| In "Romanticism's Progeny," I argue that the defining characteristic of the Romantic movement, as it is experienced in Spain, is its dialectical nature. Rather than facing a movement with clearly defined values, the critic of Spanish literature confronts something akin to Virgil Nemoianu's concept of Biedermeier or second-stage Romanticism, in which reactions to the chaos of the times are both radically divergent and highly individual.; Out of the joining of chaos and individuality emerges the need of the author to project his or her work into posterity, in order to find a later readership that will both comprehend and recollect the author. The projection of the self through the written word is an equivocal gesture, as the process of writing imagines a future readership, yet creates the possibility of oblivion.; Gustavo Adolfo Becquer first recognizes the limits of artistry in the Historia de los templos de Espana, a catalogue of ruined sanctuaries. In the Cartas literarias a una mujer, Becquer imagines dialogue as another means of self-preservation. A total compenetration of Poet and Woman, though desirable, threatens the poet with erasure. Dialogue implies, however, the separation of Self and Other, which means the less than perfect preservation of memory. In the "Introduccion sinfonica," Becquer imagines his work as monstrous children who will represent him after his demise.; Leopoldo Alas, "Clarin," parodies the notion of Romantic progeny in Su unico hijo. Bonifacio Reyes imagines the child as another self, as a way to bring fame and posterity to the family line. The child is, however, little more than an artifact of a dusty and moribund Romanticism, and as such will fail to provide Bonifacio with meaning. The novel also signals the limits of realism-naturalism, due to its (re)collection of Romantic objects.; Finally, Luis Cernuda returns to Becquer's notion of survival through poetry. Though Cernuda will insist that genius is eternal, a number of his texts show concerns regarding the reception of his work. In poems like "A un poeta futuro," Cernuda projects a future in which he will be read and understood. Cernuda's poetry, in short, creates his own poetic children. |
