Poet and playwright of Spain’s “Generation of ’98”. He received a doctoral degree in literature in Madrid, attended the Sorbonne, and became a secondary school French teacher.
He rejected the modernism of his contemporaries and adopted what he called “eternal poetry,” which was based more on intuition than intellect.
He became known with his poems Soledades (1903; “Solitudes”) and Soledades, galerías, y otros poemas (1907; “Solitudes, Galleries, and other poems”).
In 1912 he published another major poetry collection, Campos de Castilla (The Castilian Camp), in which he reflects on the fate of Spain and on the death of his wife. In 1924 he produced the personal, yet philosophical, collection Nuevas canciones (“New Songs”), where he again recalls his late wife.
During the 20s and 30s he wrote theatrical plays in collaboration with his brother Manuel.