A Young Spanish Poet

Federico García Lorca was a well-loved Spanish poet from the early twentieth century. He was a member of the Generation of ’27 who introduced the principles of European movements such as futurism, symbolism, and surrealism. He was executed in 1936 by Fascist forces at the start of the Spanish Civil War. News of his death spread and caused outrage among the republic, especially in Andalusia, where the young poet was born. The police reports on the incident describe Lorca as a “socialist” who was engaged in “homosexual and abnormal practices.”

His body was never found.

 

Café cantante                                     Café Flamenco

Lámparas de cristal                          Lamps of crystal
y espejos verdes.                               and green mirrors.

Sobre el tablado oscuro,                  On a dark stage
la Parrala sostiene                            Parrala maintains
una conversación                             a conversation
con la muerte.                                   with Death.
La llama,                                             She calls out to Death,
no viene,                                             but Death never answers her,
y la vuelve a llamar.                         and she calls out again.
Las gentes                                           The audience
aspiran los sollozos.                          inhales her sobbings.
Y en los espejos verdes,                    And in those green mirrors
largas colas de seda                           her long, silken dress
se mueven.                                          is swaying.

-Federico García Lorca

 

When I first read this poem, I was channeling my formal English Literature education and searching for a meaning for each line. However, I couldn’t think of any symbolic meaning for the personification of Death or the green mirrors. Then, I looked further into Lorca’s other works and discovered his focus on “el duende,” which to Lorca was “a demonic earth spirit embodying irrationality, earthiness, and a heightened awareness of death.” It turns out that Lorca was also one of the few poets who wasn’t trying to create a meaning for every line. He was more interested in conveying an overall feeling or emotion from the poem as a whole. When I started to look at it that way, I understood it. I began to see the nightclub with the green lights reflecting in the mirrors, the chandeliers overhead, and the woman singing so passionately. Lorca showed me that sometimes, you have to abandon what you’ve learned before to learn something new.

-Marie Pruitt