Assessed Essay

In what ways can the representation of the family in Nada be read as a microcosm of Spanish society in the immediate post-Civil War era?

Carmén Laforet's first novel, “Nada” is set in the war torn city of 1940's Barcelona, and depicts the aspiration of a young woman arriving to the city. This protagonist, Andrea, has her dreams quickly shattered as she witnesses, from the shadows, the chaos and mental and physical torment within the house. The novel is loosely based on Laforet's own experiences, her circumstances are very similar to that of Andrea; in the novel Andrea expects to find joy and love within her grandparents house in Barcelona, as she lived there as a child, however her hopes of this are quickly shattered,“cuando yo era la única nieta pasé alli las temporadas más excitantes de mi vida infantíl...¿todo esto podíá estar tan lejano?” (p22) Even though, taken literally, the narrator is reminiscing over earlier, happier times spent in the house, it echoes memories of Spain in general before the Civil War. Laforet herself was born in Barcelona and both Andrea and Laforet moved away as children and returned during the early 1940's in their late teens to study at the University of Barcelona. From this, Laforet experienced the struggles of post-war Spanish society first hand and evidence of this pervades the novel, drawing a picture of the times, which are not only represented in the city, but almost metaphorically in the household in which the majority of the play is set.

The household and its inhabitants in “Nada” truly represent many real life elements of postwar Spain, the tension in the household can be interpreted as the atmosphere all over the country at the time. The dullness and angst of life, with the haven of Iturdiaga's paradise, along with the disillusion of Román and Juan as artists shows the effects of censorship. Other