Comparison of Federico García Lorca's Poems, Romance de la Pena Negra and La Aurora

Comparison of Federico García Lorca's Poems, Romance de la Pena Negra and La Aurora

Romance de la Pena Negra (Ballad of the Black Sorrow) was written by Lorca on the 30. July 1924 (Catedra:80). It was one of a collection of poems he entitled the Romancero Gitano (Gypsy Ballads) that, when published, was a huge success, among academics and the general public alike, making this book one of his most well known pieces of work. There are many reasons why the poems received such wide acclaim in terms of Lorca’s wider audience: It is clear that the ballad, with its simple, eight-syllable line rhyming structure makes for uncomplicated reading, in addition, the subject matter would have sparked general interest due to the mysterious nature of its gypsy protagonists, who had popularised the flamenco arts at the end of the 19th century, yet inspired a mixture of fear, loathing and admiration in Spain that all Spaniards would have recognised. The universal content of the poems is another reason for their popularity, they are rich in natural imagery, the moon, the sea and the mountains all appear frequently, as do themes of love, sexuality and death, making the poems easily accessible to all readers on a basic level.

Critics and academics were just as appreciative of Lorca’s work, in it they were able to recognise his talent for fusion and innovation, for example, he combined the narrative ballad format with the lyrical (Harvard: 32) and harmoniously blended elements from the classics (influences from Greek mythology) (Catedra:79), the folkloric (the use of gypsy lore), and the most modern scientific thought of Freud and his theories regarding dreams and the subconscious. It is important that Lorca would choose the ballad to create h...

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...r to give the coins being thrown at the abandoned children, the quality of furious swarms of wasps that, rather than helping, are actually attacking them. The contrasting images deployed by Lorca in these lines convert the traditional good associated with giving money into a form of torture; the money becomes a weapon and the act of giving money a lesson on morality.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Carr, Raymond: “Spain 1808-1975” (2nd ed.) 1982, Oxford University Press/Clarendon Press

“Federico García Lorca Conferencias I”, Alianza Editorial, S.A., Madrid 1984

Gaos, Vicente: “Antología del Grupo Poético de 1927” Ediciones Cátedra, S.A. 1981

Harvard, Robert G: “Federico García Lorca Gypsy Ballads – Romancero Gitano”, Aris & Phillips – Warminster – England.

Salinas, Pedro: “Literatura Española Siglo XX” 1970, Alianza Editorial, S.A. Madrid

http://witcombe.sbc.edu/modernism/