The poetry of Rafael Alberti (from "Marinero en tierra" to "Pleamar")

Abstract

This text reproduces the speech given by Leopoldo Rodríguez Alcalde at the Santander Athenaeum in 1949. It deals with the poetry of Rafael Alberti and his relationship with the sea, the meaning of its poetic elements and the metaphorical connections with other writers such as García Lorca, Rubén Darío and Antonio Machado. It is a relevant speech because it was given in the postwar period and did not suffer any censorship, since it was also received by the official institution of the Athenaeum. Rodríguez Alcalde praises the figure of Alberti, narrating data from his biography that marked his work, and establishes similarities with other contemporary poets. Thus, throughout the speech, he compares Alberti's poems from the collection of Marinero en Tierra to that of Pleamar.