José ZORRILLA (1817-1893) first won fame by the reading of an elegy at the burial of Larra. Zorrilla was a most prolific and spontaneous writer of verses, much of which is unfinished in form and deficient in philosophical insight. But in spite of his carelessness and shallowness he rivaled Espronceda in popularity. His verses are not seldom melodramatic or childish, but they are rich in coloring and poetic fancy and they form a page xxxviii vast enchanted world in which the Spaniards still delight to wander. His versions of old Spanish legends are doubtless his most enduring work and their appeal to Spanish patriotism is not less potent to-day than when they were written. Zorrilla's dramatic works were successful on the stage by reason of their primitive vigor, especially _Don Juan Tenorio_, _El Zapatero y el rey_ and _Traidor, inconfeso y mártir_. This "fantastic and legendary poet" went to Mexico in 1854 and he remained there several years. After that date he wrote little and the little lacked merit.
Gertrudis Gómez de AVELLANEDA (1814-1873) was born in Cuba but spent most of her life in Spain. Avellaneda was a graceful writer of lyrics in which there was feeling and melody but little depth of thought. With her the moving impulse was love, both human and divine. Her first volume of poems (1841) probably contains her best work. Her novels _Sab_ and _Espatolino_ were popular in their day but are now fallen into oblivion. Some of her plays, especially _Baltasar_ and _Munio_, do not lack merit. Avellaneda is recognized as the foremost poet amongst the women of nineteenth-century Spain.
Two of the most successful dramatists of this period, García Gutiérrez and Hartzenbusch, were also lyric poets. Antonio GARCÍA GUTIÉRREZ (1813-1884), the author of _El trovador_, published two volumes of mediocre verses. Juan Eugenio HARTZENBUSCH (1806-1880) was, like Fernán Caballero, the child of a German father and a Spanish mother. Though an eminent scholar and critic, he did not hesitate in his _Amantes de Teruel_ to play to the popular passion for sentimentality. He produced some lyric verse of worth. Manuel BRETÓN DE LOS HERREROS (1796-1873) was primarily a humorist and satirist, who turned from page xxxix lyric verse to drama as his best medium of expression. He delighted in holding up to ridicule the excesses of romanticism. Mention should be made here of two poets who had been, like Espronceda, pupils of Alberto Lista. The eclectic poet MARQUÉS DE MOLINS (Mariano Roca de Togores: 1812-1889) wrote passively in all the literary genres of his time. VENTURA DE LA VEGA (1807-1865) was born in Argentina, but came to Spain at an early age. He was a well-balanced, cautious writer of mediocre verses that are rather neo-classic than romantic.