Ángel Crespo Reads Juan Ramón: on Animals and Gods

Abstract

The approach of the poet, translator and critic Ángel Crespo is probably one of the most important contributions to the history of literary reception of late Juan Ramón Jiménez’s work. Crespo understands that the idea of a poetic god is not a pseudo-mystical delirium, as has sometimes been interpreted. On the contrary, this motif shows the modernity of a conception whose roots can be found in Romanticism. In Jiménez’s poetry, the human being is halfway between gods and animals. The latter reveals the link between spirit and mortality, especially in the dog's figure. At the same time, Crespo’s poetry finds a very personal approach to the symbolism of the gods, which finds inspiration in both Jiménez and Pessoa.