Sobre lo trémulo de la memoria desnuda, todo se está repitiendo: the dissident experience of the war and the post-war in the Colliure, El Bardo and Ocnos collections

Abstract

This text contends that the poetry of the "generación de medio siglo" (mid-century generation) is intricately woven around the imperatives of personal and public memory restitution, serving as a resistance front against the official Francoist narratives. Accordingly, it places a spotlight on the intimate relationship between ethics and aesthetics in the lyrical productions of a substantial portion of the poets featured and celebrated in the Barcelona collections, namely Colliure (1961-1966), El Bardo (1964-1974), and Ocnos (1968-1983). The study also scrutinizes the significance of social realism during the 1950s and the critical approaches of the 1960s, positioning them as poetic methodologies and trends employed to unearth the silenced and overlooked narratives of the wartime and post-war era. Furthermore, it illustrates, through thematic and critical analysis, how these specific experiences converge into a broader lyrical paradigm referred to as "poesía del conocimiento" (poetry of knowledge). Consequently, this elucidates the significance of three of the most pivotal poetry collections of the late Franco era, illuminating their role as foundational components of an anti-Franco culture of memory that laid the groundwork for democratic culture during the twenty-five years of the dictatorship.