Spain’s foreign policy since 1898 has very nearly reduced itself to three factors. First of these is the policing of a small strip of the Moroccan coast, where Ceuta and other posts are still held by Spain. This has involved the country in wars of a minor character with the traditional enemy in Moslem Northwest Africa. Of greater interest is the conscious policy of cultivating the friendship of the American countries which were once colonies of Spain, based largely on a wish to develop a market for Spanish goods, but not devoid of a sentiment which makes Spain desire to associate herself with the growing lands to which she gave the first impulse to civilization. Finally, Spain’s relations with the two groups of European powers which entered upon the Great War in 1914 have occupied the attention of the country continuously in recent years, and have been an issue which has divided Spaniards. Many of the conservative elements of Spain have long been, not so much pro-German, as anti-French, and they have been supported by those parts of the masses which follow the lead of the church or else take no great interest in politics. The causes of this Francophobe feeling are numerous. The Dos de Mayo, Spain’s national holiday, stands for an uprising against the French, followed by the glorious War of Independence, although, to be sure, this has of late exercised but little influence; many French writers have written disparagingly or in a patronizing manner of Spain, causing a natural feeling of resentment; Spanish American countries have asserted that France is their intellectual mother, not Spain, and this may have had an effect, though comparatively little, on the minds of some; mere propinquity with France, which is the only great power bordering upon the peninsula, has brought about a certain hostility which neighboring peoples so often feel with regard to each other; the affronts which Spain claims to have received at French hands in Morocco have had great weight; and the already hostile attitude of the clergy against republican France was enhanced when that country broke with the Catholic Church a few years ago. As regards England, Spain has never forgotten Gibraltar. With Germany, on the other hand, there has been little occasion for friction, and German commercial competition with England for Spanish markets has been welcomed as beneficial to the country. The radical and liberal elements, which include the intellectuals, and, generally speaking, the Liberal party have favored the Entente as against the Central Powers, and their position has been very greatly strengthened by the evident support of the king. In part, pro-Entente feeling has been a matter of political principle, because of the liberal types of government in France and England, the only two countries of the Entente allies (prior to American entry in the Great War) to whom Spaniards have paid attention. In large measure, however, the Spanish point of view has been the result of a certain practical, materialistic trait which is ingrained in Spanish character. Thus Spaniards have pointed out that it would be fatal for Spain to side with Germany, since her wide separation from the latter, coupled with British naval supremacy, would make it unlikely that German arms could be of any assistance to Spain. Commercial and other reasons have also been adduced to show that Spain could gain nothing by an alliance with Germany. These views have developed in the course of the Great War until Spain has become rather more inclined to the allies than to the Germans. It is not improbable, however, that an allied disaster might be seized upon by the pro-German military element to swing Spain the other way, for the army is still a factor to be reckoned with in Spanish politics. On the other hand, many leading Spaniards have argued that there would be no advantage for Spain if she should enter the war, whereas there has thus far been a distinct benefit for certain elements in the population, in the shape of abnormal war profits, through remaining neutral. Lately, however, great misery has been occasioned as a result of Spain’s inability to procure needed supplies from the allies and the danger from the German submarines.
Spain’s intellectual renaissance.
In no element of the national life has the well-being of Spain since 1898 been more clearly demonstrated than in the realm of things intellectual. On the educational and scientific side (with one exception, presently to be noted), the achievement has not been great enough to attract attention, but in those branches of human knowledge which are akin to the emotions Spain has embarked upon a new siglo de oro which has already placed her in the forefront of the nations in the wealth and beauty of her contemporary literature and art. Many writers or artists of note did their work before 1898, while others stand athwart that year, but the most remarkable development has come in the more recent period—a growing force which is far from having run its course. Thus, before 1898, there were such poets as Becquer, Campoamor, Núñez de Arce, Rosalía de Castro, and Salvador Rueda; novelists like Alarcón, Pereda, Valera, “Clarín,” Picón, Palacio Valdés, Pardo Bazán, and Pérez Galdós; dramatists including Ayala, Tamayo, Echegaray, Pérez Galdós, Guimerá, and Dicenta; critics and philologists like Milá Fontanals, Valera, “Clarín,” and Menéndez y Pelayo; essayists such as Alfredo Calderón, Morote, Picavea, Ganivet, and Unamuno; painters like Pradilla, Ferrán, and Muñoz Degrain; and composers of music including Arrieta, Gastambide, Chueca, Chapí, Bretón, and Fernández Caballero. Some of the more notable of these belong also in the post-1898 group, and to them should be added, among others, the following: poets—Rubén Darío (who is included in this list, though he is a Nicaraguan, because of his influence on Spanish poetry), Villaespesa, Marquina, Ramón D. Perés, the two Machados, Mesa, Diez Canedo, Muñoz San Román, and Maragall; novelists—Blasco Ibáñez, Pío Baroja, “Azorín,” Silverio Lanza, Valle Inclán, Ricardo León, Alberto Insúa, Pérez de Ayala, Martínez Sierra, Miró, and Felipe Trigo; dramatists—Benavente, Martínez Sierra, the brothers Álvarez Quintero, Carlos Arniches, Linares Rivas, Marquina, Rusiñol, and Iglesias; critics and philologists—Menéndez Pidal, Bonilla, Rodríguez Marín, Said Armesto, Américo Castro, Cejador, Alomar, Tenreiro, and González Blanco; essayists—Ortega Gasset, Maeztu, “Azorín,” Gómez de Baquero, Manuel Bueno, Maragall, and Zulueta; painters—Zuloaga, Sorolla, the brothers Zubiaurre, Benedito, Chicharro, Villegas, Nieto, Beruete, Moreno Carbonero, Bilbao, Sotomayor, Anglada, de la Gándara, Juan Lafita, and Rusiñol; sculptors—Blay, Benlliure, Marinas, Clará, and Julio Antonio; architects—Gaudí, Puig, Velázquez, and Palacios; composers—Albéniz, Pedrell, Turina, Granados, Falla, Vives, Serrano, and Quinito Valverde; and educators—Giner de los Ríos and Cossío. Spain has also produced historians and historical scholars of note in recent years (though several of them belong in the pre-1898 group), among whom should be reckoned Cánovas del Castillo, Danvila y Collado, Hinojosa, Rafael Altamira, Colmeiro, Fidel Fita, Fernández Duro, Menéndez y Pelayo, Torres Lanzas, and Fernández Guerra. Special mention should be made of the novelists Pérez Galdós (author of the famous Episodios nacionales, or National episodes,—a series of historical novels from the Liberal point of view, covering the history of Spain from the time of Godoy to the present,—and esteemed by many as one of the most remarkable literary geniuses of modern times) and Blasco Ibáñez (who has used the novel as a vehicle for an attack on the old order of Spanish life); of the dramatists Jacinto Benavente (a man whom many regard as deserving to rank with the greatest names of all time in Spanish literature), Pérez Galdós (who is almost equally notable in the drama as in the novel), the brothers Álvarez Quintero (who have so clearly depicted modern Andalusian life), and Martínez Sierra (whose comedies reach to the very roots of truth and beauty); of Menéndez y Pelayo, most famous as a critic, said to have been the dominant figure of recent years in Spanish literature; of the painters Zuloaga (successor of El Greco, Velázquez, and Goya, whose works embrace both the mysticism and the austerity of the Spanish national spirit) and Sorolla (a symbolist, who has done with the brush what Blasco Ibáñez did with the pen, and whose paintings, mainly of Valencian scenes, are full of realism and naturalism, brilliant in expression and color); and of Giner de los Ríos, opponent of the church, but a man of tremendous influence on the thought of modern Spain. It is to be noted that the leading names in the realm of art are all in the post-1898 period; indeed, this form of intellectual manifestation was not in a flourishing state before that time. And in the midst of all these names one must not forget that of Santiago Ramón y Cajal, whose discoveries in histology have made him famous throughout the world. Many characterize him as the greatest Spaniard of the present day.
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Things which Spaniards are not.
Spain clearly has entered upon a new era of her history. No man can predict, with safety, toward what goal she is tending, although there is some ground for a feeling of optimism. With the leading facts of Spanish history already before the reader, it is perhaps well at this point to give a summary account of contemporary Spanish traits and social problems, thus providing a further basis for estimates with regard to the possibilities of the future. It is best to begin with a statement of some of the things which Spaniards are not,—with a view to controverting certain widely circulated notions. Spaniards are not unusually cruel or vindictive. The notion that they are has arisen in various ways. Spaniards are emotional, and under the stress of excitement are capable of acts of great violence, but on the other hand they very rarely plan a crime in cold blood. The bull-fight has been charged to an innate cruelty of Spaniards, but whatever one may think of the game, the aficionado, or bull-fight “fan,” is appealed to by the skill of the bull-fighter and the courage of the bull, rather than by the flow of blood. As regards treatment of animals, the evidence is somewhat against the Spaniard. The superficial tourist is apt to think that the majority of Spaniards in third class of the railway coaches are double-dyed brigands, for they wear wretched clothing and carry huge knives,—but the former is the result of economic necessity, and the latter is to cut bread with—and not each others’ throats. The historians, however, are very largely to blame, especially those who maligned the dominant and hated Spaniards of the sixteenth century. Spaniards themselves, with their fierce party spirit and rhetorical gifts, products of their emotional make-up, have provided the arguments which have been used against them,—notably in the case of Las Casas’ condemnation of the Spanish treatment of the Indians. In the second place, they are not lazy; rather, they make excellent laborers, and work long hours without complaint. The idea that they are indolent arises in part from the fact that the titled classes still retain some of the traditional aversion to manual labor; in part from a certain lack of ambition, such that many Spaniards, notably those of the south, do not work, after they have gained enough to live on for perhaps only a little while; partly because of a lack of responsibility which many of them display, with the result that they do not do well when not under supervision; and partly, again, because histories have so described Spaniards of the past, and this time with some truth. Many of the factors which once made manual labor unpopular are not any longer operative, such as the prevalence of slaves, serfs, and Moslems in industry or agriculture, wherefore the earlier stigma attaching to those occupations has been removed. In the third place, Spaniards are not proud and arrogant to the extent of being haughty, although they do have a sense of personal pride which is rather to be commended than condemned. In the fourth place, to call a man a “Spaniard” is not a sufficient definition, for there are wide differences in blood and language as well as in feelings in the various regions of Spain; the serious-minded, progressive, European-blooded Catalan is certainly farther apart from the easy-going, pleasure-loving, improvident, part Moslem-blooded Andalusian than is the Englishman from the American, or perhaps the southern Frenchman from the North Italian. In addition to Castilian, or Spanish, there are the distinct languages of the Catalans and Basques, with a great many variants, or dialects, from the Castilian and Catalan. Nevertheless, it is true that all are “Spaniards.” Castilian is generally understood, and, until the recent reappearance of Catalan, was the only literary language; the people are patriotic to the country, even though the fire of local attachments is still uncommonly strong in them; the bull-fight and the national lottery are popular in all parts of Spain; Spaniards read the same books, have the same government, and, in fine, have been brought together, though widely divergent in traits, by the circumstances of history.
Intellectual and emotional traits of Spaniards.
The keynote to an understanding of Spanish character lies in an appreciation of the fact that Spaniards generally combine an intense individualism and marked practicality with an emotional temperament. Enough has already been intimated with regard to the two first-named traits. As for that of emotionalism it becomes more operative the farther south one goes. Some Spaniards say that the English, who are taken as representative of the northern peoples, are in the forefront of the nations as concerns matters of the head, but that the Spaniards lead in heart, and they are well content to have it that way. Yet it is far from true that Spaniards are lacking in head; rather, they are brilliantly intellectual, and even the man in the street often seems to have a faculty for seeing and expressing things clearly, with little or no study; their logical-mindedness is displayed in the rhetorical skill with which they set forth their opinions. It is true, however, that there is a certain lack of intellectual stamina in Spaniards; they will not use the brains with which nature has abundantly endowed them. Thus, big business and scientific discoveries (except in the practical realm of their applications) have been left to the foreigners. On the emotional, or heart, side one encounters numerous evidences. Spaniards are devotedly fond of children,—almost too much so, for they seem unable to refuse them anything. Thus, a child gets milk by crying, toys galore, and stays up at night until he wants to go to bed; the effects on national discipline are possibly not of the best, but the error, if such it is, springs from the heart. Spaniards, past and present, have been great in emotional expression, in the fields of literature and art. It is a novelty for Americans to find that the educated young men of Spain talk quite as easily about literature and art as they do about women,—and they move from one subject to the other without any marked change in the tenor of the conversation. Spanish crimes are usually the result of an emotional impulse. Similarly, the emotions play rather too prominent a part in the Spaniard’s associations with women! Courtesy is almost universal among Spaniards, who will go to considerable personal inconvenience in order to assist a stranger; to be sure, one is not safe in reckoning on the promises to render favors later,—for by that time the impulse may have passed. The Spanish fondness for the bull-fight and the lottery also springs from the emotional stir which goes with them.
Spanish women.
The above applies principally to the men. The women should be considered apart, and this is much more necessary in dealing with Spain than it would be in treating of the United States, where women come nearer to having an equal liberty with men. Opinions differ as to the personal appearance of Spanish women, and first impressions of the foreigner are apt to be against them. This is largely because the people of the wealthy or moderately well-to-do classes do not appear in the street nearly so frequently as in the United States or in northern Europe. The women of the working classes toil harder, on the average, than do ours,—for more of them have to help earn the family living as well as bring up and take care of the children,—and they are not able to dress well, with the natural result that they are rarely prepossessing. This in part accounts also for the belief of foreigners that Spanish beauty fades,—which is not the case with those who are able to live in fairly easy circumstances any more than it is in other countries. Among Spaniards it is often said that the Valencian women are the handsomest, closely followed by the Andalusians, who rank as the most witty. It is to be noted that the Moslem element in Spanish blood is very strong in these sections. Another popular misconception as to Spanish señoritas (young ladies) is that they are so dainty that they would almost melt in one’s hand. In fact they are unusually self-contained in manner, and if they have any pronounced defect it is one which does not go with daintiness,—that of a loud, often metallic voice. On the other hand there is most decidedly an all-pervading, unconscious grace in Spanish women. Women other than those of the working classes find very little to do. Servants are extraordinarily cheap,—one can get a nurse-girl in Seville for about ten cents a day; so there is little occasion to do housework. Spanish women are not assiduous readers, do not even sew or knit to any marked degree, and comparatively few of them sing or play the piano. They are fond of a walk or ride in the afternoon, accompanied by the children and the nurse-girls, and enjoy social gatherings at night. In fine, their life is passed largely in pleasant conversation, with very little variety; indeed, they require little that is novel, for they are simple in their tastes, and are easily entertained. The Spanish husband is not nearly so domesticated as the American species. Instead of remaining at home at night he quite regularly goes out,—and even may occupy a different place at the theatre from the group of seats where his wife and daughter are found. This is the expected thing, and Spanish women do not appear to wish it otherwise. They seem to consider that the men have done them a great favor by marrying them, and take the attitude of desiring to repay them for the rest of their lives. The husband is devoted to his wife and the children, but he would commit suicide before he would carry a baby in the street. Despite the fact that the brains of most Spanish women may be said to lie fallow, they are often brilliant talkers, sharing with the men the intellectual potentialities of the race. They rarely travel, and know very little beyond the bounds of their home town or city and the nearest watering-place. They are usually very religious, but not in an aggressive way; in a country where there is virtually no competition with the Catholic Church there is no stimulus to make their religion anything but a purely personal matter for the individual. This helps to account for the almost complete lack of religious discussion in the Spanish circles one meets with. Young ladies rarely go into the street unless accompanied by their mother or some older person. Whenever they do appear they are stared at by the men, but the practice seems to be regarded as proper and in a measure complimentary. They are hedged around with safeguards which prevent their seeing the young man of their choice alone, except perhaps as separated by the narrow grating of a window, until the day of their marriage. According to all reports these measures fulfill their intended purpose, for the material bars are supplemented by the inherited instincts of the women themselves. Aside from prostitutes Spanish women have a nation-wide reputation for good moral conduct. Once married the size of the family depends, as many put it, “As God wills!” A family of from five to seven children is not considered large, and there are many families which are very much larger.