Authors' perspectives on the Spanish Civil War in literature and memoir

Spanish Civil War

The famous Spanish Civil War fought from the year 1936 to 1939. This war was fought between two groups; the Republicans and the Nationalists. The Republicans were the supporters of the established Spanish republic; meanwhile the latter were a group of rebels who were led by General Francisco Franco. Franco emerged victorious in this war and ruled Spain for the next 36 years as a dictator.

After a group of generals (led by Jose Sanjurjo) of the Spanish Republican Armed Forces declared opposition against the government of the Second Spanish Republic, the war ensued. At that time the President of Spain was Manuel Azana. This group of rebels had gained support from a couple of conservative groups that included the Spanish Confederation of the Autonomous Right, Fascist Falange and Carlists (Payne, 1973).

Military units formed in Burgos, Pamplona, Corodova, Morocco, Cadiz and Seville supported this group of rebels. On the other hand, this coup was not joined by the barracks that were formed in the significant cities including Malaga, Barcelona, Valencia, Madrid and Bilbao. Therefore before and during the war, Spain got divided, both politically and militarily. The rebels then decided to wage a war against the established government of Spain. The main aim of the general leading this coup was to get control of the government of Spain. Nazi Germany, Portugal and the Kingdom of Italy supported the Nationalists in this war; meanwhile the Soviet Union and Mexico were seen to side with the republican side. On other hand, some of the countries decided to maintain a neutral stance on this issue including France and United Kingdom.

When the war started, atrocities were committed on both sides. The territory that was captured by Franco's forces was invaded by organized purges (Beevor, 2006). In areas that were under the control of Republicans that were generally related to the violation of law and order (Beevor, 2006). The reason why this Civil War has become so prominent in the history of Spain is the political division that was caused as a result of this war. Nationalists as well as the Republicans, both the groups lost a lot of people during the war for having different religious and political opinions. When the war ended in the year 1939, the lost Republicans were prosecuted extensively by the Nationalists group.

The Nationalists dominated Spain and the Republicans lost the civil war. The people who were supporters of the lost group fled to Southern France and took refuge there. All the right-wing groups were merged into one structure that became an important part of Franco regime.

In this paper we shall be brining into limelight two historical notes written by some great writers. These historical accounts are in the form of a novel, For Whom The Bell Tolls and a journal called Homage to Catalonia. We will discuss the Spanish War as is explained in these two accounts and see how the two authors have perceived the Spanish Civil War. We shall also compare the two writings and analyze them.

For Whom The Bell Tolls

Written by Ernest Hemingway, this novel was published in 1940. This novel is based upon the story of a young American, Robert Jordan, who is in the International Brigades supporting the Republican coup during the civil war in Spain. Since he is a dynamiter, he is given the task to destroy a bridge when the city of Segovia is attacked.

The story of this novel revolves around Robert Jordan, who is an American protagonist supporting the Republicans during the Spanish Civil War (Meyers, 1985). There are basically three types of characters in the novel. The first category is of those who are completely fictional, the second category is of those who are based on actual people and the third category is of real people who have been fictionalized. The story of this novel has been set in Sierra de Guadarrama, which is a mountain range situated in Madrid and Segovia. The story is completed in about four days and three nights. People all over the world have claimed this novel to be one of the best literary works, and it was also nominated for a Pulitzer Prize.

The main themes of this novel revolve around the feelings of Robert during the Spanish Civil War. The author talks about how death was contemplated during the war by the leaders of Republican revolutionary bands, Pablo and El Sordo. It is also told in this novel how Robert is aware of the fact that he will not be able to survive when he blows up the bridge. Throughout the novel, sacrifice and Camaraderie are bound to death. Robert and his companions are aware of the fact that they will make the best sacrifice by fighting this war. This theme of sacrifice is explained beautifully when the incident of Joaquin's family (a character of the novel) is narrated. It is told how all soldiers and brigades claim to be his family after they learn about this tragedy. Through this incident, the author is trying to imply the unity and love the comrades had for the Spanish soil. He explains how Robert feels that this was a place of love when he is awaiting his death.

Suicide has always been an option for people who are suffering from any kind of torture (Ernest, 1940). Ernst explains how most of the people during the Spanish Civil War preferred dying, getting killed or killing themselves than getting captured. When Robert is unable to travel with his companions, he just waits for a final ambush that would end his life. The author here tries to explain how the Republicans were determined to fight till their very last breath than to get captured by the enemy who would then force them to let their information out.

Political ideology and nature of bigotry are also explored in this novel. Ernst has explained how Robert knows that he is on the absolutely right path and thus uses the phrase "enemy of the people" for the Nationalist coup. Since he is convinced that he is not doing anything wrong, he also explains how he feels the threat of fascism in his own country. The author also narrates the incident in which Robert is telling his companions how populist policies are used in his country to accommodate all the citizens. He also explains that true Republic government rules his country, but if such a situation (as that of Spain) arises in his country, he will not hesitate to fight their either.

Historical Accuracy

This story of this novel is that of May 1937 during the time of the second year of the Civil War that took place in Spain. According to the references that have been made to Segovia, Valladolid, El Escorial and Madrid, this novel took place within the attempt made by the Republicans to free Madrid from Nationalist siege. The backdrop of the novel is served by the battle of Guadalajara that took place earlier and the overall disorder and chaos that followed and became the cause of Republican Spain's doom. In this novel, Robert has been narrated as explaining how he thinks that Communists were superior because they were disciplined.

Many analysts of this novel consider Chapter 10 of pivotal role. In this scene, the execution of many fascist people is explained along with the events of Ronda in 1936. Although, it was later on claimed by Hemingway that this seen was totally fabricated by him and did not have any reference to what actually happened. He did claim, however, that this scene was based on the events of Ronda where around 500 people, alleged to be sympathizers of fascist people, were off a cliff side by a mob of people.

There were many actual figures mentioned in this novel that played a role in the Spanish Civil War. One of the founders of the Workers' Party of Marxist Unidication, Andreu Nin is mentioned in Chapter 18 of the novel along with a leader of the Republicans called Indalecio Prieto. In chapter 35, mention of General Jose Miaja who was heading the defense party of Madrid in 1936 and that of General Vicente Rojo is made.

Chapter 32 is in fact an extensive description of Dolores Ibarruri who is popularly known as La Pasionaria. The head of the American Volunteers in the International Brigades, Robert Hale Merriman as well as his wife Marion were a source of inspiration for Hemingway's own hero. A dominating French Communist, who was also a political officer in the International Brigades, Andre Marty also makes a concise but important appearance in chapter 42 of the book. Marty is depicted by Ernst as a brutal intriguer whose suspicion becomes an obstacle for the Republican coup. (Buckley, 1997)

Historical Accuracy

The way that Orwell has discussed the underlying politics is in fact quite interesting as it reveals the level of inaccuracy that a typical U.S. reader would have about Marxism and Communism. It is not an easy task for a U.S. reader to understand the reactions and thoughts of Orwell, since there are so many theories related to the concepts of Marxism and communism. A country that has a communist system is considered to be a classless state by many people. In his account, Orwell has also mentioned his experience of coming to Barcelona where he saw that everyone, from a soldier to an officer, was given the same pay. He has also dedicated some part of his work confronting the class equality from personal experience. He claimed that such equality did not allow the army to be as effective as it could have been. Despite the poor conditions, the Marxist soldiers demonstrated extreme morale.

The political description in this account also tells us about the betrayal of the ideals of Marxist by Stalinist Communism. Because Orwell has written this account on the basis of his personal experience, he has always mentioned his ties with the POUM and not with the anarchist parties. Some of his other writings depict in more detail the level at which the political Left was derailed by international Communism. Some discussions are also there regarding the false accusations imposed against POUM and their betrayal.

Most part of this writing is based on solid facts on the ground, however, Orwell has dedicated some of his time to elaborate on his views. He explains the advantages Russia gained from the suppression of the famous revolution in Spain and how Russia benefited from the socialist movement during the Spanish Civil War.

Comparison of the two accounts

For Whom the Bell Tolls was a novel written by Ernest, based on his experiences as a foreign correspondent first in France and then later on Spain during the Civil War that took place in Spain. The writer visited Spain in the year 1931 immediately after the empire of Alfonso XIII was overthrown. The parliament that resulted was divided into leftists and rightists after many years of civil unrest and political conflicts. Elections were also held in Spain after this whole scenario, since the political situation had become very volatile.

These events were closely observed by Ernest and he had already predicted that a civil war would take place anytime because of the difference in political approach between leftist and rightist factions. His prediction was right and the War began in Spain in the year 1936. Ernest supported the leftist and wrote articles and delivered speeches so that he could collect funds on them. He then came to Spain so that he could cover the events of the Spanish Civil War for the North American Newspaper Alliance.

After the end of the war, the book was published in 1940. This was a story of a young American volunteer as mentioned above, but based on Ernest's own experiences that he gained while covering the war for the press. The main intention of Ernest was to reveal the realities of what he considered a "good fight" on part of the Loyalists in the Civil War. The critical receptions pertaining to his work suggest that he succeeded in achieving his goal. On the other hand, Orwell started his account based on his personal experiences in Spain as he describes the events with relation to his thoughts and reactions. In revolutionary Barcelona, the trend of class difference that had confronted Orwell also kept him (as a middle class socialist) from becoming a part of the working class was overthrown.

Homage to Catalonia is basically an important text for all the readers who want to understand the history of Barcelona. Moreover, it also a must read for people who want to understand the major ideological difference of the 20th century. This conflict was between fascism and socialism and played an extremely important role in the Spanish Civil war. This conflict has not been explained by any writer in a better way than George Orwell.

Just like Ernest, Orwell also travelled to Spain the year 1936 to cover the events of the Civil War as a journalist. When he reached Barcelona, he was taken aback by the revolutionary atmosphere that was dominating that city so he decided to become a soldier in the war. During his time, the rulers of the city were the Anarchists and Communists, who had decided to rise up to support the socialist Republican government. Ever since this government was elected, it was faced by threats from a Nationalist military coup that was backed by fascist.

Conclusion

For Whom the Bell Tolls emerged as one the best works complied by Ernest. When this book was published, many critiques thought that this was definitely a masterpiece. The spare style and the powerful symbolism that demonstrated in this novel particularly gained a lot of popularity. Some of the best parts of this novel are considered to be the romantic scenes between Maria and Jordan, the dramatic loss of El Sordo, the commentary regarding the death of the leaders that were full of irony and the strong emotional power that was there throughout the novel.

Apart from just the narration of the events of the Spanish civil war, the narration of love and war themes had never been crafted in such a way. Needless to say, For Whom the Bell Tolls is one of the most celebrated war novels in the history.

On the other hand, George Orwell was well-known as a fairytale writer since he was the author of Animal farm (Newsinger. 1994). His writing called Homage to Catalonia is also a very celebrated account in the English Literature as he shares his experiences of being a part of the United Marxist Workers Party during the Spanish Civil War. In his writing he has made it very clear that he is committed towards the working class and socialism. Simultaneously, he is shown steadfast in his disapproval of Stalinism and its supporters. Both these historical writings are a must read to get an insight of the reasons that led to the Spanish Civil War.