Damaso Alonso, Vicente Aleixandre, Gerardo Diego, Luis Cernuda, Emilio Prados and Rafael Alberti.

All of them were born at the end of the 19th century or at the beginning of the 20th. The term Generation of 27 was coined because in 1927 the poets of this group celebrated the third centenary of the death of a great Baroque poet, Luis de Góngora.

To the margin of the poets cited, there were other creators and intellectuals who collaborated with the activities of this collective, such as Picasso, Juan Gris, Manuel de Falla, José Ortega y Gasset or the Chilean poet Pablo Neruda.

General features of poetic production

Members of this generation of poets began publishing in literary magazines around 1920. His new language was not very well received by critics, because in a derogatory way they were called avant-garde.

Apart from their shared admiration for Góngora, they felt admiration for Juan Ramón Jiménez. From him they inherited the desire for purity in poetic language.

For the poets of 27 the poetry it must capture the essence of what is being described. Likewise, the search for beauty and aesthetic enjoyment are two fundamental aspects.

After an initial stage focused on the purity and aesthetics of poetry, there was a evolution towards other approaches, such as concern for human suffering or religious sentiment.

They admired the poetic language of the classics and, at the same time, were interested in the movements of Vanguard, especially for the surrealism.

Between the figures rhetorical, highlights the use of metaphors and with respect to the metric combined classical (for example, the sonnet) with free verse.

They were innovative with respect to the treatment of some taboos of the time. In this sense, some of them openly expressed their homosexual inclinations in their poems.

Engaged poets

Those who made up the Generation of '27 were not simple poets dedicated to their literary activity. They were also socially and politically committed intellectuals.

Rafael Alberti defended the revolutionary utopias of the 1930s and had a very combative role in defending republican ideals during the Spanish civil war.

Federico García Lorca started a company of theater to bring culture to the popular classes.

Emilio Prados supported the miners during the Revolution of Asturias in 1934.

Most of them supported the Republican side after Francisco Franco's military coup.

Photo: Fotolia - Christian Muller

Issues in Generation of 27