A STUDY OF THE CULTURAL POLICY OF SPAIN DURING THE 20TH CENTURY
Katerina Papaioannou
University of Patras, GREECE, papaioannou.kat@gmail.com
Abstract
In this paper, we provide an analysis of the cultural policy of Spain in its recent history. Starting with a historical and cultural panorama of Spain in the 20th century, we investigate whether Spain reached a conceptual understanding of the power of its culture and whether it subsequently established and implemented a cultural strategy in a truly eventful period of its history. At the beginning of the 20th century, with its wounds still open from the defeat suffered by the United States in 1898, Spain was considered a "dead country". Herein, we discuss how historical circumstances influenced the cultural setting in Spain, how Spain reacted and to which extent the investment in culture helped in the “renaissance” of Spain. We address the role of educational and scientific progress and examine whether cultural development can mobilize people and set the foundations of a new collective conscience. We also discuss whether preservation and exploitation of cultural elements introduces a barrier to progress and modernization.
As part of the development of a cultural strategy, Spain used the American reference as an alternative space for cultural and economic confirmation and expansion. The American dimension was perceived as an incentive for modernization and reform, which, in this case, was a bet for the future without abandoning the past; it was also considered as a place where common elements in the reform process could be found, a place of global, international value which could further support the European character Spain planned to acquire. To obtain this objective, Spain had to revive common links and re-establish a common Spanish consciousness. America formed an external compensating factor, which, properly exploited, could help Spain regain its role on the international stage. To this aim, religion and language were important, unifying factors. In this context, we present our analysis on how Spain efficiently managed this important legacy and how it successfully exploited its cultural assets in order to establish a cultural strategy.
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