this sense, surrealism sought to express a mode
of being outside of mundane reality. Ultimately,
it came to attempt the establishment of psycho-
logical truth through subconscious forms. Sur-
realism, notably, was the artistic movement born
from Dadaist thought. The Dadaists believed
that rationality was to blame for the world’s
ills, particularly World War I. Thus, they sought
to undermine rationalism, exalting the subcon-
scious instead. While Dadaism and surrealism
are closely linked, they are still considered two
separate movements. Well-known first-wave
French surrealists include Marcel Duchamp
(infamous for signing a urinal and presenting it
as a work of art), Joan Miro ́, Max Ernst, and
Man Ray. By the mid-1920s, the movement was
growing in popularity throughout Europe, and it
established a particularly strong foothold in
Spain. It was at this time that Salvador Dali,
Alberto Giacometti, and Luis Bun ̃uel joined
the movement. It was also at this time that the
Generacio ́n del 27 was formed, of which Lorca
was a part. Though the core group comprised ten
surrealist poets, both Dali and Bun ̃uel are often
associated with it. Surrealism soon traveled to
the United States and South America, gaining
popularity there in the 1930s. The movement
reached its peak during this decade, with Dali
and Rene ́Magritte’s most iconic surrealist paint-
ings being produced at this time. Though Lorca
had long since broken with the Generacio ́n
del 27, his 1934 ‘‘Lament for Ignacio Sa ́nchez
Mejı ́as’’ exhibits aspects of surrealism in its
loose narrative structure and abstract imagery.
Notably, several international exhibits of surre-
alist artwork were staged throughout the 1930s.
Both the London International Surrealist Exhi-
bition and the New York Museum of Modern
Art’sFantastic Art, Dada and Surrealismwere
held in 1936. Although the advent of World War
II in the 1940s was disruptive to the movement,
surrealism continued to influence art and litera-
ture well into the decade.COMPARE
&
CONTRAST 1930s:Bullfighting in Spain is a national pas-
time. Great matadors of the day, like Ignacio
Sa ́nchez Mejı ́as, are treated as celebrities.
Today: World views toward bullfighting
have changed, and humane societies routinely
object to the sport. Nevertheless, bullfighting
remains a significant aspect of Spanish cul-
ture. Matadors are treated just as sport stars
are treated in the United States.
1930s: The Spanish Republic enjoys an
uneasy peace from 1931 to 1936. The civil
war rages from 1936 to 1939, as the Republic
is toppled and a fascist dictatorship is estab-
lished under Francisco Franco.
Today:Spain is now a parliamentary mon-
archy (a system that places executive power
in a democratically elected president, while
legislative power is shared by the monarchyand the elected parliament). Spain has been
governed under this system since 1978, the
result of a three-year transition following
Francisco Franco’s death in 1975.
1930s:The popular artistic movement of the
day is surrealism. The movement includes
the visual arts, film, and literature. Spanish
leaders in each respective field are Salvador
Dali, Luis Bun ̃uel, and Federico Garcı ́a
Lorca.
Today:Though no universal artistic style
can be readily applied today, the umbrella
termspost-post modernismorpostmillenni-
alismare often applied. A more accurate
term,new sincerity, has also emerged, indi-
cating the recent backlash against irony, a
mode that permeated the preceding era of
postmodernism.Lament for Ignacio Sa ́nchez Mejı ́as