Ultraism
 
The literary movement of Ultraism first bloomed in post-WWI Spain as a reaction to the
Modernist style. Ultraists strove for a departure from traditional writing, and as such, any work exhibiting a break from convention could find a place in the movement. Borges served as an integral force in promoting and defining Ultraism. He first encountered its ideals during his time in Spain. His 1921 return to Argentina saw the publication of ?Ultraismo?, an article in which he set forth the principles of the movement for his colleagues at home. He names the four following goals as the most essential to the style:
1. Reduction of poetry to its primordial element: the metaphor.
2. Elimination of dividing phrases, connectives, and useless adjectives.
3. Abolition of ornamental trappings, confessionalism, laborious detail, preaching and affected obscurity.
4. Synthesis of two or more images in one, which in that way broadens its power of suggestion. (Oberstar, Proa and Ultraism, 423)
Ultraist poets also employed unconventionality in poetic structure varying the layout of a poem to impact the reader visually as well as mentally.
Historically, literary journals often have a deep impact on Spanish American writing. Borges?s Proa, founded in 1924 and disbanded in 1926, follows this pattern. While the journal?s two-year run may seem brief, most of its predecessors lasted little longer than a couple of issues. As an early product of Ultraism in Argentina, the magazine does not perfectly exemplify Borges?s ideals. Early experimentation with form and content led to a hybrid of radicalism and traditionalism apparent in the publication. Borges himself contributed mainly essays to the journal?though his dearly held Ultraist philosophy emphasizes poetic experiment, he published just two poems over the course of Proa.
Many other Argentine writers inspired by Ultraism contributed to the journal. Brandan Caraffa, Raul Gonzalez Tunon, Francisco Luis Bernardez, Ricardo Guiraldes, and Leopoldo Marechal all experimented with the Ultraist technique, to varying degrees of success. These writers often adhered to one tenet of Ultraism while disregarding others. For example, a poem might employ the technique of using a double image, but adhere to a rhyme scheme and verse structure.
While Argentina acted as the home base for Proa, several contributors to the journal made Chile a significant country in its development as well. The most well-known of these writers is Pablo Neruda, who, though not Ultraist in doctrine, appreciated the revolutionary spirit of the publication. The well-known Spanish writer Federico Garcia Lorca?s work also appeared in the journal on occasion.
Borges both adhered to and promoted the Ultraist movement, carrying it from Spain to Argentina and raising awareness of it through Proa. Rich imagery, an abundance of metaphorical language, concise wording, and poetic experimentation mark the rebellious movement?s values.