Spanish Golden Age & Shakespearean Drama

Posted on Jan 16, 2025 in Modern Philology. English

Guillen de Castro

  • Historic:
    • Las Mocedades del Cid (The Exploits of the Cid)
    • The Unhappy Wife of Valence
  • Swashbuckling:
    • The Narcissus in His Opinion
    • The Force of Customs
  • Mythology:
    • The Loves of Dido and Aeneas
  • Cervantes-themed Comedies:
    • The Impertinent Curious
    • The Force of Blood

Juan Ruiz de Alarcon

  • Entangling:
    • The Efforts of His Deceit
  • Heroic:
    • Win Friends
  • Privileged Events:
  • Customs:
    • Truth Suspicious
    • Test Promises

Pedro Calderon de la Barca

  • Dramas:
    • Honor Plays:
      • A Secret Revenge for a Secret Affront
      • The Physician of His Honor
      • The Painter of His Dishonor
    • Tragic Drama:
      • El Alcalde de Zalamea (The Mayor of Zalamea)
    • Catholic Plays:
      • The Wondrous Magic
      • The Constant Prince
    • Dramas of Freedom:
      • Life is a Dream
  • Comedy:
    • A Poor House with Two Doors is Hard to Keep
    • The Fairy Lady
  • Autos Sacramentales:
    • Great World Theater
    • The King Belshazzar’s Feast
    • The Divine Orpheus
    • The Labyrinth of the World

William Shakespeare

  • A. Learning Works:
    • Sitcoms:
      • A Midsummer Night’s Dream
    • Senecan Tragedy:
      • Titus Andronicus
      • The Taming of the Shrew
  • B. Comedies:
    • Romantic Comedies:
      • The Two Gentlemen of Verona
      • The Merry Wives of Windsor
    • Bitter Comedies:
      • All’s Well That Ends Well
      • Measure for Measure
  • C. Historical Drama:
    • Henry VI (Trilogy)
    • Richard III
  • D. Tragedies:
    • Minor Tragedies:
      • Romeo and Juliet
      • Julius Caesar
      • Hamlet
    • Major Tragedies:
      • King Lear
      • Macbeth
      • Antony and Cleopatra
  • E. Final Works:
    • The Winter’s Tale
    • The Tempest

Traits of Shakespeare’s Plays

Shakespeare characterized his characters in such a way that they became universal models, thus giving rise to a theater of character. The people are usually well-rounded.

Theater of Lope de Vega

Lope is considered the creator of the National Theater. His vital and exuberant personality is reflected in his ease of versification. For him, the most important aspect of comedy was the action. He easily connected with the public because his works reflected their tastes and feelings.

Ideas About the Theater

The theater is a mass spectacle; it must have happy endings, respond to the mentality of the era, blend the tragic and the comic, not adhere to the rule of three unities, use verse in drama, and have a variety of actions that originate intrigues and conflicts of interest to maintain the public’s attention. It should have three acts: presentation, development, and denouement.

Characters and Themes

The characters display values, beliefs, attitudes, and the dominant ideas of society. They are usually modeled after the gallant, the king, the funny, the lady, the powerful, and the villain. Themes are inspired by honor, historical disgrace, love, mythology, and courtiers.

Tirso de Molina

Tirso de Molina is undoubtedly the most important disciple of Lope de Vega.

Features:

  • Clarity and richness of language
  • Depth of the issues
  • Powers of observation
  • Description of characters (notably women)
  • Sharpness of intelligence
  • Realistic sense

Works

  • Comedies of Intrigue:
    • The Pious Martha
    • The Shame in the Palace
    • Don Gil of the Green Tights
    • The Love Doctor
  • Moral or Philosophical Works:
    • The Man Condemned for Suspicion
    • The Trickster of Seville and the Stone Guest
  • Religious or Biblical Works:
    • The Best Gleaner
    • The Woman Who Rules at Home
    • Life and Death of Herod
  • Historical Works:
    • Anton Perez
    • The Bravest Coward
  • Autos Sacramentales:
    • The Divine Beekeeper
    • Like Brothers
  • Prose:
    • Drawing Delight
    • Cigarrales of Toledo