Lope de Vega's 'Comedias de tema religioso': Re-creations and Re-presentations (Monografias A)

LOPE DE VEGA'S `COMEDIAS DE TEMA RELIGIOSO' Re-creations and Re-presentations Elaine Canning Monografías A

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Colección Támesis SERIE A: MONOGRAFÍAS, 204

LOPE DE VEGA’S COMEDIAS DE TEMA RELIGIOSO: RE-CREATIONS AND RE-PRESENTATIONS Unlike his secular drama, Lope de Vega’s religious plays have been largely neglected. This two-part study aims to redress the scant attention paid to the comedias de tema religioso by offering an analysis of the thematic axes of five plays. Part I, which is concerned with the re-creation of the source material for the seventeenth-century stage, is based on a discussion of La hermosa Ester and the Isidro plays. The generation of a variety of forms of audience reception through the manipulation of biblical and hagiographical material is examined, as well as Lope’s treatment of socio-literary themes including love and the role of woman. The relationship between religious drama and metatheatre forms the focus of part II. Lope’s use of self-referential devices in Lo fingido verdadero and La buena guarda serves to highlight the illusory nature of life and the relationship between lo verdadero and lo divino which lie at the heart of the theocentric world view of seventeenth-century Spain. The conflicting imperatives of human and divine love and the issue of identity are features of all of the plays. Furthermore, it is illustrated that the interplay between illusion and reality and the relationship between playwright and audience are crucial to Lope’s dramatic output.

Dr Elaine Canning lectures in Spanish at the University of Wales, Bangor.

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LOPE DE VEGA’S COMEDIAS DE TEMA RELIGIOSO RE-CREATIONS AND RE-PRESENTATIONS

Elaine M. Canning

TAMESIS

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© Elaine M. Canning 2004 The right of Elaine Canning to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 All Rights Reserved. Except as permitted under current legislation no part of this work may be photocopied, stored in a retrieval system, published, performed in public, adapted, broadcast, transmitted, recorded or reproduced in any form or by any means, without the prior permission of the copyright owner First published 2004 by Tamesis, Woodbridge ISBN 1 85566 030 X Tamesis is an imprint of Boydell & Brewer Ltd PO Box 9, Woodbridge, Suffolk IP12 3DF, UK and of Boydell & Brewer Inc. PO Box 41026, Rochester, NY 14604–4126, USA website: www.boydell.co.uk A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Canning, Elaine M., 1973Lope de Vega’s comedias de tema religioso : re-creations and re-presentations / Elaine M. Canning. p. cm. – (Colección Támesis. Serie A, Monografías ; 204) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 1-85566-030-X (Hardback : alk. paper) 1. Vega, Lope de, 1562-1635–Criticism and interpretation. 2. Religious drama, Spanish–History and criticism. 3. Christian saints in literature. I. Title: Comedias de tema religioso. II. Title. PQ6490.R4C36 2004 863'.3–dc22 2003024936

This publication is printed on acid-free paper Printed in Great Britain by St Edmundsbury Press Limited, Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk

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CONTENTS Acknowledgements Abbreviations

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Introduction

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PART I: RE-CREATION AND RE-PRESENTATION: THE CASES OF ESTHER AND ISIDRO 1 La hermosa Ester and the Re-creation of the Biblical Esther

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2 The Re-presentation of Madrid’s patrón in La niñez de San Isidro and La juventud de San Isidro

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PART II: DRAMATISING THE DRAMATIC: METATHEATRE AND THE COMEDIA DE TEMA RELIGIOSO 3 Metatheatre and the Spanish comedia religiosa: An overview

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4 Lo fingido verdadero as metaplay

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5 Doña Clara – saint or sinner? Role-playing within the Role in La buena guarda

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Conclusion

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Appendix Bibliography Index

141 142 151

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to express my thanks to Dr Isabel Torres of Queen’s University, Belfast, for her constant guidance and encouragement, and to my family for their continual support. I am also grateful to the staff at the Biblioteca Nacional, Madrid and at the British Library, London, for their provision of essential materials. The author and publishers would like to record their thanks to the University of Wales, Bangor for assistance in the costs of publication of this book.

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ABBREVIATIONS BCom BH BHS BRAH CH FMLS Hisp Hispan HR JHPh KRQ MLN MLQ MLR M.Phil Neophil NRFH RCan RH RHM RN RR

Bulletin of the Comediantes Bulletin Hispanique Bulletin of Hispanic Studies Boletín de la Real Academia de la Historia Crítica hispánica Forum for Modern Language Studies Hispania Hispanófila Hispanic Review Journal of Hispanic Philology Kentucky Romance Quarterly Modern Language Notes Modern Language Quarterly Modern Language Review Modern Philology Neophilologus Nueva revista de filología hispánica Revista canadiense de estudios hispánicos Revue Hispanique Revista hispánica moderna Romance Notes Romanic Review

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INTRODUCTION While the secular drama of Lope Félix de Vega Carpio (1562–1635) has attracted much critical attention, his comedias de tema religioso constitute a corpus of his works which has been largely neglected. Traditionally, Lope de Vega’s religious plays have been analysed and categorised in terms of their biblical or hagiographical content alone. Ménendez y Pelayo, for example, divides them into two groups – Comedias de asuntos de la sagrada escritura, and Comedias de vidas de santos – and does not attempt to study them beyond their religious framework.1 It is possible that works like that of Menéndez y Pelayo, which are preoccupied solely with lo religioso, have discouraged critics of Golden Age drama from exploring the many other possibilities that Lope’s comedias de tema religioso may offer to comedia scholarship. Since the publication of Menéndez y Pelayo’s Estudios, some attempts have been made to redress the scant regard paid to these plays. In 1935, José Montesinos stressed that Lope’s religious drama was deserving of further critical attention – ‘El teatro religioso de Lope no ha sido objeto de atento estudio, aunque lo merecía’.2 However, very few scholars rose to this challenge and those that did tended to concentrate on Lope’s hagiographical drama. Principal among them are Garasa, Aragone Terni, Dassbach and Morrison.3 In Santos en escena, Garasa provides a summary of twenty-seven plays, together with a general analysis of three aspects of Lope’s principal hagiographical works. Specifically, he examines the role of the angel and the demon, the presentation of supernatural interventions and miracles and the development of the themes of virtue and sin.4 The fundamental characteristics 1 See his Estudios sobre el teatro de Lope de Vega, ed. Don Adolfo Bonilla y San Martín, 6 vols (Madrid: V. Suárez, 1919–27), I (1919), pp. 131–316; II (1921), pp. 1–113. 2 See Lope de Vega, Barlaán y Josafat, ed. José F. Montesinos (Madrid: Centro de Estudios Históricos, 1935), pp. 189–90. 3 Delfín Leocadio Garasa, Santos en escena (Buenos Aires: Cuadernos del Sur, 1960); Elisa Aragone Terni, Studio sulle “Comedias de Santos” di Lope de Vega (Firenze: Casa Editrice D’Anna, 1971); Elma Dassbach, La comedia hagiográfica del Siglo de Oro español, Ibérica, XXII (New York: Peter Lang, 1997) and Robert Morrison, Lope de Vega and the Comedia de Santos, Ibérica, XXXIII (New York: Peter Lang, 2000). 4 It should be noted that Garasa, like the other critics examined here, includes several works in his study which are categorised as ‘Comedias dudosas’ by Morley and Bruerton in Cronología de las comedias de Lope de Vega (Madrid: Editorial Gredos, 1968), p. 603.

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of the genre are examined by Aragone Terni in Studio sulle “Comedias de Santos” di Lope de Vega, which includes a classification of twenty-eight of Lope’s plays as hagiographical works. In addition, Aragone Terni discusses the opposition which the comedia de santo generated in seventeenth-century Spain, primarily because of its use of stage machinery. She also explores the use of amorous and comical elements in Lope’s religious drama. Dassbach conducts a comparative study of the hagiographical plays of Lope, Tirso and Calderón in her work, La comedia hagiográfica del Siglo de Oro español. She is concerned not only with an identification of types of saints, but also with the ‘espectacularidad escénica’ produced by the incorporation of supernatural features into the comedia de santo, as well as the function of the sub-plot and the gracioso.5 Finally, Morrison’s Lope de Vega and the Comedia de Santos, the most recent work on the subject, centres on twenty-five plays, for which he provides a summary and commentary. However, Morrison’s work is particularly interesting because it is the first to provide a lucid survey of the saint’s play in Spain and to investigate the potential dramatic and nondramatic sources of the comedias de santos. Interestingly, while critical surveys of Lope’s hagiographical works have been limited, his biblical plays have been the subject of even fewer lengthy analyses. Three Ph.D. theses have gone some way towards acknowledging the significance of Lope’s comedias bíblicas. In 1952, Cecilia Ross’ dissertation on La hermosa Ester provided a new edition of the play.6 Subsequently, Robert Shervill conducted a thematic survey of the Old Testament drama of the Golden Age by dividing his thesis according to Old Testament characters.7 For instance, it includes chapters on what he terms ‘The Moses theme’, ‘The Tobias theme’ and ‘The Esther theme’. Several years later, Haydee Macera Burkort studied typological characters and events in eight biblical plays, of which she acknowledged that three were controversial regarding authorship.8 Nevertheless, as Jack Weiner rightly pointed out, Golden Age biblical plays in general are still awaiting full appreciation: ‘El estudio de los temas del Antiguo Testamento en la literatura del Siglo de Oro es un campo que apenas se ha examinado.’9 For the purposes of this study, I will take into account only those comedias de tema religioso of which Lope’s authorship is certain. 5 See La comedia hagiográfica, p. 99. 6 ‘Lope de Vega: La hermosa Ester’ (unpublished doctoral thesis, University of California, 1952). 7 ‘The Old Testament Drama of the Siglo de Oro’ (unpublished doctoral thesis, University of North Carolina, 1958). 8 ‘Typology in the Biblical Plays of Lope de Vega’ (unpublished doctoral thesis, Florida State University, 1983). 9 ‘Lope de Vega, un puesto de cronista y La hermosa Ester (1610–1621)’, in Actas del VIII Congreso de la Asociación Internacional de Hispanistas, ed. A. David Kossoff et al., 2 vols (Madrid: Istmo, 1986), II, pp. 723–30 (p. 724).

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If lengthy studies of Lope’s religious drama have been few and far between, articles on some of the individual plays have been a little more apparent. These include Concejo’s examination of the female in La hermosa Ester, Farrell’s analysis of the treatment of Jews in El niño inocente de La Guardia, Gallego Roca’s study of staging techniques in the Isidro trilogy, and Dixon’s examination of metatheatrical devices in Lo fingido verdadero.10 These analyses have undoubtedly contributed to a regeneration of interest in Lope’s religious plays, and have illuminated a need for a more detailed exploration of the issues which lie at the heart of them. It will be the aim of this book to continue and develop previous research by offering a comprehensive analysis of Lope’s comedias religiosas; an analysis which rejects the traditional, limiting, formulaic classification. My approach will demonstrate that Lope’s biblical and hagiographical plays lend themselves to a comparative investigation, especially in terms of their thematic axes. While the conclusions of this book are based on an examination of twenty-nine of Lope’s comedias de tema religioso, the scope of the study does not lend itself to a meticulous analysis of each play.11 Consequently, the salient features of five of these comedias religiosas, which best exemplify the concepts being treated, will be examined in detail. The remaining plays will be cited where appropriate. I have opted for a division of this book into two sections in order to highlight what I consider to be two of the fundamental characteristics of Lope’s religious dramatic works. Part I presents an examination of Lope’s re-creation of biblical and hagiographical material for the seventeenth-century stage. My primary concern in both chapters 1 and 2 is the concept of audience reception and the playwright’s ability to challenge the horizon of expectation of the corral audience through the re-creation and/or omission of the source material. In an analysis of La hermosa Ester, the comedia bíblica which is considered in chapter 1, Lope’s manipulation of the Book of Esther, in order to treat contemporary issues such as love and honour, will be examined. Moreover, the possibility of the audience’s susceptibility to a more subversive reception of the play, involving the degradation of the Christian and the elevation of the Jew, will also be highlighted. While the re-creation of a biblical text presented an obvious challenge, Lope’s dramatic craftsmanship was tried even more seriously when he

10 Pilar Concejo, ‘Función y simbolismo de la mujer en La hermosa Ester y en La judía de Toledo’, in Lope de Vega y los orígenes del teatro español, Actas del I Congreso Internacional sobre Lope de Vega, ed. Manuel Criado de Val (Madrid: EDI-6, 1981), pp. 461–71; Anthony J. Farrell, ‘Imagen, motivo y técnica dramática en El niño inocente de La Guardia’, in Lope de Vega y los orígenes, pp. 399–404; Miguel Gallego Roca, ‘Efectos escénicos en las comedias de Lope de Vega sobre la vida de San Isidro: Tramoya y poesía’, Criticón, 45 (1989), 113–30; Victor Dixon, ‘Lo fingido verdadero y sus espectadores’, Diablotexto, 4–5 (1997–98), 97–114 and ‘ “Ya tienes la comedia prevenida . . . La imagen de la vida”: Lo fingido verdadero’, Cuadernos de teatro clásico, 11 (1999), 53–71. 11 See Appendix 1 for a list of comedias religiosas which form the focus of this study.

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attempted to represent the life of Madrid’s patrón. Chapter 2 explores the representation of the popularly acclaimed Isidro in both La niñez de San Isidro and La juventud de San Isidro, which were composed for the purposes of the celebration of Isidro’s canonisation in 1622. My analysis of La niñez de San Isidro concentrates on the various techniques employed by Lope in order to establish a relationship between the unknown child Isidro and his adult equivalent. It will reveal that, in spite of Lope’s lack of source material relating to the saint’s childhood, the necessity to comply with the audience’s horizon of expectation determined his presentation of a pious, ‘unchildlike’ niño. In contrast, an examination of La juventud de San Isidro will highlight, paradoxically, that the audience’s familiarity with the source material granted Lope greater liberties in his re-creation of Madrid’s patrón, permitting him to present both the saintly qualities and the more human side of his main protagonist. It is my contention that Isidro’s canonisation constitutes a very authentic ‘resolution’ to the plays in question. Such a proposition underlines the relationship between reality and theatrical illusion, which forms the very essence of metatheatre. It is precisely a concern with metatheatre and the comedia religiosa which defines the second part of this book. Despite the ground which has been covered to date on metadrama and the comedia, Catherine Larson states explicitly that this particular area of comedia scholarship continues to provide a wealth of investigative opportunities: ‘I would submit that the relationship between metatheater and the comedia still offers the critic much material for textual analysis. Comedia scholars have accomplished a great deal, but the field nonetheless remains open for future exploration and study.’12 Stoll similarly highlights the abundance of suitable material available by insisting ‘self-conscious techniques are so prevalent that they can virtually be considered a convention’.13 Nonetheless, not all Renaissance commentators are comfortable with the application of a metatheatrical approach to the comedia. Consequently, chapter 3 reviews and engages with the debate on the comedia as metaplay and examines the several key studies on this topic. Chapters 4 and 5 then focus on the metadramatic quality of Lo fingido verdadero and La buena guarda. Employing Hornby’s categories of metadrama, my examination of Lo fingido verdadero deals with the use of role-playing within the role and the play within the play in order to elucidate the fundamental themes of Lope’s metaplay.14 In chapter 5, my analysis of La buena guarda is 12 See her ‘Metatheater and the Comedia: Past, Present, and Future’, in The Golden Age Comedia: Text, Theory, and Performance, eds Charles Ganelin and Howard Mancing (West Lafayette: Purdue UP, 1994), pp. 204–21 (p. 216). Since the publication of Larson’s article in 1994, a significant number of works on the metatheatrical qualities of both secular and religious comedias have appeared. See chapter 3, p. 89 for further details. 13 Anita K. Stoll, ‘Teaching Golden Age Drama: Metatheater as Organizing Principle’, Hisp, 75 (1992), 1343–47, (p. 1343). 14 See Richard Hornby, Drama, Metadrama, and Perception (Lewisburg: Bucknell UP, 1986).

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concerned with a definition of Clara as saint or sinner, based on her engagement in role-playing within the role. My studies of both plays will conclude that it is precisely because of the seventeenth-century theocentric world view that the Spanish comedia religiosa can be viewed in a metatheatrical light. I will also go beyond an identification of metatheatrical properties in both Lo fingido verdadero and La buena guarda to examine how these devices manipulate audience reaction. The methodology which informs my reading of the plays in both sections of this book is based upon my awareness of the play as only fully realised in the context of its relationship to the corral audience. Although my interpretation of the plays in Part I is determined by an examination of the source material and Lope’s re-creation of this material, my analysis of how Lope uses these written texts is ultimately linked to the impact of his re-creation on that audience. My consideration of a more subversive form of audience reception is a postmodern concern and is based, to some extent, on the theories of Connor (Swietlicki), Friedman and Simerka.15 This approach, of course, relates to my examination of the concept of metatheatre in the comedia. While the term itself was not coined until 1963 by Lionel Abel, it cannot be denied that the fundamental metatheatrical devices described by Hornby are prevalent in the comedia religiosa. By using a modern theory, I will attempt to illuminate for the modern reader issues which lie at the heart of the seventeenth century. Clearly, then, in both parts of this book, my examination of the models is conducted very much with a seventeenth-century audience in mind. Above all, however, my study of Lope’s comedias religiosas is concerned with the interplay between illusion and reality. In Part I, the dichotomy between illusion and reality is a key feature of the Isidro plays, where the canonisation of Madrid’s patrón constantly inhabits the texts, while in Part II, the double image of individual characters in both Lo fingido verdadero and La buena guarda is responsible for the generation of audience dissociation. Ultimately, it will be my intention to demonstrate that the critical marginalisation of Lope’s religious drama has been unjustified. The success of the comedia religiosa, like that of the secular comedia, was very much dependent upon the relationship between playwright and audience. Likewise, this book will highlight that the dramatic techniques employed by Lope in both his religious and secular works are identical, even if some of the issues which he treats in these comedias differ.

15 See Catherine Connor (Swietlicki), ‘Postmodernism avant la lettre: The Case of Early Modern Spanish Theater’, Gestos, 9 (1994), 43–59; Edward H. Friedman, ‘Postmodernism and the Spanish Comedia: The Drama of Mediation’, Gestos, 9 (1994), 61–78; and Barbara Simerka, ‘Early Modern Skepticism and Unbelief and the Demystification of Providential Ideology in El burlador de Sevilla’, Gestos, 23 (1997), 39–66. For further details on these studies, see chapter 1, p. 11, n. 8.

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PART I RE-CREATION AND RE-PRESENTATION: THE CASES OF ESTHER AND ISIDRO

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1 LA HERMOSA ESTER AND THE RE-CREATION OF THE BIBLICAL ESTHER

Any dramatist writing during Spain’s Golden Age was acutely aware that he was writing for a public obsessed by fe, salvación, gracia divina, condenación and of course Dios. Bartolomé Bennassar claims that ‘las cuestiones de la fe preocupaban en las conversaciones corrientes, en las plazas, a lo largo de los caminos’.1 The establishment of the Inquisition in Spain in 1478 to maintain religious homogeneity throughout the Peninsula, coupled with the Council of Trent’s efforts to christianise the masses from the midsixteenth century onwards, obviously contributed to the religious fanaticism which swamped Spain in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.2 Within this climate it is not surprising that the comedia de tema religioso became extremely popular among audiences of the corrales. For that reason, a significant number of religious dramas on various themes can be found among the corpus of plays attributed to many of the most important, influential

1 See his La España del Siglo de Oro, trans. Pablo Bordonava, 3rd edn (Barcelona: Crítica, 1994), p. 171. 2 The Spanish Inquisition was founded as an institution of the church following Pope Sixtus IV’s approval of Ferdinand and Isabella’s official application for its establishment in 1477. On the role and impact of the Inquisition in Spain, see for example Henry Kamen, The Spanish Inquisition (New York: The New American Library, 1965); Jean Pierre Dedieu, ‘The Inquisition and Popular Culture in New Castile’, in Inquisition and Society in Early Modern Europe, ed. and trans. Stephen H. Haliczer (London: Croom Helm, 1987), pp. 129–46; and virgilio Pinto Crespo, ‘Thought Control in Spain’, also in Inquisition and Society, pp. 171–88.. The Council of Trent (1545–1563) reviewed and tackled religious corruption within the church and took various decisive measures including the institutionalisation of preaching, the retraining of the lower clergy and the promotion of the position of saints. On the Tridentine reforms, see Jean Pierre Dedieu, ‘ “Christianization” in New Castile: Catechism, Communion, Mass, and Confirmation in the Toledo Archbishopric, 1540–1650’, trans. Susan Isabel Stein, in Culture and Control in Counter-Reformation Spain, eds Anne J. Cruz and Mary Elizabeth Perry (Minneapolis: U Minnesota Press, 1992), pp. 1–24 and Sara T. Nalle, God in La Mancha. Religious Reform and the People of Cuenca, 1500–1650 (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins UP, 1992).

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dramatists of the Golden Age, including Mira de Amescua,3 Tirso de Molina4 and Calderón de la Barca.5 What is particularly fascinating about the religious plays of this period is how they might have been interpreted by the seventeenth-century public. Golden Age dramatists were aiming to entertain an audience which not only believed that events as recounted in the Bible were factual, but which, primarily as a result of the oral transmission of detail, was also familiar with the Scriptures (preachers instructed through sermons and biblical catechisms).6 3 The plays by Mira de Amescua (1574?–1644) based on biblical narrative include the following: El arpa de David; El clavo de Jael; El más feliz cautiverio, y los sueños de Josef, a dramatisation of the story of Joseph and his brothers; Los prodigios de la vara, y Capitán de Israel, based on Exodus 2–14, and El rico avariento, which treats the parable of the rich man and Lazarus found in Luke 16. 19–31. Among Mira de Amescua’s hagiographic plays appear the following: El esclavo del demonio; El santo sin nacer y mártir sin morir; Vida y muerte de la monja de Portugal, and La mesonera del cielo. On Mira de Amescua’s religious plays, see James A. Castañeda, Mira de Amescua (Boston: Twayne, 1977), pp. 109–38. 4 The biblical plays of Tirso de Molina (1580–1648) include: La mujer que manda en casa; La vida y muerte de Herodes; La mejor espigadera; Tanto es lo de más como lo de menos, a dramatisation of the parables of the rich man and the poor man and of the Prodigal Son, and La venganza de Tamar, which presents the rape of Tamar by her halfbrother, Amnon. Tirso also wrote three plays on Santa Juana which are known simply as La Santa Juana. On Tirso de Molina’s religious theatre, see J. C. J. Metford, ‘Tirso de Molina’s Old Testament Plays’, BHS, 27 (1950), 149–63; and Francisco Ruiz Ramón, Historia del teatro español (desde sus orígenes hasta 1900) (Madrid: Alianza Editorial, 1967), pp. 255–69. 5 Apart from the many autos which he wrote on Old and New Testament themes, Calderón de la Barca (1600–1681) wrote several biblical plays including Los cabellos de Absalón. Calderón also wrote plays concerned with Roman Catholic dogma, such as La devoción de la cruz, La Virgen del Sagrario and El purgatorio de San Patricio. On Calderón’s religious drama, see Lucy Elizabeth Weir, The Ideas Embodied in the Religious Drama of Calderón (Lincoln, Nebraska: University of Nebraska Press, 1940). See also ‘Interpretación dramática y sociocultural de pasajes bíblicos en Calderón’, in España, teatro y mujeres, eds Martin Gosman and Hub Hermans (Amsterdam: Rodopi, 1989), pp. 23–31, in which Hans Flasche compares Calderón’s auto, La cena del Rey Baltasar with its biblical source. Flasche claims that a comparative study between autos and their respective biblical sources, particularly in Calderón’s case, is an area of research still awaiting investigation (p. 23). 6 The Church and the Inquisition endeavoured to maintain control of instruction in biblical matters and, for that reason, the Inquisitor-General Fernando de Valdés, appointed in 1547, restricted access to the Bible in the vernacular. Catholic versions of the Bible did not begin to circulate in Spain until the eighteenth century. Medieval versions in the vernacular did exist, but they were for the most part Jewish compositions. Margherita Morreale claims that preaching, which was institutionalised by the Council of Trent, was a channel for the diffusion of biblical texts. See her ‘Vernacular Scriptures in Spain’, in The Cambridge History of the Bible, ed. G. W. H. Lamp, 3 vols (London: Cambridge UP, 1970, 1969, 1963), II (1969), pp. 465–91 (p. 486). Catechisms were a popular means of instruction in biblical matters. According to José Ramón Guerrero, the biblical catechism was a new type of catechism which featured in the first half of the sixteenth century. See

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Similarly, the contemporary audience was well acquainted with hagiography. The cult of the saints, an essential component of popular religion in Spain from medieval times, was promoted by the Council of Trent in the sixteenth century. Following Trent, the authenticity of the works and miracles of venerated saints was stressed by the removal of ‘dubious’ saints from the Roman calendar and the implementation of a series of tests for new saints by the Sacred Congregation of Rites.7 The audience’s familiarity with, and knowledge of, the subject matter of many of the religious plays performed in the corrales, therefore, raises several key issues. Was it enough for a dramatist to recreate a dramatic version faithful to the biblical narrative or the life of a saint? Could he offer a frank regurgitation of stories and events without running the risk of sacrificing dramatic tension? How did the dramatist challenge, if indeed this was his aim, the horizon of expectation of his spectators when he was treating a subject which might be well known to some? Could these plays have generated a univocal audience reaction or, indeed, could the individual spectators have been receptive to other oppositional, even subversive, elements of the individual play?8 My analysis of La hermosa Ester, La niñez de San Isidro and La juventud de San Isidro will hopefully approximate an answer to these questions, or at least provide a better understanding of the complexity of creating drama in this context. Catecismos españoles del siglo XVI. La obra catequética del Dr. Constantino Ponce de la Fuente (Madrid: Instituto Superior de Pastoral, 1969), p. 169. By means of the catechism, the preacher presented the biblical narrative as factual. Although literacy rates were rising and religious books and pamphlets were circulating in Spain, the Inquisition was primarily concerned with the prohibition of biblical material. See Nalle, God in La Mancha, p. 144. 7 See Sara T. Nalle, ‘A Saint for All Seasons: The Cult of San Julián’, in Culture and Control, eds Cruz and Perry, pp. 25–50 (p. 33). Nalle analyses attempts to promote the veneration of saints in response to the threat of the Protestant Reformation by focusing on the resurrection of the cult of San Julián in Cuenca. According to Nalle, the tests which the new saints had to pass were set to establish the quality of their writings, heroic virtues, miracles and, if applicable, their martyrdom. 8 The complexity of audience reception is a postmodern concern. Three studies on the relationship between postmodern criticism and the comedia have sought to offer new possibilities of reinterpreting the comedia. In ‘Postmodernism avant la lettre’, Catherine Connor (Swietlicki) highlights how postmodern theory can problematize traditional comedia criticism’s narrow focus and by doing so, can open up new ways of interpreting Golden Age drama. Edward H. Friedman also presents possibilities for analysing the comedia from a postmodern perspective in ‘Postmodernism and the Spanish Comedia’. He suggests that Golden Age theatre and postmodernism find a connecting point in the use of metadramatic techniques (p. 61). Barbara Simerka examines unbelief and skepticism in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries and focuses on the reception of unorthodox religious and philosophical discourses in El burlador de Sevilla. She argues that the receptive spectator can interpret the play from an atheistic perspective. See her ‘Early Modern’. All three critics stress that, unlike traditional criticism, which focuses on order and closure, postmodernism is concerned with openness, disorder, fragmentation, the analysis of minor characters’ discourse and actions and the importance of subversive elements.

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La hermosa Ester (1610), the play which forms the focus of this chapter, is one of four biblical dramas of which Lope’s authorship is certain.9 This drama has been chosen not only because of its controversial subject matter – the triumph of the Jew – but also because it presents the success story of an individual who assumed a position of power and authority against the odds. The dramatic effectiveness of this play will be evaluated in terms of character development, the expansion of biblical episodes, the omission of biblical detail and the introduction of original material. La niñez de San Isidro (1622) and La juventud de San Isidro (1622), both of which dramatise events in the life of Madrid’s patron saint, will form the focus of chapter 2.10 The dramatic techniques employed by Lope in his presentation of Isidro will be analysed in an attempt to determine the essence of the image of Isidro which he wished to convey, whether that of miracle worker, common man, or a fusion of both. I will also examine whether the saintliness of Isidro was exaggerated in both works, taking into account that they were written to coincide with the celebration of the saint’s canonisation. Ultimately, I hope to explore the possible reasons why Lope either recreates or omits original source material in his dramatisations of the respective stories of Esther and Isidro.

The Book of Esther According to Menéndez y Pelayo, La hermosa Ester ‘merece la palma entre todas las comedias bíblicas de Lope’.11 A tragicomedia written in 1610, it was

9 Lope’s other biblical plays are Historia de Tobías, El robo de Dina and Los trabajos de Jacob, which have attracted little critical attention. Historia de Tobías is based on the Book of Tobit, a deuterocanonical book of the Old Testament which was written originally about 200 BC in Hebrew or Aramaic, but now only exists in its totality in Greek and other versions. El robo de Dina is based on Genesis 31. 17–Genesis 35. 1. The main action of the play concentrates on Genesis 34, which involves the rape of Dinah (Dina), daughter of Jacob, by Shechem (Siquen), son of Hamor the Hivite, (Emor), and the ritual of circumcision forced upon Shechem and all his male subjects by Jacob’s sons. The play ends with the slaughter of Siquen, his father and subjects and the appearance of an angel who advises Jacob to settle in Bethel and construct an altar. Alan E. Knight, in ‘The Enacted Narrative: From Bible to Stage in Late Medieval France’, Fifteenth-Century Studies, 15 (1989), 233–44 (p. 236) comments on the ‘inherently dramatic nature’ of the rape of Dinah and its consequences. Los trabajos de Jacob was written as a sequel to El robo de Dina and was to have formed a trilogy with a play on the Exodus from Egypt which, judging by the corpus of works and collection of critical essays which exist, Lope does not appear to have written. It is based on Genesis 37–47, which tells the story of Joseph and his brothers. 10 Lope also wrote a third play before 1622 on the saint entitled San Isidro, labrador de Madrid (1598–1608) (probably 1604–06) in order to promote his canonisation. The limited scope of this book does not permit a detailed examination of San Isidro, labrador de Madrid, but comparative references to this earlier play will be made where appropriate. 11 See his Estudios, I, 178–86 (p. 179). The edition of La hermosa Ester used for the purposes of this study is contained in Lope Félix de Vega Carpio, Obras selectas, estudio

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first published in Madrid in 1621 in Decimaquinta Parte de las Comedias de Lope de Vega Carpio with a dedication to Doña Andrea María de Castrillo, señora de Benazuza.12 As its title suggests, it is based on the Old Testament Book of Esther, a popular story among European writers in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.13 Spain was no exception to this trend with the appearance of two autos on the story of Esther in the latter half of the sixteenth century – Auto del Rey Asuero quando desconpuso a Basti and Auto del Rey Asuero quando ahorco a Aman.14 Following Lope’s dramatisation, Felipe Godínez wrote two plays on the same theme – La Reyna Ester (1613) and Amán y Mardoqueo (1653);15 Joan Pinto Delgado composed a poem entitled Poema de la Reina Ester en sexta rima (1627) and Don Juan Clímaco Salazar,

preliminar, biografía, bibliografía, notas y apéndices de Federico Carlos Sáinz de Robles, 2nd edn, 3 vols (México: Aguilar, 1991), III (Teatro 2), 105–35. All subsequent references will be taken from this edition. 12 For full publication details of the Decimaquinta parte, see chapter 5, p. 128. An autographed manuscript of La hermosa Ester can be found in the British Museum library dated 5th April 1610. Jack Weiner examines the dedication of La hermosa Ester to Doña Andrea María de Castrillo in ‘Lope de Vega, un puesto de cronista’. 13 In France, for example, a number of writers adopted the Book of Esther to suit their own purposes. In 1566 Rivaudeau’s Aman appeared, followed by Pierre Matthieu’s trilogy, Esther, Vashti and Aman between 1585 and 1589. In 1601 Montchretien wrote his Aman ou La Vanité and Du Ryer composed his Esther in 1644. France’s most popular work on the subject is Racine’s Esther. It was first performed at Saint-Cyr on 26 January 1689 before an audience which included Louis XIV, some courtiers and Mme de Maintenon who commissioned Racine to write this work. Racine follows the biblical story quite closely, but concentrates on Haman’s efforts to annihilate the Jews, Esther’s campaign to overturn his edict and the killing of Haman at the end of the play. Vashti is not included among the characters and only a passing reference is made to her. Each act takes place in a different setting – Esther’s apartments, Assuérus’ throne-room and Esther’s gardens. Music in the play is provided by J. B. Moreau. On Racine’s Esther, see for example Martin Turnell, Jean Racine – Dramatist (London: Hamilton, 1972), pp. 279–95; Philip John Yarrow, ‘Esther and Athalie’, in Racine (Oxford: Blackwell, 1978), pp. 82–90 and R. J. Howells, ‘Racine’s Esther: Reintegration and Ritual’, FMLS, 20 (1984), 97–105. 14 These autos appear in the famous Códice de Autos Viejos, now kept at the Biblioteca Nacional, Madrid. The characters of the first auto include Asuero (king), three pages, a butler or steward (mayordomo), Vasti (queen) and three wise men. Among the characters of the second auto are La Fortuna (Fortune), Amán, Ester, Asuero and an executioner (verdugo). 15 La Reyna Ester was instrumental in bringing about the inquisitional trial of Godínez, who was of Jewish ancestry, in 1624. Amán y Mardoqueo was published in Quinta Parte de las Comedias Escogidas de los meiores ingenios de España (Madrid, 1653) and is the second play in this volume of twelve. Alice Goldberg produced annotated editions of both plays. See Alice Goldberg, ‘Felipe Godínez, dos comedias: Edición anotada de La Reyna Ester y Amán y Mardocheo con introducción’, Dissertation Abstracts International, 43.2 (1982), 461A. For further information on Felipe Godínez, see Germán Vega García-Luengos, ‘El libro de Ester en las versiones dramáticas de Lope de Vega y Felipe Godínez’, Castilla, 2–3 (1981), 209–45; Alice Goldberg, ‘Felipe Godínez’s Queen Esther Play’, BCom, 35 (1983), 47–49 and Carmen Menéndez Onrubia, ‘Aspectos narrativos en la obra dramática de Felipe Godínez’, Criticón, 30 (1985), 201–33.

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a Jesuit, published a dramatic poem entitled Mardoqueo (Madrid, 1791). The source material, the Book of Esther, which provides the subject matter of these works and indeed which offered dramatic possibilities to Lope, merits attention here.16 The Book of Esther tells the story of a Jewess named Esther who, exiled to the Persian empire following Nebuchadnezzar II’s capture of Jerusalem, was appointed queen by Ahasuerus and subsequently saved the Jewish people from annihilation by Haman, the royal favourite.17 It originated in the first half 16 La hermosa Ester is Lope’s biblical play which has attracted most critical attention, despite the fact that critical analyses of this drama are still scant in comparison to that of Lope’s other, more famous secular comedias. Edward Glaser’s ‘Lope de Vega’s La hermosa Ester’, Sefarad, 20 (1960), 110–35 is the most extensive study done on this work. Other critics have generally conducted comparative studies. For example, some have compared the female characters in this play with those in other works by Lope. See Pilar Concejo, ‘Función y simbolismo’ in Lope de Vega y los orígenes, ed. Manuel Criadode Val, pp. 461–71 and Diane Sacks, ‘Breaking the Silence: An Archetypal and Feminist Analysis of La hermosa Ester, Fuente Ovejuna and La mal casada’, Dissertation Abstracts International, 50 (Dec 1989), 1677A. Others have concerned themselves with an analysis of the representation of the Jew in this and other plays. See A. A. Sicroff, ‘Notas equívocas en dos dramatizaciones de Lope del problema judaico: El niño inocente de La Guardia y La hermosa Ester’, in Actas del VI Congreso Internacional de Hispanistas Celebrado en Toronto del 22 al 26 de agosto de 1977, eds Alan M. Gordon and Evelyn Rugg (Toronto: University of Toronto, 1980), pp. 701–05 and Roberta Zimmerman Lavine, ‘The Jew and the Converso in the Dramatic Works of Lope de Vega’, Dissertation Abstracts International, 44 (1983), 185A. An examination of the treatment of the Book of Esther in La hermosa Ester and works by other writers has also been carried out. See for example Fishlock’s ‘Pinto Delgado’, Menéndez Onrubia’s ‘Aspectos narrativos’ and Vega García-Luengos’ ‘El libro de Ester’. Jack Weiner has examined the presentation of Esther, both from a Jewish point of view (Ester ⫽ Esther) and a Christian perspective (Ester ⫽ prefiguration of the Virgin) in Golden Age drama in his ‘La reina Ester en el teatro del Siglo de Oro español: dos puntos de vista’, in Estudios sobre el siglo de oro en homenaje a Raymond R. MacCurdy, eds Ángel González et al. (Madrid: Cátedra, 1983), pp. 37–49. Most recently, Nancy Mayberry examined the function of the concepts of obedience and disobedience, pride and humility in ‘Fearful Symmetry in Lope de Vega’s La hermosa Ester’, Hispanófila, 132 (2001), 13–23. 17 On the Book of Esther, see for example The Interpreter’s Dictionary of the Bible: An Illustrated Encyclopedia, eds George Arthur Buttrick et al., 4 vols (New York: Abingdon Press, 1962), II, 149–52; The New Bible Dictionary, eds J. D. Douglas et al. (London: Inter-Varsity Press, 1962), pp. 392–94; Ezra, Nehemiah and Esther, ed. L. H. Brockington (London: Nelson, 1969), pp. 216–46; Otto Kaiser, Introduction to the Old Testament, trans. John Sturdy (Oxford: Basil Blackwell, 1975); and David J. A. Clines, The Esther Scroll (Sheffield: JSOT, 1984). The Nebuchadnezzar of Esther is Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon who reigned for 43 years (605–562 BC). He captured Jerusalem on 16 March 597 BC and took Jehoiakim, King of Judah and many of his people back to Babylon. Major revolts followed in Babylon (594 BC) and Judah (588–87 BC) and many more Jews were exiled to Babylon. Nebuchadnezzar is best remembered for his building projects. According to legend, he was responsible for the construction of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Ahasuerus is usually identified with Xerxes I (approx. 519–465 BC) who reigned as king of Persia from 485–65 BC, ascending the throne following his father’s death. Between 483 and 480 BC he invaded Greece and when he

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of the second century BC. One of the primary functions of the Book of Esther is to explain the origins of the feast of Purim, an important date in the Jewish calendar.18 The Book of Esther, before additions, is divided into ten chapters.19 The first chapter relates the dethronement of Queen Vashti following her refusal to obey her husband’s order to appear before him and all his male subjects. It begins with a banquet lasting 180 days organised by King Ahasuerus, ruler of the provinces stretching from India to Cush, and designed to entertain all his nobles and officials. Ahasuerus next arranges another seven-day feast for all the male inhabitants, poor and noble alike, of the citadel of Susa. Queen Vashti holds a banquet at the same time for the women of Susa. On the seventh day of the banquet, King Ahasuerus orders Queen Vashti to come before him and his people so that everyone can admire her beauty. When Vashti refuses to obey his order, Ahasuerus becomes extremely angry and, having consulted his wise men, he issues a royal decree to all the provinces stating that Vashti has been removed from her office.20 In the second chapter of Esther, King Ahasuerus appoints commissioners in every province of his kingdom to seek out the most beautiful females and introduce them into his harem for the purposes of selecting a new queen. The women are entrusted to the care of a eunuch, and undergo twelve months of beauty treatments before being presented to the king. Among the girls selected

finally retired to Asia Minor, he left his brother-in-law Mardonius in charge of his army. Xerxes was murdered by Artabanus, captain of the palace guard at Persepolis and was succeeded by his son Artaxerxes I, who reigned from 465–25 BC. In the Book of Esther, no references are made to the historical events of Xerxes’ reign. 18 The feast of Purim commemorates the deliverance of the Persian Jews from destruction as recorded in the Book of Esther. It is celebrated one month before Passover and is characterised by the reading of the Scroll of Esther in synagogues. Held on the 14th and 15th of Adar (springtime), it is a joyous celebration with feasting, almsgiving, dramatic performances and the recital of the text of Esther. 19 The additions, known as the Apocryphal (of Greek: apokryphos ‘hidden’) parts of Esther constitute six passages made up of a total of 107 verses not found in the Hebrew text but included in the Greek version. For details on the additions to Esther, as well as their inclusion in the Vulgate, see pp. 18–20 of this chapter. Details on chapters 1–10 of Esther are taken from Holy Bible: New International Version (London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1979), pp. 567–76. 20 According to Jack Weiner and Edward Glaser, Josephus’ Jewish Antiquities was also an important source of reference for Lope on the story of Esther. See, respectively, ‘La reina Ester’, p. 38 and ‘La hermosa Ester’, p. 112. In Jewish Antiquities, which appeared AD 93–94, Josephus paraphrases the Book of Esther. Unlike the Biblical version of the story, he also provides a reason for Vashti’s refusal to obey Ahasuerus. Josephus states: ‘She, however, in observance of the laws of the Persians, which forbid their women to be seen by strangers, did not go to the king’. See Flavius Josephus, Josephus, trans. Henry St John Thackeray et al., The Loeb Classical Library, 9 vols (London: Heinemann, 1926–65), VI, trans. Ralph Marcus (1937), 403–57 (p. 407). Note: Jewish Antiquities is contained in vols IV–IX (1930–65).

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is Esther, daughter of Abihail, a Jewess who has been brought up by her cousin Mordecai. She enters the harem under strict orders from Mordecai not to reveal her background and origins. Esther appears before Ahasuerus in the month of Tebeth (tenth month) and immediately wins his favour.21 She is appointed queen and a banquet is held in her name.22 Afterwards Mordecai, while seated at the palace gates, overhears two of the royal officials, Bigthana and Teresh, plotting to kill the king. He reports this incident to Esther who subsequently informs the king, and both guards are hanged. Chapter 3 discloses Haman’s plot to destroy the Jews. Haman is honoured by King Ahasuerus and elevated to a status higher than that of any other noble. The king orders everyone to kneel down and pay homage to Haman, but Mordecai refuses to do so. The royal officials inform Haman not only of Mordecai’s resistance but also of the fact that he is a Jew. Haman decides to take revenge not only on Mordecai but on all the Jews in Ahasuerus’ kingdom and the pur (the lot) is cast to select a day and month. It falls on the thirteenth day of the month of Adar (twelfth month).23 Haman informs the king that there are people within his kingdom who do not obey his laws and instead practise their own customs. He proposes that those people (i.e. the Jews) should be destroyed. Ahasuerus grants Haman permission to do just that and Haman proceeds to issue a royal decree, sealed with the king’s ring, proclaiming the annihilation of all Jews on the thirteenth day of Adar. Mordecai’s reaction to Haman’s edict and his request for Esther’s assistance are described in chapter 4. At the beginning of this chapter, Mordecai has learned of the edict to destroy his race and immediately reacts by tearing his clothes and putting on sackcloth. Esther summons Hathach to find out what is troubling her cousin. Mordecai informs Hathach about the edict, gives a copy of it to him for Esther and asks him to urge Esther to intercede with the king for the survival of her people. Mordecai is ordered by the queen to gather together all the Jews in Susa and to fast for three days and nights. When the fast has been completed, Esther will present herself before the king (it is important to note that any individual who appeared before the king without being summoned would be put to death. If, however, the king extended the gold sceptre, the male or female subject’s life would be spared). In chapter 5, Esther approaches the king and the gold sceptre is extended to her. Esther invites both the king and Haman to a banquet that same day.

21 Josephus does not mention when Esther appeared before the king, but states that the wedding took place in the month of Adar (the twelfth month). See Josephus, p. 411. In the biblical narrative we are not told when the wedding took place. 22 Josephus claims that the celebrations lasted a month (Josephus, p. 411). However, the Hebrew version of the Book of Esther does not state how long they lasted. On Lope’s use of the Hebrew version, see p. 19, n. 30. 23 In Josephus, p. 421, the date given is the 14th of Adar. In Addition B of the Apocrypha, the fourteenth is also the date given.

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During the banquet, the king asks Esther what she wants from him and she replies that she will voice her request at a second banquet the following day. As Haman sets off home, he passes Mordecai at the palace gates who again demonstrates his determination to deny the royal favourite respect. At home, Haman expresses his discontent with Mordecai to his wife, Zeresh, and his friends. They propose that he build a gallows 75 feet high and seek royal permission the following morning to hang Mordecai.24 Chapter 6 of Esther focuses on the royal reward attributed to Mordecai for uncovering the planned assassination of the king. The chapter begins with the reading of the Book of Chronicles to Ahasuerus and the king’s sudden discovery that Mordecai has not received any payment for saving his life. Ahasuerus summons Haman and invites him to suggest the treatment which should be bestowed upon a man whom he wishes to honour. Haman, convinced that the king is referring to him, recommends that the individual should be dressed in a royal robe and led through the streets of the city on a horse which the king himself has ridden. Ahasuerus then instructs Haman to dress Mordecai accordingly and lead him through the streets. At the end of this chapter, Haman is escorted back to the palace for Esther’s second banquet by two eunuchs, having informed Zeresh and his companions of the day’s events and listened to their comments that he cannot seek revenge on Mordecai or he will come to ruin.25 In chapter 7 we learn how the king reacted to news of Haman’s planned destruction of the Persian Jews and the course of action taken against the royal favourite. At the second banquet, Esther implores Ahasuerus to spare the lives of both herself and her people. When the king asks who has threatened his queen and subjects, Esther denounces Haman. The king leaves the banquet in a rage and Haman, alone with Esther, takes the opportunity to beg for her forgiveness. On his return to the banqueting hall, Ahasuerus witnesses Haman falling onto the queen’s couch and accuses him of the attempted molestation of his wife. Haman is hanged on the gallows which he himself built. Following the death of Haman, chapter 8 opens with the presentation of Haman’s estate to Esther and the offering of the royal signet ring to Mordecai by the king. Esther beseeches Ahasuerus to issue an order overruling Haman’s edict against the Jews. The king responds by granting Mordecai and Esther permission to dispatch a new decree in his name on behalf of the Jews.

24 In Josephus, the recommendation to destroy Mordecai is made by Haman’s wife, not the group. Josephus also refers to the crucifixion, rather than the hanging of Mordecai: ‘Then Zarasa, his wife, told him to order a tree sixty cubits high to be cut down, and in the morning ask the king for leave to crucify Mordecai’. See Josephus, p. 433. 25 In note d., p. 439 of Josephus, Ralph Marcus states that reference to protection by God is not included in the Hebrew version of the Bible. Hence Haman’s predicted failure is unexplained.

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The new edict is written, sealed and sent to all the provinces in the kingdom, bestowing upon the Jews the right to destroy and kill any hostile armed force on the thirteenth day of the month of Adar. Chapter 9 describes the triumph of the Jews and the establishment of the feast of Purim. It relates how, on the thirteenth day of Adar, the Jews assemble in their cities to defend themselves and destroy the enemy. In the citadel of Susa, the Jews kill five hundred men, as well as the ten sons of Haman.26 Esther seeks royal permission to carry out the dictates of the edict a second time in Susa on the fourteenth of Adar and obtains her request. In the other provinces of the kingdom, the Jews kill a total of 75,000 enemies on the thirteenth of Adar. This is followed by the writing and sending of letters by Esther and Mordecai to all the Jews within Ahasuerus’ dominion to fix a formal celebration of the fourteenth and fifteenth days of Adar known as Purim (from pur, the lot). The days of Purim were to be celebrated with feasting and the exchange of presents. The protocanonical text of the Book of Esther ends with chapter 10, a short, straightforward account of the importance of Mordecai the Jew within the Persian empire.27 What is unique about the Book of Esther is that, unlike every other book in the Old Testament, there are no references to God, even though it is implicit that Esther is guided by a divine force in her mission to save the Persian Jews.28 It is quite possible, as Bruce Metzger suggests, that the author of Esther wrote at some period when it was extremely dangerous to publicly admit to the worship of Jehovah.29 The Apocryphal Esther differs from the protocanonical text due to the abundance of references to God and his divine qualities. In fact, of the six additions which constitute the Apocryphal or deuterocanonical parts of Esther, all except one contain the name of God. These additions cannot be overlooked since, at the time of composition of La hermosa Ester, they were readily available to Lope. Specifically, they appeared in the form of an appendix following the canonical text of Esther in

26 The death of Haman’s sons is confusing in Scripture. In Esther 9. 13, Esther seeks permission for the ten sons of Haman to be hanged, despite the fact that in Esther 9. 11, reference is made to the massacre of Haman’s sons. Josephus avoids this ambiguity. He mentions the massacre of five hundred enemies but does not include the annihilation of Haman’s sons on the 13th of Adar. Instead, he writes that Esther begged for permission to crucify the ten sons of Haman on the 14th of Adar. See Josephus, p. 453. 27 The attribution of Esther 9. 20–10. 3 to the original narrator of the Book of Esther has caused concern among scholars. In Ezra, p. 221, Brockington states: ‘In its Hebrew form the book seems to have been expanded at a very early time by the addition of 9. 20–10. 3.’ In The Esther Scroll, Clines refers to the scholarly debate and examines the difficulties presented by what he terms as appendices. See chapter 4, ‘The Appendices of the Esther Scroll in The Esther Scroll (Sheffield: JSOT, 1984) (9. 20–10. 3)’, pp. 50–63. 28 The Book of Esther was considered a nationalist text by many of its critics as a result of its emphasis on Judaism and Judaic practices. Martin Luther was a great enemy of it. 29 See his An Introduction to the Apocrypha (New York: OUP, 1957), p. 62.

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the Vulgate, the bible which most certainly provided Lope with the biblical sources of his plays.30 The additions, as we will see, would influence how Lope presented the story of Esther in his drama.31 According to Edward Glaser, ‘While Lope uses, of course, both the protocanonical and the deuterocanonical portions of the Old Testament book, he favors, whenever possible, the Greek Esther’.32 The first addition (Addition A: 11. 2–12. 6) tells the story of the dream of Mordecai. Mordecai has a dream in which he sees two dragons roaring and preparing to fight. As the dragons roar, every nation gets ready to fight against the Jews, who beseech God’s mercy and help. Next, a great river emerges from a tiny spring and the needy are exalted. When Mordecai awakens, he hears two eunuchs plotting the assassination of Ahasuerus. He informs the king of their plan and is granted a position at court as reward for saving Ahasuerus’ life. Haman, meanwhile, decides to kill Mordecai and his people. The significance of Mordecai’s dream is explained in the sixth addition (Addition F: 10. 4–11. 1) where Mordecai recognises the influence of divine intervention in saving the Jews from annihilation. The two dragons in the dream represented Mordecai and Haman and the river which developed from a tiny spring was Esther. What constitutes the second addition (Addition B: 13. 1–7) is a copy of the supposed edict issued by Haman proclaiming the massacre of the Jews. The fifth addition (Addition E: 16. 1–24) also takes the form of an edict, only this time it is the one which serves to counteract Haman’s previous decree.33 Addition C (13. 8–14. 19) is quite a long addition in which the prayers of Mordecai and Esther beseeching God’s divine assistance are presented in

30 The Vulgate is a fourth-century standard Latin version of the bible translated from Hebrew and written by St Jerome. Jerome was commissioned by Pope Damascus to prepare this bible. When he translated the Book of Esther, he then gathered together the additions which he found in old Latin copies and added them to the end of his translation with accompanying notes. The notes indicated where each addition belonged in the canonical book. The Latin additions had come from a Greek version of the bible dating from the first or second century before Christ. At that time, Lysimachus translated the Hebrew text of Esther into Greek, but at six different places in the narrative he or someone else added episodes not originally found in the Hebrew. It is these additions known as Apocryphal or deuterocanonical which were subsequently translated into Latin and later included in the Vulgate. In 1546, the Council of Trent decreed the inclusion of the deuterocanonical texts in the Roman Catholic canon. 31 Details on the Apocryphal additions are taken from Metzger, An Introduction, pp. 56–61. Metzger suggests where these additions can be integrated into the canonical framework of Esther in order to make sense. On the Apocrypha, see also ‘The Septuagint Esther’, in Clines, The Esther Scroll, pp. 69–70 and W. O. E. Oesterley, An Introduction to the Books of the Apocrypha (London: Macmillan, 1935), pp. 183–95. 32 ‘La hermosa Ester’, p. 112. 33 Josephus integrates Addition B into his work (see pp. 419–21) and paraphrases Addition E (pp. 445–51).

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detail.34 References to the omniscience of God abound in this text. Mordecai’s prayer is a justification concerning why he will not bow down to Haman. He exalts God, stressing that only He is worthy of such reverence. He ends his prayer begging God to save his people (13. 15). Esther exchanges her royal attire for clothes which symbolise mourning before addressing God. She asks for strength and guidance when she appears before the king and emphasises her reliance on Divine help in order to complete her mission successfully. It is clearly highlighted here that God, the Divine, works through Esther in order to save the people of Israel. Finally, Addition D (15. 1–16) is a longer, more detailed version of Esther’s appearance before King Ahasuerus.35 It relates how the king initially became extremely angry at Esther’s entrance to the throne-room, causing her to faint, and how God changed Ahasuerus’ attitude in such a way that he calmly offered Esther the opportunity to present her petition when she regained consciousness.

Lope’s La hermosa Ester When Lope decided to write La hermosa Ester in 1610, he clearly recognised the dramatic potential of the biblical narrative. However, despite the fact that he followed the basic plot and sequence of events of the Book of Esther, his play is much more than a simple, faithful retelling of the primary text, as some critics have suggested.36 Like the Book of Esther, Act I of La hermosa Ester begins with details of the banquet hosted by King Ahasuerus (Asuero in the play) for all his subjects. Next, Lope presents the disobedience and subsequent dethronement of Vashti (Vastí in La hermosa Ester) and ends the first act with the election of Esther (Ester) as queen. Act II opens with Mordecai (Mardoqueo) informing Isaac, a Lopean creation, of Ester’s appointment to the position of queen and his own prophetic dream. This is followed by a dramatisation of Mardoqueo’s disclosure of the plotted regicide, the conspiracy of Amán (Haman of the biblical text) against the Jews and Mardoqueo’s refusal to pay respect to the royal favourite. Act II ends with Amán arranging the construction of the gallows from which to hang Mardoqueo. In Act III, Lope presents on stage the honouring of Mardoqueo by the king for saving his life, In Josephus, pp. 425–29 are based on this addition. This addition is also integrated into Josephus’ text (see pp. 429–31). 36 Menéndez y Pelayo, for example, claims that: ‘Su fuente única es el Libro de Esther, seguido con toda la fidelidad y respeto con que nuestro poeta trataba siempre las palabras de la Sagrada Escritura’. See his Estudios, I, 179. In his nota preliminar to his edition of La hermosa Ester, Federico Carlos Sáinz de Robles states: ‘La única fuente es el Libro de Ester, seguido con toda fidelidad y respeto por el genial poeta’. See Obras selectas, III, 105. Other critics, however, recognise that Lope has manipulated and recreated his biblical source. Vega García-Luengos, for example, claims: ‘En definitiva, Lope ha sabido manipular los datos de la historia con el fin de potenciar su virtualidad dramática, sometiéndolos a un proceso de concentración o de dilatación’. See ‘El libro de Ester’, p. 221. 34 35

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Ester’s revelation of Amán’s threat to the Persian Jews and the murder of the royal favourite. The play ends on a joyous note with the Jews’ celebration of their salvation in the company of Asuero, Mardoqueo and Ester. Lope’s first task in La hermosa Ester is to set the scene – to explain to the audience who King Asuero is, to highlight his jurisdiction and to reveal details of the banquet which he has hosted for the poor and nobility alike. In the bible, a brief historical account at the beginning of Chapter 1 provides these details. Lope brings the biblical narrative to life by assigning the role of narrator to two characters – Bassán and Egeo – while at the same time making them participants in Asuero’s banquet. The inclusion of two narrators rather than one gives Lope the advantage of having one narrator’s comments supported by the other, thereby reinforcing for the audience the validity of their account of the king. The narrators comment upon the elaborate preparations made for the banquet, which correspond very closely to the details presented in the bible. The biblical text describes the setting for the feast in the following way: ‘The garden had hangings of white and blue linen, fastened with cords of white linen and purple material to silver rings on marble pillars. There were couches of gold and silver on a mosaic pavement of porphyry, marble, mother-of-pearl and other costly stones. Wine was served in goblets of gold, each one different from the other’ (Esther 1. 6–7). In La hermosa Ester, Egeo paints the picture of a similar location. He claims: En este bosque del Rey se han puesto diversas tiendas, y sobre columnas blancas toldos de diversas telas que cuelgan por varias partes de cordones de oro y seda. Hay ricas bordadas camas, y sobre la verde hierba tales alfombras, que hacen a las flores competencia. Hay vasos de oro y cristal, (I, 107)

Egeo is also responsible for introducing the king on stage. He declares: Mas oye: que sale el Rey de la comida postrera, con sus príncipes y grandes. (I, 107)

It could be argued that Lope did not need to set the scene since his audience was familiar with the biblical story. However, without the opportunity to read the bible for themselves, both men and women of seventeenth-century Spain

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were probably only aware of the main characters and plot of the story – that Esther, a Jewess, became queen of Persia and managed to disclose Haman’s conspiracy against the Jews, thereby saving her people from destruction. Lope presents the biblical story to his audience in its entirety. The magnificence of Asuero is also highlighted by Bassán and Egeo. In fact, the play opens with Bassán’s declaration of the king’s might. He informs the audience: Sólo el poderoso Asuero, que admirando el mundo reina en ciento y veinte provincias, hiciera tanta grandeza: desde la India a Etiopía, de medos, partos y persas es absoluto señor. (I, 107)

Bassán continues to extol the king’s virtues and qualities, describing his banquet as ‘muestra / de su magnífico pecho’ and his actual presence as ‘amable’ (I, 107) when he first appears with his princes and nobles. In comparison to the biblical narrative, which describes the king fundamentally as a generous type, Lope’s drama transforms him into a warm, living, breathing, gracious man, who is not only a kindly soul because he threw a lavish party for his people, but because his subjects say that he is. The comments of Bassán and Egeo and the subsequent remarks made by the ‘músicos’ and ‘todos’ who alternately proclaim ‘¡Viva el rey Asuero! / ¡Viva el gran señor!’ (I, 107) are of vital importance because they contribute to the build-up of dramatic tension within the play. In other words, the horizon of expectation of the corral audience is frustrated as it anticipates a marvellous sovereign who conscientiously protects and cares for his subjects, nobles and peasants alike, only to find that Asuero permits Amán to issue a royal decree announcing the massacre of the Jews. Since the narrator acquires a type of authenticity in the eyes of the audience, acting almost as an intermediary between them and the dramatist, Lope’s audience should have no reason to doubt Bassán’s and Egeo’s representation of the king. Given that the play is based on a biblical story, their description of characters and events gains extra support. Hence, in spite of the fact that Bassán and Egeo provide the relevant historical background to the play, it is because of their participation in the production of dramatic tension right from the beginning of La hermosa Ester that they are especially important. Once Asuero’s praises have been sung, La hermosa Ester focuses on the dethronement of Vastí, a vital episode in both the biblical story and the play in terms of plot development. However, Lope not only includes this scene for the purposes of the story line, but cleverly manipulates the biblical material in order to comment upon issues which Lope knew would appeal to the

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sensibilities of the seventeenth-century audience – love, honour and the role of woman.37 Asuero engages in a convoluted description of Vastí in accordance with the courtly love/Petrarchan topoi of amorous lyric poetry.38 Emphasising the superiority of Vastí to him, Asuero refers to her as ‘la grandeza mía’ (I, 107). Asuero undertakes the deification of his wife, who he describes as ‘el divino trasunto / del Hacedor de la Naturaleza’ (I, 108) and who continues to be for him ‘el reino que adoro’ (I, 111) following her dethronement. Like the Petrarchan lover, Asuero compares his beloved to nature. Vastí’s mouth is ‘el clavel de dos hojas, más hermoso / que el sol por mayo toca’ and her cheeks are ‘rosas’ which blossom in her snow-white face and compliment her statuesque body (I, 108).39 Asuero states: y por las dos hermosas mejillas blancas, entre nieve rosas. El cuerpo, no hay columna de marfil ni alabastro; (I, 108)40 37 In his Arte nuevo, Lope specifically identifies the theme of honra as exemplary subject matter for the comedia: ‘Los casos de la honra son mejores / Porque mueuen con fuerça a toda ge[n]te,’. See El arte nuevo de hacer comedias en este tiempo, ed. Juana de José Prades (Madrid: Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, 1971), 327–28. 38 The characteristic features of courtly love do not appear in the lyric poetry of Castile until the fifteenth century. However, the themes of courtly love persisted in Spanish literature throughout the early modern period. Courtly love poetry is based on the impossible love for a beautiful yet unattainable woman. The principal themes of the trend include the superiority of the beloved to the lover, the blessed suffering of the lover and the contemplation of death. The Petrarchan tradition became grafted onto courtly love poetry in the sixteenth century in Spain. In Petrarchan poetry, the beauty of the female is compared to nature and is also praised through analogy with mythological characters and the use of metaphor. On courtly love and Petrarchism, see for example: chapters 3–7 in Otis H. Green, Spain and the Western Tradition, 4 vols (Madison: The University of Wisconsin Press, 1963–66), I (1963), 72–299; A. A. Parker, The Philosophy of Love in Spanish Literature, 1480–1680 (Edinburgh: Edinburgh UP, 1985) and Ignacio Navarrete, Orphans of Petrarch. Poetry and Theory in the Spanish Renaissance (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1994). According to Víctor de Lama, ‘Las tradiciones cortesana y petrarquista se entrelazan frecuentemente en la lírica de Lope’. See his ‘Lope, poeta de cancionero’, Edad de Oro, 14 (1995), 179–96 (p. 188). For an examination of the burlesque treatment of courtly love in Góngora, Lope and Quevedo, see Iris M. Zavala, ‘Burlas al amor’, NRFH, 29 (1980), 367–403. 39 Vastí’s beauty is not only highlighted by Asuero’s description of her, but also by her very name. According to Brockington, Vashti is a Persian name meaning something like ‘best’, ‘desired’, ‘beauty’. See Ezra, p. 225. Lope draws attention to the significance of Vashti’s name within the play. Asuero asserts: ‘Vastí, mi mujer bella; / Vastí, que así se llama, porque basta / para saber por ella, / después de su virtud honesta y casta, / que no dio el cielo al suelo / mayores muestras del poder del cielo’ (I, 108). Glaser mentions Lope’s allusion to the meaning of Vashti’s name in ‘Lope de Vega’s La hermosa Ester’, p. 113, n. 10. 40 In Petrarchan imagery, alabaster and snow are used to convey the whiteness of the beloved’s body. According to Leonard Forster, these can be combined with the conceits

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The dramatic impact of Asuero’s monologue reveals itself when Vastí refuses to appear before him.41 At this point, Asuero becomes the courtly lover that he imitated in speech, aspiring to the love of a woman who is out of his grasp and who ultimately is pushed beyond his reach by his royal advisers. Marsanes adds to the tension at this point in the drama, urging the king to leave Vastí alone in the company of her female subjects. He suggests to the king: Si con sus damas está, déjala gozar quïeta su generoso convite; (I, 108)

Ultimately, the audience knows that Asuero must disregard this piece of advice if Lope is to conform to the plot of the biblical narrative. Nevertheless, by playing the role of the courtly lover, Asuero ironically becomes a more human character troubled by doubt, hesitation and anxiety. Unlike his counterpart in the bible who, angry at his wife’s disobedience, immediately accepts his adviser’s decision that Vastí should be removed from office, Asuero’s automatic response to the wise men’s proposal is ‘¿podré, queriéndola bien? / ¡Fuerte consejo me dais!’ (I, 109).42 This minor adaptation of the source material could easily be overlooked or simply disregarded because it has no impact on plot development. The king, in spite of his hesitancy, ultimately accepts the advice of his councillors. In addition, the king’s vacillation at this point is not reflective of his behaviour in other important scenes in the play. Like the biblical king, Asuero unquestioningly accepts Amán’s recommendation concerning the massacre of the Jews (II, 120). However, Asuero’s reaction at this point is of vital importance because it draws attention to the seventeenth-century preoccupation with reputation. Through the character of used to express the woman’s hardness of heart. See ‘The Petrarchan Manner: An Introduction’, in The Icy Fire. Five Studies in European Petrarchism (Cambridge: CUP, 1969), pp. 1–60 (p. 15). In La hermosa Ester, Asuero’s description of Vastí’s body as an alabaster column presages the coldness with which Vastí responds to Asuero’s request to appear before him. 41 In Josephus, the king and queen are named, respectively, Asueros and Aste. Regarding Aste’s refusal to appear before Asueros, Josephus claims: ‘She, however, in observance of the laws of the Persians, which forbid their women to be seen by strangers, did not go to the king’. See Josephus, p. 407. Weiner reiterates this point: ‘La negación que le hizo cabía perfectamente dentro de las costumbres persas.’ See ‘La reina Ester’, p. 45. In a seventeenth-century Spanish context, however, Vastí would have been expected to obey her husband’s orders. 42 It should be noted that in Josephus, pp. 407–09, Muchaios (equivalent to Memucan in the Bible) urges Ahasuerus to inflict severe punishment on Vashti as well as to arrange her dethronement. This is not the case in the biblical narrative, nor in Lope’s play. In note a, p. 408, Marcus claims that, according to Rabbinic tradition, Vashti was executed.

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the king, Lope comments on the themes of love and honour and emphasises the dilemma which they can force upon the seventeenth-century Spaniard when he/she must choose between the public and the private role. It seems that Asuero reluctantly relinquishes his love for Vastí for the sake of ‘el público bien’ (I, 109). Following Marsanes’ speech regarding Vastí’s deposition and the importance of obedience to the husband on the part of the wife, the king declares: Afuera amor; que no es justo que sujetéis la razón: fuertes los consejos son contra las leyes del gusto: pero si es bien que los reyes sean espejos del bien, bien es que en ellos se den los principios a las leyes. ¡Salga de Palacio al punto la Reina: no quede en él! (I, 109)43

In spite of the fact that Adamata, one of the king’s advisers, initially links passion to reason, claiming that ‘quien reina de sus pasiones, / ese vive con razón’ (I, 109), both Adamata and Tares ultimately categorise love as an unreasonable emotion which imprisons the individual and of which the king must rid himself if he is to reign successfully. Tares

Amor es una pasión que nunca llega a razones: vive de su voluntad en la libertad que quiere. Adamata Por eso quien le venciere tendrá mayor libertad. (I, 109)

43 In De Clementia, Seneca’s treatise on the behaviour of the emperor Nero, the opening lines of the text underlined that Seneca would show Nero to himself as in a mirror. Cicero’s definition of the play as a mirror of life, ‘Est imitatio vitae, speculum consuetudinis, imago veritatis’, was re-presented by Lope in his Arte nuevo. Lope’s treatise includes the following affirmations: ‘Espejo de las / De las costu[m]bres, y vna viua image[n] / De la verdad’ (123–25); ‘Humanae cur sit speculum comoedia vitae’ (377). It should be noted that the Latin source of the concluding lines of the Arte nuevo is unknown, and may have in fact been written by Lope himself. In Act I of El castigo sin venganza, the Duke also refers to the comedia as an espejo in his conversation with Ricardo. See Lope de Vega, El perro del hortelano, El castigo sin venganza, ed. A. David Kossoff (Madrid: Castalia, 1970), I. 215–225.

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In comparison, Asuero’s love for Ester is associated with reason at the end of Act III.44 The king describes love as an illuminating force: Bien parece que mi amor alumbró mi entendimiento para honrar tu noble tío con el hacha de su fuego; que ensalzarse hasta poner de Oriente en su mano el cetro sin haberle conocido, solo amor supiera hacerlo; en todo acierta quien ama (III, 135)

Since Ester acts as a divine instrument through whom God’s chosen people are saved in the play, it is essentially divine love which ultimately will be associated with reason, rather than human love. Lope highlights how badly Asuero is affected by human love by tampering with the biblical narrative again and transforming him into a lovesick victim who blames himself for the break-up of his relationship and who suffers from instability without his queen. Setar remarks ‘ya sin ella no se halla’ (I, 111).45 A remedy is discussed in his absence by his ‘doctors’ Adamata, Marsanes and Setar who exploit the courtly love / Neoplatonic concept of love entering through the eyes.46 Setar is the first to suggest that a replacement should be 44 Concerning the relationship between love and reason in the medieval and Renaissance worlds, Otis H. Green states: ‘That love was born of reason but that it was not controlled by reason was a medieval and Renaissance commonplace.’ See Spain and the Western Tradition, I, 141. In courtly love poetry, voluntad prevails over razón. 45 In courtly love poetry, the blessed suffering of the lover may produce the lover’s malady of hereos. The physical effects of love, including insomnia, loss of appetite and pallor are also a Petrarchan commonplace. For a discussion of the lover’s malady of hereos, including references to the physical effects of love and proposed remedies contained in medieval and Renaissance medical treatises, see John Livingston Lowes, ‘The Loveres Maladye of Hereos’, M.Phil, 11 (1914), 491–546. Teresa Scott Soufas also refers to the definition of lovesickness in medical treatises of the Renaissance, including Burton’s Anatomy of Melancholy and Ferrand’s Erotomania in ‘Love Melancholy (Lope, Calderón)’, in Melancholy and the Secular Mind in Spanish Golden Age Literature (Columbia: University of Missouri Press, 1990), pp. 64–100. The malady of love and the relationship between amor and locura are the principal themes of Lope’s Los locos de Valencia. For a study of these particular issues in the play, see Luciano García Lorenzo, ‘Amor y locura fingida: Los locos de Valencia, de Lope de Vega’, in El mundo del teatro español en su Siglo de Oro: ensayos dedicados a John E. Varey, ed. J. M. Ruano de la Haza, Ottawa Hispanic Studies, III (Ottawa: Dovehouse Editions, 1989), pp. 213–28. 46 The king has already stressed this theory of love in his lament for the absent Vastí: ‘¡Vastí de mi casa ausente, / y sus ojos de mis ojos! (I, 111). While Marsanes and Setar accept this theory, they also comically assert that the ears, not the eyes, are responsible for keeping love alive. See their conversation, I, 111–12.

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found for Vastí, while Marsanes recommends that an edict should be drafted instructing all beautiful virgins to be handed over to the palace guards so that the king can choose a new wife from among them. Setar comments explicitly on the nature of their proposed cure: Buscar tantas mujeres, que entre tantas haya alguna hermosura tan valiente que mate la memoria de la ausente. (I, 112)

At the end of Act I, the king is in fact ‘cured’ by the contemplation of the ‘hermosísima Ester’ whose exceptional beauty cannot be depicted by Egeo, the ‘painter’. Egeo tells the king: ‘No te quiero pintar su rostro hermoso, / porque son muy groseros mis pinceles’ (I, 115). Egeo’s inability to describe Ester’s attractiveness provokes the king to respond: ‘Tanta belleza, / monstruo será de la Naturaleza’ (I, 115).47 In contrast to Asuero, his biblical counterpart experiences neither remorse, regret nor guilt prior to and following Vastí’s dethronement. In Esther 2. 1, we are simply told: ‘Later when the anger of King Xerxes had subsided, he remembered Vashti and what she had done and what he had decreed about her.’ In addition, the biblical king unquestioningly listens to and accepts the collective proposal of his personal attendants concerning the appointment of a new queen.48 Some ambiguity arises in the play concerning the king’s direct involvement in the search for a new queen. While the audience does not witness Asuero’s approval of Marsanes’ edict, the caja and capitán discuss the selection process in terms of the king’s orders. The caja begins his synopsis of the edict by attributing its contents to Asuero: ‘manda el poderoso rey Asuero’ (I, 113). In a similar vein, the capitán affirms that the king prefers hermosura to calidad: ‘calidad no me ha pedido; / hermosura pide el Rey,’ (I, 113). Nevertheless, it is not evident from the statements of either whether the king willingly gave orders for the search to be conducted. In fact, Asuero is still afflicted by the malady of love and associates Vastí with his death following the presentation of several women to him: ‘Vastí me mata, y sola su hermosura / es el crisol que mi memoria apura;’ (I, 115).49 In contrast to

47 The title ‘Monstruo de la Naturaleza’ was conferred upon Lope himself by Cervantes in 1615 in the prologue to his Ocho comedias y ocho entremeses. 48 In Josephus’ text, we are told that although the king was in love with the queen and could not bear the separation from her, he could not be reconciled to her because of the law. Therefore, he continued to grieve until he was advised to instigate a search for a new wife. Like his biblical counterpart, he sent commissioners in pursuit of young virgins in order to find a replacement for Vashti (p. 409). 49 In courtly love poetry, the lover contemplates death at the hands of the beloved. The identification of the beloved both as a source of life and death of the lover is also found in Petrarch and is a paradox which continued to be exploited in the seventeenth century.

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the assertions of both the caja and capitán, Mardoqueo, in his conversation with Ester, attributes the search for a new queen to the king’s councillors: los príncipes de su imperio, por medicina, aunque nueva, mandan en todos sus reinos buscar hermosas doncellas, para que la que le agrade reine en lugar de la Reina. (I, 113)

Whether the king gave orders for the search to be carried out or not, the fact remains that private desire is sacrificed for public duty. Asuero is the seventeenth-century Spanish man who must, according to Donald Larson, ‘no matter what his inner inclination, avenge an insult to his reputation’.50 Although Lope deals with the seventeenth-century preoccupation with honour in this play and demonstrates the importance of reputation in contemporary society, it is not proof of his tolerance of, and agreement with, the concept.51 In fact, Lope emphasises the importance of love and the fulfilment of private needs in La hermosa Ester. When Vastí declares ‘quien trata así su mujer, / necio Asuero adds that he is suffering from a ‘sangría’ which Ester offers to cure with her ‘vida’ and ‘sangre’ (I, 115). 50 See Donald Larson, The Honor Plays of Lope de Vega (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard UP, 1977), p. 13. Larson continues: ‘For one person to lose his honor is for society to be hurt in some degree, and for that person to suffer the loss of his honor and make no attempt to regain it is for society to be permanently harmed. This it will not tolerate.’ 51 Honour is also given a problematic treatment in many of Lope’s plays, including El perro del hortelano and El castigo sin venganza. In El perro del hortelano, the impossibility of the relationship between Diana, a countess, and Teodoro, criado, because of the limitations imposed by honra is resolved by the deceptive transformation of Teodoro into a nobleman as he poses as Ludovico’s long lost son. Victor Dixon states regarding this solution to the play: ‘Although Lope is too pragmatic to suggest that appearances don’t matter and need not be maintained, sham appearances, he makes Diana aware, may be as effective as realities.’ See ‘Introduction’ in Lope de Vega, El perro del hortelano, ed. Victor Dixon (London: Tamesis, 1981), pp. 9–67 (p. 49). In El castigo sin venganza, the motivation for the chastisement administered by the Duke at the end of the play is ambiguous. As both injured party and judge, his decision to eradicate both his adulterous wife, Casandra, and his illegitimate son, Federico, could be interpreted as a barbarous act of vengeance or a necessary course of action within the societal code of honour. On the concept of honour in this play, Gwynne Edwards states: ‘Lope could not present the Duke’s actions against the erring couple simply as a punishment – which is the case in the original – for their behaviour offends not merely against public morality but also against his personal honour. On the other hand, Lope did not wish the Duke’s actions to be seen merely as a private revenge for lost honour when larger moral questions were involved. The title points to his concern with both issues.’ See his ‘Introduction’ in Lope de Vega, Three Major Plays (Fuente Ovejuna, The Knight from Olmedo, Punishment without Revenge), trans. Gwynne Edwards (Oxford: OUP, 1999), pp. vii–xxxi (p. xxviii).

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consejo ha tomado’ (I, 109), she is expressing how foolish the king was to heed the advice of his wise men. In a clever and subtle manner, Lope attributes a voice to Vastí which she is denied in the biblical narrative in order to present his own ambivalence regarding honor/honra.52 As a comedia de tema religioso, La hermosa Ester naturally treats the theme of love not only in a human/physical context, but also from the aspect of the divine. While Vastí is defined and ultimately debased by a human love, Ester is inspired and protected by a divine force which guides her in her campaign to prevent the massacre of the Persian Jews. In this respect, Lope follows the deuterocanonical text of Esther by demonstrating how the Jews are saved by Ester, God’s instrument on earth, and not only by the human efforts of the female. While God, the Divine, supports Ester, Asuero, the human, disowns Vastí. When Lope decided to shift two biblical scenes around in order to present Ester as soon as Vastí is dethroned, and not after the search for a new queen begins, obviously he was aiming to produce a specific dramatic impact on his audience. The juxtaposition of the exit of Vastí with the entrance of Ester on stage is dramatically very effective for two reasons. First of all, it highlights the superiority of divine love to human love without undermining Lope’s attitude towards the expression and fulfilment of human love. Secondly, the presentation of Vastí and Ester one after the other sets the women up as two oppositional forces. Vastí, the ex-queen characterised by disobedience and insolence is replaced by Ester, the new queen who remarks on her own ‘humildad’ and the importance of ‘obediencia’ (I, 115) when she first appears before Asuero.53 It is interesting that when Ester and Vastí are analysed in apposition at this point in the drama, Vastí emerges as a strong, self-assertive woman endowed with what are normally categorised as negative traits, while Ester initially appears as an almost submissive female type. Dramatic tension is successfully created in Act I as we are forced to question and anticipate how 52 Edward Glaser, in ‘Lope de Vega’s La hermosa Ester’, pp. 113–15, takes a different view on the conflict between the king and queen. He claims that the moral which Lope reads into the incident is that pride goes before deposition and that the dismissal of the haughty queen presents a preview of the fate which is to befall the king’s conceited favourite, Haman (p. 114). While I accept Glaser’s analysis as a valid interpretation of the opening scenes, the king’s immediate expression of hesitancy with regard to the dismissal of his beloved is still an important modification to the biblical narrative. If this change is borne in mind, then honour can be interpreted as a metaphorical straitjacket. 53 In Fuente Ovejuna, Rodrigo Tellez Girón, master of Calatrava, compares the king and queen, Ferdinand and Isabella, to Ahasuerus / Xerxes and Esther respectively when he appears before them to seek forgiveness for his involvement in the siege of Ciudad Real. He extols them in the following manner: ‘Vos sois una bella Ester, / y vos, un Xerxes divino.’ See ‘Lope de Vega, Fuente Ovejuna’, ed. Juan María Marín (Madrid: Cátedra, 1997), p. 185. All subsequent references to the play will be taken from this edition. The use of divino implies a Christian interpretation of the role of the king as God’s instrument on earth. On La hermosa Ester from a Christian perspective, see pp. 41–42 of this chapter.

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the playwright will transform Ester into an authoritative individual capable of defeating the arrogant Amán. Lope continues to build tension in this play through Mardoqueo’s predictions of the role which Ester must ultimately assume. When we first meet uncle and niece, Mardoqueo describes Ester in the following way: Con hermosura y discreción naciste, y con divino entendimiento claro, vivir sola pudieras; pero el cielo algo pretende de tu santo celo (I, 110)54

Later, when Mardoqueo reveals to Ester that she has been listed by Egeo among the prospective new lovers for king Asuero, he prophesies: No temas; que Dios te dará favor, porque por tu medio sea su pueblo restituido a su primera grandeza; (I, 113)

In the bible, the first sign of any type of prediction on the part of Mordecai does not occur until Chapter 4 when he sends the following message to Esther through Hathach in an attempt to persuade her to plead with the king for the protection of the Jews – ‘For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish’ (Esther 4. 14). In La hermosa Ester, Lope does not permit Ester to become queen without hinting at the role which she will have to perform on behalf of all her people. Mardoqueo’s predictions are significant because they anticipate the plot of the play and the course of action which Ester must take without pinpointing details. His speeches serve to increase the expectation of the audience in the corral – those individuals who do not know the plot of the story will be forced to reflect on what the main action will consist of before it happens; others, who are familiar with the tale, will wonder how Lope will bring it to life on stage. 54 Ester is the niece of Mardoqueo in La hermosa Ester, not the cousin as in the biblical story (i.e. daughter of Mordecai’s uncle, Abihail). In Racine’s Esther, Esther is also the niece of Mardochée. Josephus, p. 409, likewise describes Mordecai as the uncle of Esther. In note d, p. 409 of Josephus, Marcus confirms that Rabbinic tradition, unlike Scripture, makes Esther the niece of Mordecai. Lope probably chose the uncle/niece connection in order to intensify the relationship between his two characters, as well as to endow Mardoqueo with explicit authority over his niece. Indeed, when Mardoqueo discusses Ester’s future role as the saviour of her people, he states: ‘es bien que al cielo y a mí, / hermosa Ester, obedezcas’ (I, 113).

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Throughout La hermosa Ester, Lope is continually striving to expand biblical detail in order to intensify the dramatic action. Nonetheless, he does make several omissions. The first of these is contained in Esther 2. 12–14 and relates to the twelve months of beauty treatments which every female must complete before appearing before the king.55 This is a Persian custom which would have been meaningless to a seventeenth-century Spanish audience and which Lope simply chooses not to include. The omission of this detail does not impact on the plot of the play. Lope also denies Asuero the harem which his counterpart possesses in the Book of Esther. Marsanes simply orders: ‘la que entrare de noche, salga al alba, / y la que le agradare, o por dichosa / o por bella, que reine’ (I, 112). Of course, it was essential for Lope to omit these for the purposes of decorum, ‘a cardinal doctrine of the Spanish drama of the seventeenth century’, according to Duncan Moir.56 Finally, and best categorised as a suppression rather than an omission of biblical detail, the two banquets which Esther hosts in the Book of Esther become one in La hermosa Ester.57 Since nothing happens at the first biblical banquet, Lope understandably includes only one in his play. By doing so, the development of dramatic action within the play is not impeded by the inclusion of unnecessary scenes which would slow down the pace of his drama. As a religious play, it was necessary for Lope to include the deuterocanonical additions in La hermosa Ester. Without these, his play would have been a secular representation of the protocanonical text which contains no references to God. Lope emphasises the importance of faith and the omniscience of God through the characters of Ester and Mardoqueo. In Act II, Mardoqueo’s speech in which he stresses why he will not pay respect to Amán is based on Addition C of the Apocrypha. Mardoqueo tells Isaac: Yo no, que solo a Dios hincarlas pienso, que no quiero quitar lo que le debo, por darlo a la criatura, que bien sabe el mismo Dios, que no es por ser yo grave (II, 117)

In Josephus, the beauty treatments last for six months (p. 411). See ‘The Classical Tradition in Spanish Dramatic Theory and Practice in the Seventeenth Century’, in Classical Drama and its Influence: Essays Presented to H. D. F. Kitto, ed. M. J. Anderson (London: Methuen, 1965), pp. 191–228 (p. 208). According to Duncan Moir, the Spanish ideas of decorum in the seventeenth century ‘are an expression of the social, religious and moral ideals of the particular civilization which has moulded them’ (pp. 210–11). The question of decorum is crucial to Lope’s reworking of Seneca in El castigo sin venganza. See Victor Dixon and Isabel Torres, ‘La madrastra enamorada: ¿Una tragedia de Séneca refundida por Lope de Vega?’, RCan, 19 (1994), 39–60. 57 In Racine’s Esther, the two banquets are also reduced to one. See Yarrow, ‘Esther’, p. 84. 55

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Ester’s prayer to God before hosting the banquet for Amán and Asuero also comes from Addition C of the Apocrypha. She cries out for divine assistance as the ‘esclava’ of God: ¡Oh gran Señor, si aquesta esclava vuestra las mujeres ilustres imitase de vuestro pueblo y de la sangre nuestra, y algo de sus desdichas restaurase; [. . .] haced que Amán por estas manos muera (III, 131)

Lope does not remain wholly dependent on the deuterocanonical parts of Esther in order to present his drama as a biblical, rather than secular, comedia. Throughout this play, both Ester and Mardoqueo constantly refer to the power of God and highlight that the people of Israel will be saved by His intervention. Mardoqueo classifies the Jews as the pueblo de Dios, while Ester exhibits obedience to, and love of, God right from the beginning of the play, even before she has been chosen as queen of Persia. She prays: ¡Inmenso Dios, vuestra soy! [. . .] dadme entendimiento y fuerzas para saber agradaros, pues que yo os doy la obediencia. (I, 113)

There is no doubt that although Lope manipulated the Book of Esther in order to exploit and problematise contemporary themes, he also used his source to promote an orthodox belief and hope in God to his seventeenth-century audience. Although Juan O. Valencia believes that the dream of Mardoqueo was invented by Lope, in fact the playwright based his re-creation of the dream on one of the Apocryphal additions (addition A).58 At the beginning of Act II Mardoqueo tells his dream to Isaac, who is a new character created by Lope. Regarding the significance of the dream, Mardoqueo remarks: ‘yo pienso que

58 For Valencia’s view on Mardoqueo’s dream, see Pathos y tabú en el teatro bíblico del siglo de oro (Madrid: Ediciones y Distribuciones Isla, 1977), pp. 63–73 (pp. 65–66). Valencia’s work is particularly interesting as regards his analysis of the character of Amán. He describes Amán as ‘un personaje desgarrado por «los contrastes»: su vanagloria le lleva a querer escalar las estrellas y su suerte lo arroja hasta los suelos. Apoyado en los favores del Rey, se ve luego condenado por éste’ (p. 67). For Valencia, Amán is an unbalanced individual who is at once confident, insecure and plagued by paranoia, despite his false sense of self-importance. On Amán, see especially pp. 66–72 of Valencia’s work.

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ha de ser para bien nuestro’ (II, 117). The dream symbolises the deliverance of the Jews from Amán’s organised persecution as a result of Ester’s efforts. However, Ester has just been appointed queen and the hostility between Amán and Mardoqueo has not even surfaced yet. Lope’s inclusion of the dream is therefore another means of heightening dramatic suspense. The creation of Isaac is fundamental to an understanding of Lope’s recreated play. Isaac is not only included by Lope in order to serve as the listener and receiver of Mardoqueo’s prophetic dream. He is also significant because his ignorance of Amán’s identity and stature allows Mardoqueo to reveal Amán’s superior role to the rest of the king’s officials. When Isaac asks: ‘¿quién es aqueste?’ (II, 117), Mardoqueo’s response provides the precise details found at the beginning of Esther 3. He states: Este es Amán, un príncipe que preside a los otros, tan soberbio con el imperio, que me causa enojos (II, 117)

This conversion of biblical narrative into dialogue is markedly significant because it establishes the antagonism which grows between Amán and Mardoqueo throughout the play. However, Lope’s most important reason for including Isaac in his play is the fact that his submissive obedience serves to highlight the stoicism of Mardoqueo. When Isaac fearfully bows down to pay respect to Amán, he leaves his Jewish friend standing defiantly alone. There can be no doubt that Lope deliberately selected the name of Isaac, one of the great patriarchs of the Old Testament, for his character.59 The inability of this character to take a stand against the royal favourite, having been named after the heroic biblical figure who convinced the Lord of his obedience in Genesis, magnifies the courage and steadfastness of Mardoqueo. Throughout La hermosa Ester, Mardoqueo is portrayed as an exceptional, distinguished character endowed with valour and humildad. His heroism is made much more explicit in Lope’s drama than in the biblical story. At the beginning of Act III, before reading from the annals that Mardoqueo was responsible for saving the king’s life, Egeo pronounces a list of recorded names and feats attributed to them. This does not happen in the biblical narrative where only Mardoqueo’s discovery of the plot against the Jews is

59 Isaac is the son of Abraham and father of the twins Jacob and Esau. He was born to Abraham and his wife Sarah after a long and childless marriage. The events of his life are recounted in Genesis 21–28. One of the most important episodes in Isaac’s life was the projected sacrifice of him by his father Abraham (Genesis 22). In the end, God accepted a ram as a substitute for Isaac because he was convinced of the obedience of both Abraham and Isaac to His word.

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underlined.60 The effect created by Egeo’s comments on characters such as Rufino Tebano, a painter, Tirio, an engineer, and Tesenio, a poet and the reasons why they have been honoured by Asuero is the intensification of the significance of Mardoqueo’s deed. Mardoqueo is projected as a man much more worthy of reward than one who presents the king with a bad self-portrait, constructs the royal baths or offers a book of poetry to him. Lope consequently succeeds in setting Mardoqueo, a Jew, above the Persian nobles of Asuero’s kingdom. Given Spain’s longstanding anti-Semitic tradition, the elevation of the Jew raises several questions. For Lope’s audience, for whom the Persians may mask the Spanish, it could signify the promotion of the Jew above the Spanish nobility. If this is the case, the play not only forces the audience to see itself in a negative light, but problematises concepts such as anti-Semitism and honour.61 Perhaps the most significant expansion of biblical detail in the play is the dramatisation of the conspiracy against the king based on Esther 2. 23: ‘And when the report was investigated and found to be true, the two officials were hanged on a gallows.’ Lope presents the investigation into the planned assassination of Asuero and introduces an important prop – a carta. Mardoqueo overhears Bagatán and Tares not only discussing the murder of the king but also commenting on the carta.62 This carta, carried close to the chest of Tares, contains details of the proposed regicide. The carta is both Asuero’s proof that Mardoqueo’s denouncement of the royal officials is true and the cause of the men’s downfall. Lope heightens suspense in his play by having Bagatán and Tares fear that Mardoqueo has overheard their conversation. His inclusion of the carta also serves to set Amán and Mardoqueo up as two contradictory forces – while Mardoqueo informs the royal household about the letter, Amán reads the contents to them. In order to assign the role of reader to Amán and not just to any royal adviser, Lope must promote him to the status of royal favourite before the conspiracy to kill the king is thwarted by Mardoqueo.

60 In Josephus’ text, the accomplishments of two other individuals, apart from Mordecai, are mentioned: ‘It was found that a certain man as a reward for his bravery on one occasion had received some land, the name of which was also written. Then, in mentioning another who had received a gift for his loyalty, he also came to the eunuchs who had plotted against the king and against whom Mordecai had informed’. See Josephus, pp. 433–35. 61 The issue of the elevation of the Jew through the characters Mardoqueo and Ester is complex. While the promotion of the Jew appears to be Lope’s aim, this does not coincide with the more traditional picture of Lope in religious terms depicted in other parts of this study. It is possible that the dramatisation of the story of Esther proved attractive to Lope because of the opportunity it provided to give anti-Semitism a problematic treatment and consequently, to generate a range of audience responses. For several critics’ opinions on Lope as anti-Semitic or as a supporter of the Jewish cause, see pp. 40–42 of this chapter. 62 In Josephus’ narrative, a character named Barnabazos, a Jew, discovers the conspiracy against the king and informs Mordecai (p. 415).

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Because he aims to increase the rivalry between the hero and antihero of the play, Lope cannot wait to promote Amán after the conspiracy is uncovered, as is the case in his biblical source. The animosity between Mardoqueo and Amán is escalated when, following Amán’s invitation to dine with Ester and Asuero, the royal favourite is ignored three times by Mardoqueo. This constitutes a deliberate amplification on Lope’s part of Esther 5. 9 which reads as follows: ‘Haman went out that day happy and in high spirits. But when he saw Mordecai at the king’s gate and observed that he neither rose nor showed fear in his presence, he was filled with rage against Mordecai.’ Mardoqueo has already informed both Isaac and the audience why he will not pay homage to Amán. To Isaac’s comment that everyone is kneeling before Amán, Mardoqueo replies: Yo no, que solo a Dios hincarlas pienso, que no quiero quitar lo que le debo, por darlo a la criatura, que bien sabe el mismo Dios, que no es por ser yo grave. (II, 117)63

As Mardoqueo denies him respect time and time again, Amán becomes more infuriated. The first time Mardoqueo passes by without bowing down he is called ‘el necio arrogante’. On the second occasion, he becomes for Amán ‘un miserable hebreo’. Finally, Amán resorts to dehumanising the Jew, referring to him as ‘una hormiga [. . .] una mosca miserable’ (II, 125). By developing the negative qualities of Amán in the play, Lope undermines the comments of this antihero. Amán is a cruel, arrogant and authoritative governor who rejects the petitions of his subjects at the beginning of Act II. He refers to himself as ‘el rey Amán’ (II, 120) and a godlike figure who is not only ‘un hombre que respetan las estrellas’ (II, 121) but an individual whose praises are sung by nature (II, 120).64 In this respect, he equates himself with the divine being who, according to the child Isidro in La niñez de San Isidro 63 Lope bases Mardoqueo’s justification of his actions on Mordecai’s prayer contained in addition C of the Apocrypha. In the Hebrew text of Esther, Mordecai offers no reason why he refuses to bow down before Haman. Josephus states in this regard: ‘But Mordecai because of his wisdom and his native law would not prostrate himself before any man’. See Josephus, p. 417. 64 Like Amán, the figure of Senacherib, king of Assyria in Historia de Tobías, is characterised by arrogance. He too establishes himself as a godlike personage by describing his conquest of Jerusalem in terms of Christ’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday (Matthew 21.1–11). Senacherib claims: ‘con laurel entro mañana / triunfando en Jerusalén’. The edition of this play used for the purposes of this study is contained in Obras de Lope de Vega, ed. Don Marcelino Menéndez y Pelayo, Biblioteca de Autores Españoles, 157–59, VI–VIII (Madrid: Atlas, 1963), VIII, 87–136. Senacherib’s declaration is found in I, 93. All subsequent references to the play will be taken from this edition.

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and his adult equivalent in La juventud de San Isidro, is eulogised by the natural world.65 He boasts of supernatural powers in a lengthy monologue claiming that the very sun and planets pay him homage.66 Lope presents Amán as a despicable man, placing him in apposition to Mardoqueo who is for the royal favourite nothing more than ‘un vil hebreo’ (II, 120). More than that, he is a ‘mastín’ (II, 126) who disobeys his master. Amán is ultimately punished in the play, not only because of his planned massacre of the Jews, but also because of his soberbia. Humildad, as exemplified by Mardoqueo, is rewarded in La hermosa Ester. Amán is struck down by God’s ‘cetro de la muerte’ because he tried to destroy God’s chosen people.67 For him, the sceptre symbolises damnation, while for Ester and Mardoqueo, it means salvation. While Asuero extends his sceptre to Ester when she enters the throne room, thus pardoning her for presenting herself uninvited, Mardoqueo receives the royal sceptre and is dressed in royal attire when the king decides to honour him for saving his life. Indeed, Mardoqueo appears on stage ‘con cetro y corona en un caballo, y su palio;’ (III, 129). Ironically, it is Amán who suggests that Asuero should present his sceptre to the man he wishes to reward. In fact, this suggestion is made precisely when Amán wants to ask for permission to put Mardoqueo to death. Lope also exploits the character of Amán to deal with the concept of honra. At the end of Act II when he decides to hang Mardoqueo for being a disrespectful citizen, Amán expresses the importance of honour in the manner of a seventeenth-century Spanish male whose pride has been damaged. He states: que no hay oro, seda y telas, granas tirias, persas joyas, gobiernos, reinos, imperios, mesas, deleites, aromas, que causen tanta gloria como vengar agravios de la honra (II, 126)

Nonetheless, in failing to redress his grievance, Lope presents Amán as an individual who is not entitled to honour, and thus suggests for a second time in this play his uncertainty regarding the concept. However, as part of the fabric of Spanish patriarchal society, and essentially about ‘belonging’ to that See my analysis of the prayers of the child and adult Isidro in chapter 2, pp. 66–68. See his speech, II, 120. 67 See Mardoqueo’s speech, II, 117. In Historia de Tobías, Senacherib is also punished by God through an ángel santo who puts 185,000 of his soldiers to death (I, 93–94). Tobías (viejo) attributes Senacherib’s eventual murder by Sarasar and Adramelech, the king’s sons, to God’s intervention. He tells his wife, Ana, his son, Tobías (mozo) and Rubén, who delivered the news of the royal death: ‘Hijos, Dios lo permitió’ (I, 98). 65 66

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society, honour is the privilege of those who enjoy pureza de sangre. Marginal individuals, such as the Jews, were not entitled to honour. By denying honour to Amán and punishing him for his attack on the Jews, Lope once again elevates the Jew.68 Apart from Isaac, Lope presents another new character named Marsanes based on the biblical Marsena, one of the seven nobles of Persia. Marsanes acts as ‘amigo y consejero de Amán’.69 The function of Marsanes is to bridge gaps, connect scenes and increase tension in the play. He is the official who initially expresses leniency towards Vastí by advising the king to allow her to remain in the company of the other women. However, he subsequently makes a declaration concerning the superiority of the male to the female. He also suggests that the king should make the dethronement of Vastí known in all the provinces.70 Marsanes similarly informs Amán of Mardoqueo’s lack of respect for him. He does this alone, rather than as part of the group of royal officials who relate Mordecai’s disobedience to Haman in the Book of Esther. Marsanes exaggerates Mardoqueo’s refusal to honour Amán, thereby magnifying Amán’s agitation and disgust with the Jew. He tells him: ‘De tal manera le hallo / mil veces en tu presencia’ (II, 120). One of the most significant roles that Marsanes plays in La hermosa Ester is that of the faithful friend of Amán who suggests to him that he should have Mardoqueo hanged from the gallows. Consequently, the inclusion of this character might have mitigated somewhat Amán’s negative role and made the audience see him as less culpable for his actions. Lope’s originality in La hermosa Ester is manifested through his introduction of a sub-plot. This serves to make the play more explicitly relevant to the seventeenth-century audience and to produce comic relief. Weiner believes that it demonstrates that opposites, specifically the Spanish nobility and peasantry, can never complement one another: ‘Creo que en este episodio Lope ha querido mostrar que las cosas opuestas – sangre baja y sangre alta – no se pueden mezclar.’71 In the form of two short interludes in Acts I and II, the sub-plot takes place in a typical seventeenth-century rustic setting and tells the story of how Sirena aspires to become queen and how Selvagio, her lover, refuses to take her back when she fails in her quest. The choice of names of these characters was no coincidence. Selvagio is the rustic figure which his name suggests, while Sirena’s name is symbolic of the role that she would like 68 Lope’s El niño inocente de La Guardia serves as an interesting contrast to La hermosa Ester because of its treatment of the theme of anti-Semitism. However, even within that particular play, the Jews voice their sufferings in Act I. Francisco, for example, states: ‘¡Míseros de nosotros, desterrados / de nuestra patria en tanta desventura! / Los daños tan de atrás profetizados, / aún no se acaban, y el castigo dura’. See El niño inocente de La Guardia, ed. Anthony J. Farrell (London: Tamesis, 1985), I. 322–25. 69 See Valencia, Pathos, p. 70. 70 See Marsanes’ speech, I, 109. 71 ‘La reina Ester’, p. 45.

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to play. She aims to become the siren of Greek mythology who will lure and tempt the king. She is an arrogant female, described in terms of her ‘vanidad’ (I, 114) and ‘locura’ (II, 121) by Selvagio. She believes that the king should choose her for his wife because of the superiority of the natural countryside to the ambience of the palace and because ‘lo que falta es lo mejor’ (I, 115). Sirena is a comic figure who ironically wishes to become queen in an environment which she has just criticised. The fact that the audience knows that Ester, not Sirena, will become queen intensifies the comic effect of this scene and invalidates Sirena’s monologue. Nevertheless, Sirena mirrors Vastí’s self-assurance and independence. Just as Vastí disregarded Asuero’s request that she appear before him, so Sirena ignores Selvagio’s plea that she remain faithful to him and abandon her ambition. Although Sirena is also portrayed as a foolish female who admits to her own ‘locura’ and ‘soberbia’ (II, 122) in aspiring as one of sangre baja to an unattainable status of sangre alta within the hierarchical structure of seventeenthcentury Spain, her assertiveness and her initial refusal to play the part of the submissive female cannot be denied. Sirena leaves the stage in Act II with a confident speech concerning how she will win back Selvagio’s love. She boasts: pero yo le ablandaré la condición fiera y brava; no me da mucha fatiga por más que volar presuma; (II, 122)

The audience, therefore, is left not with an image of Sirena as a defeated, undermined woman, but as a bold, positive female. Consequently, Lope’s sub-plot not only makes La hermosa Ester more appealing by setting it within a contemporary context, but also allows a subversive female presence to have a forceful voice within the play. This sub-plot is particularly effective because it is successfully worked into the main plot and thematic axis of La hermosa Ester. When Lope decided to write a play based on the Book of Esther, rather than any other biblical story, he was obviously not interested in merely presenting the omniscience of God on stage. Of course there is no denying that the importance of faith is highlighted in La hermosa Ester. However, by concentrating on the success of a young woman in an alien environment, the Book of Esther offered Lope the opportunity to present the strong, assertive female (a prevalent type in Lope’s secular drama) within a religious framework.72 Principally

72 A thorough investigation into the numerous representations of the strong-willed female in Lope’s secular plays is beyond the limits of this book. However, examples of the type include the women of the Amazons, explicitly praised by Lope in Las mujeres sin hombres and the character Laurencia in Fuente Ovejuna. In Fuente Ovejuna, the authoritative and resolute Laurencia is capable of both condemning men and joining forces

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through the character of Ester, and to a much lesser extent, Vastí, Lope exalts the female. Ester’s triumph over Amán is coupled with the fulfilment of Vastí’s promise to make Asuero suffer, if only for a short time, for sacrificing love for public duty. It may only have been possible for Lope to present the ultimate victory of the female Jewess (Ester) over the male (Amán) because Ester is almost non-human; she is God’s instrument on earth through whom His divine powers operate. In the final scenes of La hermosa Ester, she is praised both by the king and by his Hebrew subjects. Indeed, Lope’s final manipulation of biblical material relates to the ending of the play. He succintly dramatises the final chapters of the Book of Esther and concludes his play by focusing on the rejoicing and celebrations of the Jews on stage with Ester, Mardoqueo and Asuero. Prior to the final dance and the redistribution of Amán’s estate to Mardoqueo and Ester, Asuero authorises the revocation of Amán’s decree against the Jewish population. He addresses Mardoqueo in the following manner: Esta es mi sortija y sello; despachad cartas al punto, en que revoco el decreto que Amán, soberbio, había dado contra el santo pueblo hebreo. (III, 135)

La hermosa Ester ends on a happy, non-violent note, omitting the biblical account of the murder of Haman’s ten sons and other Persians by Jews in Asuero’s provinces. This means that Lope’s audience is left to contemplate the triumph of the Jews, rather than the destruction of the enemy. It is Amán, not the ‘santo pueblo hebreo’ who is the embodiment of evil as the play draws to a close.73 Significantly, Ester’s success is not undermined by acts of vengeance. The ending of La hermosa Ester could be viewed as problematic for members of the seventeenth-century audience if they have identified themselves with them as befits the occasion. Furthermore, Laurencia draws attention to the valour of the Amazonian women of Lope’s previously cited play, as she remarks: ‘y torne / aquel siglo de amazonas, / eterno espanto del orbe’ (III, 160). An analysis of feminism and distinct female types in the comedia forms the focus of Melveena McKendrick’s Woman and Society in the Spanish Drama of the Golden Age (London, New York: CUP, 1974) and Frederick A. De Armas’ The Invisible Mistress: Aspects of Feminism and Fantasy in the Golden Age (Charlottesville, Virginia: Biblioteca Siglo de Oro, 1976). More recently, the theme of women as a subversive force in the comedia has been examined in a collection of essays entitled The Perception of Women in Spanish Theater of the Golden Age, eds Anita K. Stoll and Dawn L. Smith (Lewisburg: Bucknell UP, 1991). 73 In Addition E of the Apocryphal Esther, the Jews are not presented as evil-doers. Josephus’ paraphrase of Addition E (Josephus, pp. 445–51) does not omit this important detail. Josephus states regarding the thirteenth of Adar: ‘For God has made it a day of salvation for them instead of a day of destruction’ (p. 451).

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with the Persians, especially with Amán, and with his preoccupation with honour and his detestation of the Jews. If we accept the possibility of such an interpretation, then the spectators were susceptible to two contradictory representations of themselves through the characters of Amán and the king. They may have seen themselves portrayed negatively as a result of Amán’s destiny, but also in an altogether more positive light through the ultimate presentation of the king as a tolerant and just individual. Asuero is revered by both Mardoqueo, who addresses him as ‘¡Oh soberano señor!’ (III, 135), and by an hebreo who, like Mardoqueo, prostrates himself before him. The hebreo tells the king: Danos tus pies, gran señor, y pon de tu nombre el hierro en las almas, que en las caras ya le tenemos impreso. (III, 135)

At the same time, the audience observes the Jew, the national enemy, as represented by Ester and Mardoqueo, in a privileged position within the state and the recipient of special royal favours. Such an understanding of the representation of the self and the ‘other’ problematises the concept of limpieza de sangre which was of fundamental importance to the seventeenth-century Spaniard. The date of composition of La hermosa Ester makes the above interpretation particularly significant. It is no coincidence that Lope wrote his play in 1610, the year of the expulsion of the moriscos from Spain and one month after a decree was issued limiting the return of the Portuguese conversos to Spain.74 Lope unequivocally wrote this play with a political agenda in mind. The play obviously makes a statement on the anti-Semitism which pervaded seventeenth-century society, but whether we can deduce from it that Lope was an advocate of the Jewish cause is a polemical issue among critics of this drama. Sicroff, for example, is doubtful that Lope was anti-Semitic, claiming that ‘el hecho mismo de escoger la historia bíblica del Libro de Ester hace dudosa la idea de un Lope conformista respecto al antisemitismo de sus contemporáneos. Es inconcebible que un Lope antisemita – en cualquier grado que lo fuera – se propusiera dramatizar el máximo triunfo que conoció el pueblo israelita en el Antiguo Testamento contra sus perseguidores.’75 Weiner similarly regards Lope as a sympathetic upholder of the Jewish cause. He states: ‘Creo que esta comedia favorece la tolerancia hacia el morisco y hacia 74 The expulsion of the moriscos from Spain was the result of an edict dated 22 September 1609. The decree limiting the return of Portuguese conversos was issued on 3 March 1610. The expulsion of the moriscos was carried out satisfactorily by 1613–14. 75 ‘Notas equívocas’, p. 703.

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el judío, en particular hacia los conversos’.76 However, there are those critics who assert that a Christian interpretation which promotes Ester as a prefiguration of the Virgin Mary is important in the play, in spite of their recognition of the fact that Lope’s main character is a representation of the biblical Jewess.77 They claim that just as Ester saves the Jews from the wrath of Amán, so the Virgin saves the human race from the devil. In a similar vein, just as Ester is excluded from punishment by Asuero for approaching him uninvited, so Mary is excluded from the mark of original sin.78 The most widely quoted parts of La hermosa Ester in support of this opinion are Amán’s speech at the end of Act I – ‘lo que mujer dañó, mujer lo sana’ (p. 116) – and the song with which the play ends Hoy salva a Israel la divina Ester. Hoy, Ester dichosa, figura sagrada de otra Ester guardada para ser esposa, más pura y hermosa, de más alto Rey. Hoy salva a Israel la divina Ester (III, 135)

Critics argue that Amán’s speech which explains how Ester repairs the honour of Asuero damaged by Vastí symbolises the salvation of the world by the

‘La reina Ester’, p. 43. Among the critics who argue for Ester as a prefiguration of the Virgin are Glaser, ‘Lope de Vega’s La hermosa Ester’, p. 131 and Vega García-Luengos, ‘El libro de Ester’, p. 240, n. 40. In Lope’s poem entitled El Isidro (1599), the Virgin is described as ‘La Ester, que tanto / cuanto quiso gracia halló / en los ojos que miró’. See Obras selectas, II (Poesía y Prosa), 413–534 (p. 439). Further references to the poem will be from this edition. In the same work, Lope also describes Ester in terms of her ‘humilde belleza’ (p. 459). As well as that, an analogy between the Virgin and Esther is drawn in San Isidro, labrador de Madrid. Isidro defines the Virgin as ‘Ester divina’ in his rendition of the Ave María. See Obras selectas, III (Teatro 2), 357–88 (I, 366). Subsequent references to the play will be taken from this edition. For a more detailed analysis of both El Isidro and San Isidro, labrador de Madrid, see chapter 2, especially pp. 50–51. 78 The play in which Lope explicitly treats the theme of the Immaculate Conception is La limpieza no manchada. Lope was commissioned to write this play in 1618 by the University of Salamanca in celebration of the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin. Lope introduces Ester, Amán and Asuero into the second act of this play in the form of a play within the play. In this play, Ester’s exemption from the law preventing anyone appearing before the king without permission does in fact symbolise the Virgin’s exemption from the mark of original sin. On the play within the play in Lo fingido verdadero, see chapter 4, pp. 110–27. 76 77

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Virgin following the harm caused by Eve. Weiner, however, disagrees with this view. He states: ‘En esta pieza de Lope no creo que sea aplicable esta interpretación religiosa.’79 Similarly, while the final song clearly defines Ester as a prefiguration of the Virgin, both Weiner and Sicroff take issue with its dramatic function within the play. Although Weiner maintains that the only lines in the play which allude to the Marian theme are those contained in the song, he believes that the song itself serves to create ‘un fin convencional’, rather than ‘uno de base temático-estructural’.80 In Sicroff’s opinion, Lope’s attempt to make Ester a prefiguration of the mother of God is an ‘esfuerzo endeble’ following his exaltation of the Jewess and the debasement of the rústica, Sirena.81 I would suggest that Lope presents La hermosa Ester from both perspectives, both Christian and Jewish. By this I mean that Ester is not only Esther, the saviour of the Jewish people, but also simultaneously a prefiguration of the Virgin.82 The presence of subversive voices in the play does not preclude an orthodox Christian interpretation, or vice versa. According to Simerka, ‘a more comprehensive vision of the complexity of audience reception raises the probability of spectators who sought, and found, experiences other than purgation and reaffirmation of orthodox values when attending the corral’ (See ‘Early Modern’, p. 46). Perhaps Lope knew that writing within the dogmatic climate of his time, he could not possibly dramatise the success of the Jews, the national enemy, without suffering at the hands of the Inquisition. It is possible, even, that he cleverly inserted Christian references into his play which would allow Ester to function as a prefiguration of the Virgin. The date of completion of La hermosa Ester would suggest that Lope almost certainly did not share the established anti-Semitic viewpoint and was even, perhaps, a sympathetic supporter of the Jews/Conversos and Moriscos living in contemporary Spain.83 In the final analysis, Lope indisputably creates a successful dramatisation of the Book of Esther in La hermosa Ester, remaining faithful to the plot of the ‘La reina Ester’, p. 42. ‘La reina Ester’, p. 42. 81 ‘Notas equívocas’, p. 704, in Lope de Vega y los orígenes, ed. Manuel Criado de Val. 82 In ‘Función y simbolismo’, p. 465, Concejo claims regarding the relationship between Ester and the Virgin: ‘A través de la representación, el espectador puede recorrer los grandes momentos de la mariología cristiana: Anunciación, Corredención, Glorificación’. In her concluding remarks, she describes the play in the following manner: ‘La hermosa Ester [. . .] contrarresta el antisemitismo de la sociedad española del Siglo de Oro al exaltar a una mujer judía que de esclava llega a reina’ (p. 471). 83 In ‘The Jew’, Roberta Zimmerman Lavine argues that aesthetic demands of plays may have caused Lope to present the Jew or the Converso in a sympathetic light. She concludes that Lope is not, however, an advocate of the Jewish/Converso cause. Following an analysis of Lope’s poem Sentimientos a los agravios de Christo nuestro bien (approx. 1632), Daniel L. Heiple concludes ‘it seems that Lope was more willing to dramatize the problem sympathetically in his plays than in his lyric poetry’. See ‘Political Posturing on the Jewish Question by Lope de Vega and Faria e Sousa’, HR, 62 (1994), 217–34 (p. 225). 79 80

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story while incorporating his own views on seventeenth-century socio-literary preoccupations such as love, honour and the role of woman. He has successfully mediated between past and present and attained the goal of the medieval playwright as described by Alan E. Knight: ‘His goal [. . .] was not just to represent the events of a distant and sacred past to a fifteenth century audience, he also had to explain those events in ways that would make them applicable to contemporary life.’84 Lope exhibits his dramatic craftmanship and genius by carefully expanding and omitting biblical detail in order to create a fast-moving comedia which produces suspense and tension. Important to the impact which Lope hoped La hermosa Ester would make on his audience is the fact that as a biblical play, the seventeenth-century viewers interpreted it as a depiction of real events, a dramatisation of historical reality.85 What the audience witnesses, therefore, is the presentation on stage of a ‘real’ woman who saved her people from annihilation during some earlier period in history. It learns that the Jews were also persecuted in the past and managed to save themselves from the enemy. La hermosa Ester demonstrates how the underdog, in this case woman and Jew, can not only survive but succeed in a climate of persecution. It emphasises the importance of love, both human and divine, and problematises seventeenth-century concepts such as honour and anti-Semitism. Ultimately, Lope’s La hermosa Ester is proof that a popular story or event can be recreated in order to produce a drama which is at once appealing and instructive. Twelve years later, the playwright’s task would become even more demanding, after he was commissioned to dramatise the life and works of Isidro, Madrid’s patron saint. The challenge to please a contemporary audience, generally familiar with every detail of the saint’s life, would seriously put Lope’s dramatic craftsmanship to the test.

‘The Enacted Narrative’, p. 234. The Book of Esther, however, although set in the early post-exilic period, is not based on historical fact. As Brockington indicates in Ezra, p. 217, the time period covered in the biblical narrative stretches from the transportation of Mordecai to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar in 597 BC (see Esther 2. 5–6) to the reign of Xerxes (Xerxes I, 485–65 BC). This means that the action took place at least 112 years after Mordecai’s deportation. Brockington states: ‘We are forced to the conclusion that the author deliberately projected his book on to this early post-exilic period, but telescoped the period, as was not unusual with Jewish writers, so that it could come within the compass of one man’s life.’ W. R. F. Browning has described the Book of Esther in the following way: ‘Although fictitious, it is possible that the story may be based on some historical incident’. See ‘Mordecai’ in Browning’s Dictionary of the Bible (Oxford: OUP, 1997), pp. 256–57 (p. 257). 84 85

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2 THE RE-PRESENTATION OF MADRID’S PATRÓN IN LA NIÑEZ DE SAN ISIDRO AND LA JUVENTUD DE SAN ISIDRO San Isidro, patrón de Madrid In spite of the fact that Isidro was not canonised until 1622, he was popularly acclaimed saint and patrón de Madrid from the beginning of the thirteenth century when his body was transferred from the cemetery of San Andrés to the altar of the church.1 According to Francisco Moreno, ‘Sin esperar a que la autoridad eclesiástica correspondiente diese el oportuno visto bueno, muchos hombres y mujeres de Madrid, a la vista de los milagros hechos, según el diácono Juan, el mismo día del traslado, le concedieron espontáneamente en privado y públicamente el honroso título de santo, y empezaron a considerarle como su patrón’.2 From 1589, when the first steps were taken to verify the sanctity of the local saint in Rome, until 1622, the population of Madrid was particularly concerned with the life and miracles of Isidro.3 The popularity of this local saint from medieval times, together with an upsurge in interest as a

1 In ‘Saint Patrick of Ireland and the Dramatists of Golden-Age Spain’, Hermathena, 121 (1976), 142–58, Victor Dixon draws attention to the fact that Christians throughout Europe not only revered ‘local’ saints from medieval times, but also ‘international’ saints. In the opening lines of his article, Dixon states: ‘It seems appropriate to recall on this occasion [. . .] the veneration all Christendom accorded, throughout medieval times and in later centuries, to the life and works of St Patrick’ (p. 142). 2 Francisco Moreno, San Isidro labrador (Madrid: Editorial El Avapiés, 1992), p. 73. Moreno’s study is an invaluable detailed analysis of Isidro, Madrid’s patron saint. In his aim to be a ‘narrador imparcial’ (p. 11), he provides details on the miracles, beatification and canonisation of Isidro, together with references to the saint’s main biographers, the witnesses for the beatification and canonisation proceedings and a modernised translation of the bull declaring the canonisation of Isidro. ‘El diácono Juan’ or Juan the Deacon, reader of Theology and Secretary to Alfonso X the Wise, wrote his Leyenda de San Isidro in 1275. This text will be closely examined in the course of this chapter. 3 The first legal documents for the purposes of the canonisation of Isidro were completed in 1589 during Philip II’s reign. For further details, see Moreno, San Isidro, pp. 79–80. Devotion to Isidro from medieval times is reflected in the establishment of the Cofradía de San Isidro, which emerged at the end of the thirteenth century at the latest. In 1537, this brotherhood merged with the Cofradía del Santísimo Sacramento to form the Cofradía del Santísimo Sacramento y San Isidro Labrador. See San Isidro, p. 158; p. 161.

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result of the canonisation proceedings, strongly suggests that numerous details relating to the local saint were not only familiar to, but well known by, Lope’s prospective audience.4 When Lope was commissioned by the Council of Castile to write two plays in celebration of Isidro’s canonisation, his dramatic compositions were thus restrained by the necessity to comply not only with a specified agenda dictated by the authorities, but also by the horizon of expectation of the public.5 Consequently, he was unable to manipulate his source material to the same extent as he had done in La hermosa Ester. La niñez de San Isidro and La juventud de San Isidro were both written, performed and printed in 1622.6 They were not staged in a typical corral, but in the open air, by the use in each case of two elaborately decorated carts and a platform in the plaza del Palacio by the theatrical companies of Vallejo and Avendaño.7 Lope’s audience included not only the general public, but the king 4 In Spain and the Western Tradition; III (1965), 249, Green reiterates Karl Vossler’s assertions in Introducción a la literatura española del siglo de oro (Madrid: Cruz y Raya, 1934), p. 61, regarding Lope’s role in the canonisation process. Green states: ‘And Lope de Vega, himself remarkable as a sinner, was chiefly responsible for the canonization of St Isidro, the farmer of Madrid who was made the patron saint of that city. The canonisation was prepared, solicited, and finally brought to fruition through the influence on public and ecclesiastical opinion of an epic poem and three dramatic works by Lope himself, and two poetic contests which he organized. Such was the power of poetry and of Christian devotion in the Spain of 1599, 1617, 1620, and 1622.’ Green’s comments would suggest that the composition of La niñez and La juventud de San Isidro occurred, together with the poetry competition, prior to the official declaration of the canonisation of the saint. This was not the case. 5 Thomas Case claims that a comedia de santos was ‘meant to be a part of a series of celebrations designed for a seventeenth-century public in honor of a saint. It was purposely written to fit in with other parts of a celebration of a saint.’ He describes the faithful who turned up to see the play and the clerics who commissioned it as ‘co-creators of the drama’. See his ‘Understanding Lope de Vega’s Comedia de Santos’, Hispan, 125 (1999), 11–22 (p. 16). Apart from the plays on Isidro, Lope was commissioned to write two others. Prior to the canonisation of Isidro, he was contracted by the University of Salamanca to compose La limpieza no manchada (1618). Subsequently, he wrote La vida de San Pedro Nolasco in 1629 at the request of the Mercedarian Order. 6 Both plays were published in a book entitled Relación de las fiestas que la insigne villa de Madrid hizo en la canonización de su bienaventurado hijo y patrón San Isidro, con las dos comedias que se representaron y los versos que en la Justa poética se escribieron (Madrid: Viuda de Alonso Martín, 1622). In addition to the plays, the book contains a dedication to Madrid, 3 aprobaciones, an account of the celebrations entitled Relación de las fiestas, the prize-winning poems of the poetry contest held in honour of the saint and Lope’s ballad Premios de la fiesta y justa poética en la canonización de San Isidro. For an abridged version of the contents of this book, see Sáinz de Robles, Obras selectas, II (Poesía y Prosa), 1125–47. 7 In the Relación de las fiestas, Lope provides significant details on the staging of his plays. See Obras selectas, II, 1128–41 (p. 1137; p. 1141). Miguel Gallego Roca compares the staging of these plays to that of the autos sacramentales: ‘El escenario descrito por Lope parece ser el mismo que se utilizaba en las representaciones de los autos sacramentales en las fiestas del Corpus.’ See ‘Efectos’, p. 118.

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and queen themselves, who watched the plays from the lower balconies of the palace. With the extra provision of richly adorned costumes for the actors and a magnificent tramoya, Lope’s task was to recreate the life and works of Isidro in a manner which was pleasing to his three-tiered audience of royal, lay and religious spectators.8 In order to appreciate fully the complexities involved in Lope’s dramatisations of Isidro, we must first explore the details of Isidro’s life and miracles which were, in fact, the dramatist’s raw material. The labrador who inspired Lope’s plays was born in Madrid around 1100, during the early years of the Reconquest.9 His parents, who were of humble origins, encouraged him to love God from an early age. He was employed by Iván de Vargas, a wealthy landowner and worked for him on the estate of Torrelaguna, situated just outside Madrid. As a young man, he married María de la Cabeza, who bore him one son.10 The various miracles associated with Isidro during his lifetime include

8 In the Relación de las fiestas, Lope describes the costumes in the following manner: ‘La riqueza de los vestidos fue la mayor que hasta aquel día se vio en el teatro’. He also provides details on the tramoya: ‘Lo que hubo móvil fue una tramoya sobre un teatro. Era de cuarenta pies de alto, su fundamento un fuerte, su extremo una nube, encima de ella la Fama con una bandera en la mano, y cuatro ángeles que volaban alrededor, sin verse su movimiento, como si fuera máquina semoviente o automática.’ See Obras selectas, II, 1141; 1137. 9 For general details on the life of Isidro, see Alban Butler, Lives of the Saints, ed., rev. and supp. Herbert Thurston, S. J., and Donald Attwater, 2nd edn, 4 vols (London: Burns and Oates, 1956), II, 323–24; Book of Saints. A Dictionary of Servants of God Canonized by the Catholic Church, compiled by the Benedictine Monks of St Augustine’s Abbey, Ramsgate, 5th edn (London: A. and C. Black, 1966), p. 364 and New Catholic Encyclopedia, prepared by editorial staff at the Catholic University of America, Washington, District of Columbia, 17 vols (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1966–79), VII (1967), 672. Like the Isidro plays, Fuente Ovejuna and San Diego de Alcalá are set during the reconquest of Spain, although the action of both takes place in the fifteenth century in the latter years of the struggle (Fuente Ovejuna is set in 1476 while San Diego de Alcalá traces the life and miracles of San Diego de Alcalá [approx. 1400–63]). Nevertheless, the war against the infidel features in all three. For details on the reign of Alfonso I of Castile and the early years of the Reconquest, see among others ‘The Rise of Christian Spain’, in The Making of Medieval Spain, by Gabriel Jackson (London: Thames and Hudson, 1972), pp. 53–78 and Angus MacKay, Spain in the Middle Ages (London: Macmillan, 1977), pp. 15–57. 10 The cult of María de la Cabeza was approved in 1697 by Innocent XII. She was born at Torrejón and died in approximately 1175 in Caraquiz. Following her death, various miracles were attributed to her. The most popular miracle associated with her is the crossing of the Jarama river on her mantle following a false accusation of adultery. In San Isidro, pp. 27–30, Moreno highlights several popular details relating to the saint. On pp. 35–37, he presents some of what he claims are authentic miracles which God worked through the intercession of María de la Cabeza. On María de la Cabeza, see also Book of Saints, p. 483. In a study of Lope’s female saints and their relationship with the mujer varonil, the maternal figure and the Virgin Mary, Catharine Gilson presents María de la Cabeza as a mirror image of the Virgin. She also draws a parallel between the mujer varonil and Dona, one of the principal characters of Lope’s Los locos por el cielo. See

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angels ploughing the fields while he prayed, the creation of a spring from which his master, Iván, could drink and the restoration to life of his master’s horse. He is also remembered for feeding beggars at a confraternity dinner by miraculously increasing his own portion of food and distributing corn seed to birds on a winter’s day from a sack whose seed subsequently produced abundant quantities of flour. Following his death (dated approximately either at 1130, or between 1171 and 1190), Isidro was buried in the cemetery of the church of San Andrés in Madrid.11 Forty years later, the saint allegedly appeared in two visions, first to a friend and afterwards to a matron, requesting the removal of his body to a more appropriate place in accordance with Divine orders. Isidro’s body, perfumed by the sweet smell of incense, was discovered to be intact and incorrupt and was transferred to a beautiful shrine above the main altar in San Andrés.12 Other miracles are attributed to Isidro after his death, including the victory over the Moors at Navas de Tolosa in 1212 when Isidro, in the guise of a shepherd, appeared to Alfonso VIII’s soldiers and led them to a secret path from which they could successfully attack and defeat the enemy. Isidro is also credited with restoring Philip III to health around 1619 when his shrine was carried to the bedroom of the royal patient. However, he is not only upheld as the saviour of royal blood. It is also said that, through the intercession of Isidro, many other individual members of society made miraculous recoveries from various afflictions, including physical disabilities and infertility problems. Even today, it is claimed that individuals who visit the fuente de San Isidro continue to be cured.13 ‘Lope de Vega’s Female Saints’, in Golden Age Spanish Literature. Studies in Honour of John Varey, eds Charles Davis and Alan Deyermond (London: Department of Hispanic Studies, Westfield College, 1991), pp. 93–103. 11 In Lives, p. 324, Alban Butler claims that Isidro died on 15 May 1130. Similarly, in the contents of the papal bull concerning Isidro’s canonisation in Moreno, San Isidro, pp. 106–16 (p. 110), the saint’s death is recorded to have taken place around 1130. However, in San Isidro, p. 54, Moreno claims: ‘La fecha de la muerte suele ponerse entre 1171 y 1190, en 30 de noviembre.’ In a critical edition of the Leyenda de San Isidro by Juan the Deacon, Fidel Fita states: ‘La cuenta sale cabal con señalar el año 1190 para el dicho tránsito del glorioso labrador, patrón de Madrid’. See ‘Leyenda de San Isidro por el diácono Juan. Códice del Siglo XIII, procedente del archivo parroquial de San Andrés’, ed. Fidel Fita, BRAH, 9 (1886), 97–157 (p. 155). 12 Stephen Wilson claims that the incorruptibility of the corpse was usually, and still is, taken to be a sign of sanctity, and it is a commonplace of hagiology that saints’ bodies emit sweet odours. See his ‘Introduction’, in Saints and Their Cults. Studies in Religious Sociology, Folklore and History, ed. Stephen Wilson (Cambridge: CUP, 1983), pp. 1–53 (p. 10). Franciso Moreno, in San Isidro, p. 59, claims that the Dominican Fray Domingo de Mendoza was present at the official opening of Isidro’s tomb on 20 July 1593. He provides details on Mendoza’s testimony relating to the tomb and body of the saint (pp. 60 and 62) and states that Mendoza described the smell emanating from the saint’s body as ‘un olor suavísimo diferente de todos los olores y especies aromáticas’ (p. 60). 13 According to Wilson, visits to springs or wells associated with saints was a popular way of effecting cures by them. Individuals drank the water from the spring or well,

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During their respective reigns, Philip II and Philip III both strove to ensure the canonisation of Isidro. Finally, the document passing the beatification of Isidro was signed by Paul V on 14 June 1619, and eight days of festivities marked the occasion in Madrid from 15 May the following year. Isidro was later canonised on 12 March 1622 by Pope Gregory XV during the reign of Philip IV at a ceremony which also included the canonisations of Ignacio de Loyola,14 Francisco Javier,15 Teresa de Ávila16 and Philip Neri.17 Isidro is remembered each year on 15 May. His feast day is not only celebrated in Spain but even in northwestern Mexico where framed images of the saint are carried through the fields by farmers who, through the intercession of Isidro, hope that their land will be blessed by rain.18 His body is currently enshrined in the Cathedral of Madrid.

San Isidro: A Pervading Presence in Lope’s Life and Work In his Estudios sobre el teatro de Lope de Vega, Menéndez y Pelayo stresses how Madrid’s patron saint impresses upon Lope’s life and compositions: ‘No hay quien ignore [. . .] cuánta importancia tiene en la vida y en las obras de Lope la devoción al Santo labrador, patrono de Madrid, y de qué modo contribuyó con el prestigio de su rica poesía a difundir y hacer popular, dentro y fuera de los muros de la villa, el culto del humilde y venturoso labriego,

bathed or washed in it and even dipped the clothing of the sick into it. See ‘Introduction’, in Saints and Their Cults, p. 19. 14 Ignacio de Loyola (1491–1556) is worshipped as the patron of retreats and his feast is celebrated on 31 July. For further details on this saint, see Henry Dwight Sedgwick, Ignatius Loyola: An Attempt at an Impartial Bibliography (London: Macmillan, 1924); Paul Van Dyke, Ignatius Loyola, the Founder of the Jesuits (New York: C. Scribner’s Sons, 1926) and C. de Dalmases, ‘Ignatius of Loyola, St’, in New Catholic Encyclopedia, VII (1967), 354–56. 15 Francisco Javier (1506–52) is thought to have been one of the greatest missionaries of all time. A companion of Ignacio de Loyola, his feast day is 3 December. He was declared patron of the Orient in 1748, patron of the Faith in 1904 and along with St Thérèse of Lisieux, patron of all missions in 1927. See ‘St Francis Xavier’, in Butler’s Lives, IV, 474–81. 16 Teresa de Ávila (1515–82), also known as Teresa de Jesús, was one of the great Spanish mystics and founder of the order of Discalced Carmelites. She was proclaimed a Doctor of the Church in 1970, the first woman to be granted the title. She is particularly remembered for her spiritual works. Her feast is celebrated on 15 October. For general details on Teresa, see O. Steggink, ‘Teresa of Avila, St’, in New Catholic Encyclopedia, XIII (1967), 1013–16 and Carole Slade, St Teresa of Avila: Author of a Heroic Life (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1995). 17 Philip Neri (1515–95), whose feast day is celebrated on the 26 May, is also known as the ‘apostle of Rome.’ For further details on this saint, see Book of Saints, p. 575 and Donald Attwater, The Penguin Dictionary of Saints, 2nd edn, rev. Catherine Rachel John (London: Penguin, 1983), pp. 275–76. 18 See Jorge Acero, ‘The Fiesta of San Isidro’, Journal of the Southwest, 33 (1991), 18–19.

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a quien amaba doblemente por razón de paisanaje y por aquel espíritu llano y democrático que en el alma de Lope reinaba’.19 Lope’s connection with Isidro was already well established before he wrote La niñez and La juventud in 1622. According to Moreno, Lope appeared as a witness at the official proceedings for the beatification/canonisation of María de la Cabeza as early as 1612.20 Eight years later, he was not only the judge and organiser of the poetry competition to celebrate Isidro’s beatification, but also composed two quatrains which were inscribed on the new silver coffin especially prepared for Isidro’s dead body.21 The verses read as follows: Esta Urna sacra encierra más Cielo que tierra, y fue de un labrador cuya Fe labraba Cielo a su Tierra. Imitando a Eloy el celo, sus plateros la labraron, para decir, que engastaron de todo Madrid el Cielo.22

In 1622, Lope was not only responsible for the composition of two plays in honour of the saint, but also acted as one of the judges at the poetry competition which took place in the plaza mayor on 28 June 1622. On this occasion, Lope read the opening speech, the prize-winning poems and made a humorous commentary in verse on each of the winning poems. Finally, Lope closed this ceremony with a ballad just as he had done at the competition two years previously. In his Premios de la fiesta, y justa poética en

See Estudios, II, 43–49 (p. 44). Moreno states: ‘Me agrada recordar que uno de los testigos fue Lope de Vega, cuando tenía cincuenta años.’ See San Isidro, p. 30. 21 The poetry competition took place on 19 May 1620 and was held in the church of San Andrés. Lope opened the celebrations with an introductory speech and the recital of some of his own poems in the décimas style. He also recited a poem to conclude the ceremony entitled Romance para la conclusión de la justa poética celebrada con motivo de la beatificación de San Isidro, in which he praised the poets who had participated in the contest. Finally, Lope distributed prizes to the winning poets. He was paid 300 ducats for his efforts by the Council of Castile. The poems entered in the competition were published in 1620 under the title Justa poética y alabanzas justas que hizo la insigne villa de Madrid al bienaventurado San Isidro en la fiesta de su beatificación (Madrid: Viuda de Alonso Martín). Lope added some of his own verses in the décimas style to this publication, as well as several verses under the pseudonym Tomé de Burguillos and an introduction in which he attacked culteranismo. Sáinz de Robles cites parts of the Justa poética in Obras selectas, II, 1109–24, including the Breve suma de la vida del Bienaventurado San Isidro (pp. 1111–12) and the ballad with which the function ended (pp. 1120–24). 22 See Moreno, San Isidro, pp. 65–66. 19 20

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la canonización de San Isidro, he applauded the winning poets and their compositions.23 More importantly, however, Lope’s recognition of the wealth of material associated with Isidro prompted him to devote two significant works to the saint prior to 1622. He explicitly defined events in Isidro’s life as promising subject matter for poets in his Romance para la conclusión de la justa poética celebrada con motivo de la beatificación de San Isidro: ¿Quién pensara que en Madrid tantos poetas hubiera? Pero vos lo habéis causado, labrador de nuestra tierra. Porque con campos y ríos, ángeles, arados, rejas, fuentes, cristales, milagros, les dais tan fértil materia, que vendrán a ser por vos poetas hasta las piedras; que para vuestra alabanza ya no es mucho que hablen ellas.24

The first of these works, and the longest on the subject of the saint by Lope, is El Isidro (Madrid: Luis Sánchez, 1599), which Sáinz de Robles considers to be ‘el más bello poema de Lope’.25 A poem made up of ten cantos, it focuses on the life of the saint from his birth to his death and presents the miracles which are commonly associated with him. Lope, however, still manages to convey his own voice, referring to Isidro in canto V, for example, as a ‘celestial labrador’ (p. 471). The poem also provides Lope with the opportunity to address several theological issues in cantos III and IV, such as the fall of Lucifer, the Immaculate Conception and Christ’s salvation of mankind. Moreover, the saintliness of Isidro is highlighted when Lope lists his name alongside prophets, apostles and biblical heroes/heroines including Joseph and Esther (canto IV, pp. 458–59). Lope’s second important creation on this subject is a three-act play entitled San Isidro, labrador de Madrid (1598–1608) (probably 1604–06).26 Published in 1617 in the Séptima parte de las comedias de Lope de Vega Carpio, it is essentially a dramatisation of the adult life of the saint from his request for permission to marry María de la Cabeza to the prophecies of the rivers 23 Lope’s ballad is contained in Obras selectas, II, 1143–47. For details on the prizes awarded at the contest, see the ‘Nota preliminar’, pp. 1125–26. 24 Obras selectas, II, 1121. 25 See his ‘nota preliminar’ to the poem in Obras selectas, II, 413–14 (p. 414). 26 Unlike La niñez and La juventud, San Isidro, labrador de Madrid was not a commissioned work. Lope, therefore, did not have to comply with a particular agenda.

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Jarama and Manzanares regarding his death, canonisation and miracles.27 Isidro’s canonisation is effectively promoted in the course of the play through the discourse of several characters. Isidro himself makes a prediction concerning his future role, nominating himself as ‘el prelado de estos prados’ in his conversation with the personification of jealousy, Envidia (II, 375). Envidia too, in spite of his aspiration to destroy Isidro’s reputation, ultimately focuses on the possible official recognition of Isidro’s holiness. He informs Demonio: ¡[. . .] vendrá el siglo en que Felipe reine, y por ventura en Roma le veas canonizar! (III, 387)28

In terms of content, both of Lope’s early works justify his claim regarding the suitability of the story of Isidro as a literary subject. However, in order to comprehend how Lope would later reconstruct the fundamental details relating to Isidro in La niñez de San Isidro and La juventud de San Isidro, familiarity with the written source material which would have been extant at the time of writing is vital.

The Source Material For writers of all genres in sixteenth and seventeenth-century Spain, the fundamental source of reference for the legend of San Isidro was Juan Diácono’s Leyenda de San Isidro.29 A thirteenth-century text, now preserved

27 In San Isidro, Moreno claims that Lope wrote this play in 1617 (see p. 128). Similarly, Garasa states regarding its composition: ‘La tercera, San Isidro, labrador de Madrid, fue escrita cinco años antes que las otras dos.’ See his Santos, p. 59. Garasa devotes pp. 58–62 of the book to a discussion of the three plays on the San Isidro theme. On pp. 58–59, he takes issue with Menéndez y Pelayo’s definition of the three plays as ‘una especie de trilogía (Estudios, II, 43). As far as he is concerned, ‘Pese a su tema común, no puede hablarse de trilogía. Una trilogía es, por ejemplo, la que Tirso de Molina dedicará a ensalzar la santidad de la monja de la Sagra, sor Juana de la Cruz’. San Isidro, labrador de Madrid was subsequently published in Parte veinte y ocho de comedias de los mejores ingenios desta corte (Madrid, 1667). 28 Philip III (1598–1621) was the ruling monarch at the time of composition of this play. As already stated, Isidro’s canonisation did not take place during his reign but in that of his successor, Philip IV (1621–65). 29 The edition used for the purposes of this study is that produced by Fidel Fita. The relevant bibliographical details are cited in p. 47, n. 11 of this chapter. Lope makes the importance of this text explicit in his Breve suma del bienaventurado San Isidro, contained in the Justa poética. Here, he claims that the life of María de la Cabeza is known thanks to Juan Diácono’s work: ‘Esto se sabe de sus antiquísimos retratos, y su vida, de Juan Diácono, presbítero de aquel tiempo.’ See Obras selectas, II, 1111–12 (p. 1112).

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in the archive of Madrid’s cathedral, it inspired not only Lope’s dramatic and poetic compositions but also the work of several biographers including Alonso de Villegas, fray Juan Ortiz Lucio and Jaime Bleda.30 The text has been attacked by critics as a result of its exclusion of basic details, such as the names of Isidro’s wife, son and master, and several miracles popularly associated with the saint. These include the restoration to life of Iván de Vargas’ horse, María’s miraculous crossing of the Jarama river and Isidro’s supernatural creation of springs. In Juan Diácono’s defence, Fidel Fita argues that the deacon did not set out to present the vida but the leyenda milagrosa of the saint (‘Leyenda’, p. 101). Similarly, Moreno acknowledges that an intricate biography of the saint was unnecessary given the author’s objectives: ‘Lo que pretendió fue simplemente despertar entre los fieles simpatía y devoción hacia el santo. [. . .] En pocas palabras, el diácono pudo y no quiso decir más de lo que dijo’ (San Isidro, p. 27). In spite of his exclusion of material, Juan Diácono catalogues salient episodes in Isidro’s life which are subsequently dramatised by Lope. The contents of the first sections of his biography are particularly significant in this regard.31

Isidro Feeds the Birds (pp. 102–03)32 Isidro departs for the mill with a sack of wheat on a snowy winter’s day in the company of the filiolo. He sees some hungry birds settled on the branches of the trees and pours out some wheat from the sack for them to eat. The filiolo is angry at his master’s actions. When Isidro and the filiolo finally reach the mill, the wheat produces an abundance of flour. Angels Help Isidro while he Prays (pp. 103–07) Several of Isidro’s co-workers approach their master and inform him that Isidro is neglecting his work by arriving late everyday following his daily visit to church. Upset, the master visits Isidro and scolds him. Isidro informs him that he will compensate him if his harvest is affected by his attendance at church. Isidro’s maxim is ‘Primum querite regnum dei, et vobis necessaria non deerunt’ – ‘he who seeks God shall not want’ (p. 105). Unconvinced, the master decides to 30 Alonso de Villegas’ Vida de San Isidro labrador, an abridged version of Juan Diácono’s text, was published in Madrid by Luis Sánchez in 1592. Fray Juan Ortiz Lucio’s account of the life of Isidro, which follows Juan Diácono’s text closely, was contained in his Flos Sanctorum/Compendio de vidas de los santos, which was also published in Madrid in 1597. Jaime Bleda’s Vida y milagros del glorioso San Isidro el labrador comprises a translation of Juan Diácono’s text with additions. It was published in Madrid in 1622. 31 Fita numbers the paragraphs of Juan Diácono’s text, ‘para mayor firmeza y claridad’ (‘Leyenda’, p. 102). The sections cited above are paragraphs 1–7 of Fita’s edition. I have provided titles for each section in order to draw attention to their content. 32 Page references correspond to the relevant sections of the Latin text in Fita’s edition. What I have presented here is a summary of the most important details of each section.

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visit Isidro’s workplace and witnesses his late arrival. Filled with anger, he decides to go and confront Isidro. However, following his lapse of concentration for a moment, Isidro’s master looks back at the field and sees two teams of oxen ploughing to the right and left of Isidro. When he approaches Isidro and asks him who was providing him with assistance, Isidro replies that he only calls on God for protection and did not see anyone. His master realises that Isidro was assisted by divine grace and puts him in charge of his land.

The Miracle of the Wolf (pp. 107–08) Isidro goes to pray in the church of Santa María la Magdalena. Several young boys approach him and inform him that his beast is being attacked by a wolf. Isidro tells the boys to go in peace and let the will of God be done: ‘Ite in pace, fili[i]; fiat voluntas domini’ (p. 107). When Isidro leaves the church, he finds the dead body of the wolf alongside that of his own uninjured beast. He returns to the church to thank God. The Miraculous Feeding of the Beggar (pp. 108–09) One Saturday, a wretched man unexpectedly approaches Isidro seeking alms. Isidro asks his wife to give the left-over food to the beggar. Although his wife is sure that there is nothing remaining, she goes to fetch the empty pot and finds it miraculously filled with food. She offers the beggar an abundance of food and narrates the occurrence to her neighbours. The Miracle at the Confraternity Dinner (pp. 109–10) Having gone to pray first, Isidro arrives late to the confraternity dinner in the company of a group of poor men. The brothers inform Isidro that the only food remaining is his individual portion. Isidro miraculously increases the amount of food with the result that there is even some left over once Isidro and the poor have been fed. The Burial of Isidro (pp. 110–11) Isidro’s body is buried in the cemetery of San Andrés. His body lies there for forty years and is rarely visited. A small stream forms inside the tomb as a result of the rains. However, God ensures that no part of Isidro’s body becomes withered. The Miraculous Appearance of Isidro (pp. 111–12) Isidro appears to a friend telling him to instruct the parish leaders to exhume his body and place it in the church of San Andrés in accordance with Divine orders. The friend is hesitant and decides to say nothing. Isidro subsequently appears to a faithful matron with the same message. Isidro’s body is exhumed and discovered to be incorruptible and surrounded by the sweet smell of incense. It is placed in a new, magnificent tomb in the church of San Andrés.

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With the exception of the hymns in honour of San Isidro, the remainder of the biography presents a variety of miracles attributed to the intercession of Isidro.33 These include the curing of physical disabilities and infertility problems as well as the provision of rain in times of drought. However, since Lope is concerned only with the re-creation of the childhood and adult years of Isidro in La niñez and La juventud, a detailed study of these supernatural occurrences is unnecessary.34 Apart from Juan Diácono’s biography of the saint, Sáinz de Robles indicates a second source of reference for Lope’s plays on Isidro: ‘Para sus obras escénicas se inspiró Lope en su propio poema. Pero ¿y para éste? Era muy popular la Vida de San Isidro, compuesta en el siglo XIII por el diácono Juan’.35 Understandably, Lope would turn to his first and longest work on the saint when faced with the task of re-creating the ‘image’ of the holy man for the stage. Moreover, Lope’s first play on the subject of the saint, San Isidro, labrador de Madrid (1604–06?), was also an invaluable source when Lope was preparing La niñez and La juventud in 1622. This fact is generally overlooked by critics who tend to examine Lope’s three Isidro plays collectively rather than as individual compositions.36 This collective approach has The hymns constitute sections 25–30, pp. 129–42 of Fita’s edition. A study of these miracles would be fitting in a detailed analysis of El Isidro and San Isidro, labrador where the prophetical rivers (both the Jarama and the Manzanares in San Isidro, labrador and the Manzanares only in El Isidro) allude to them. This, however, lies beyond the focus of this chapter. 35 See his ‘nota preliminar’ to La niñez de San Isidro in Obras selectas, III, 311–12 (p. 311). Menéndez y Pelayo claims that Lope had access to materials collected by fray Domingo de Mendoza when he wrote El Isidro. In Estudios, II, p. 45, he explains Lope’s use of sources: ‘Lope nunca las declara de un modo explícito, si bien para el poema dice haberse valido de los procesos y probanzas que le comunicó fray Domingo de Mendoza.’ In San Isidro, pp. 83–84, Moreno describes Mendoza’s role in the canonisation process. According to him, Domingo de Mendoza was one of the first witnesses to be called by Rome in order to make his declaration in favour of Isidro. He did so on 11 August 1593. Moreno adds that in February 1596, Mendoza was commissioned by the nuncio Camilio Caetano to obtain more information on Isidro’s life and miracles by visiting all areas within the jurisdiction of Madrid and that he completed his research the following year. In El Isidro, canto X, p. 532, Lope draws attention to Mendoza’s connection with the canonisation proceedings: ‘que la canonización / ya el Papa y con gran razón / a sí solo ha reservado. / Mas la madre que se goza / de tal hijo, la pretende, / cuya ejecución emprende / fray Domingo de Mendoza, / y en las probanzas entiende.’ 36 Lope’s plays on Madrid’s patron saint have attracted little critical attention. In addition, as stated above, their critics for the most part have analysed the three together. In Estudios, II, 43–49, for example, Menéndez y Pelayo makes general observations on San Isidro, labrador, La niñez and La juventud de San Isidro. Similarly, Garasa discusses all three Isidro plays in Santos, pp. 58–62, although he focuses primarily on San Isidro, labrador. In ‘Efectos’, Gallego Roca goes beyond a general discussion of the plays in order to present a detailed analysis of staging techniques employed by Lope in his dramatisation of Isidro. He examines the use of apariencias, escotillones and the pescante and the relationship between the tramoya and poesía in the plays. In ‘La comedia de santos 33 34

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obscured the true nature of the relationship between the earlier work and the two later plays. The earlier one is, in fact, a dynamic intertextual presence in the later plays, although we might say that Isidro is, to some extent, ‘reborn’ in La niñez and particularly in La juventud. This is partially a result of the rewriting of characters and scenes from San Isidro, labrador, fused with the miracles provided by Juan Diácono’s text.37 As already stated, the content of La niñez and La juventud and the development of Isidro’s character were preconditioned by the expectation of Lope’s audience which was well acquainted with the saint. With the approval of various miracles and details by the Court in Rome in 1622, events in Isidro’s life were accepted as factual by the religious authorities and the general public alike. The most significant approbations made by Rome involved the authenticity of miracles presented in Juan Diácono’s text, as well as others popularly associated with the saint, including the miracle of the spring, where Isidro provided water to quench his master’s thirst.38 As a result, Lope was confronted with several fundamental concerns in 1622 when he wrote his plays. In the first instance, he faced the challenge of transforming what was for his audience a popular and real individual into a recognisable and credible dramatic character in a play, who in turn would reach them on a real, albeit emotional level. At the same time, it was necessary for Lope to reconstruct what was quite stale, written source material into dynamic entertainment for his spectators. Finally, and most significantly, Lope’s La niñez and La juventud had to reflect the saintliness of Madrid’s patron saint, the essential reason behind the revelries of which the plays were a part. In his dramatisation of the child Isidro in La niñez, this latter demand was to prove particularly challenging.

La niñez de San Isidro In La niñez de San Isidro, Lope presents the birth, baptism and childhood of Madrid’s patrón.39 The play is accompanied by a loa in which Lope praises

en Antonio de Zamora’, DHA, 8 (1989), 333–41, Irene Vallejo González conducts a comparative study between Lope’s plays on Isidro and Antonio de Zamora’s El lucero de Madrid, y divino labrador, San Isidro, written at the beginning of the eighteenth century. Her analysis includes a brief summary of each of Lope’s plays (pp. 335–37). Finally, in his article entitled ‘Ideología/espectacularidad en la comedia de santos’, Gestos, 2 (1987), 65–81, Mario Cesáreo provides a succinct commentary on the dramatic structure of San Isidro, labrador de Madrid (pp. 75–79). 37 San Isidro, labrador de Madrid was especially important as a source for Lope’s La juventud since it dramatised a similar period in the life of the adult Isidro. 38 In San Isidro, pp. 106–16, Moreno claims to have provided a literal but modernised translation of the canonisation bull in its entirety. Gregory XV granted the canonisation of Isidro but died on 8 July 1623. The bull was produced in 1724 and printed in Rome in 1726. 39 The edition of the play used for the purposes of this study is contained in Relación de las fiestas, fols 4r–18v. All subsequent references will be taken from this edition.

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the youthful Philip IV and his lineage, particularly by drawing attention to the accomplishments of Philip II, such as the historic union of Spain and France. Lope also encourages Philip IV to enjoy the privilege of fulfilling the role of ruling monarch during the canonisation of four of Spain’s saints. In Act I of La niñez de San Isidro, Lope presents Inés and Pedro, the devout, future parents of Isidro and labradores who are employed by Álvaro de Vargas. The play opens with Inés’ prayer to the Virgin of Almudena for a son ‘que sea santo’ (I, fol. 4r), which is followed by Pedro’s prayer and his vision in a dream of the unborn Isidro. Inés subsequently gives birth and Pedro thanks God for the gift of his son in San Andrés. Act I ends with the arrival at San Andrés of Don Álvaro, several labradores and Isidro’s godparents (Elvira and Juan Ramírez) amid singing and dancing for the child’s baptismal ceremony. The saintliness of the child Isidro is highlighted throughout the second act of the play by the introduction of complicated expressions of faith, an encounter with Christ and the manipulation of a seemingly innocent game of hide and seek. The play ends with celebrations in honour of the Virgin of Atocha and the offering of a cross by Isidro to the Christ child. As will be seen in due course, La juventud, like La niñez, is a two-act play. Indeed, they are not only fundamentally similar in dramatic structure but have a variety of similar themes, images and characters. Essentially, the explicit continuity established between La niñez and La juventud serves to define these comedias as two acts of one play. The following duplications and/or re-creations will be highlighted: • the shared qualities of father and son (Pedro and Isidro) • the relationship between the child Isidro and his adult counterpart • the similarities between Bato, the gracioso of La niñez, and Tirso, his son, who assumes his father’s role in La juventud • the duplication of scenes (Christ’s appearance to the child and adult Isidro) • the re-creation of the miracle of the angels. In El Isidro, Lope describes Isidro’s upbringing by his parents in the following manner: En su infancia, le enseñaban a amar a Dios, y apartaban del pecado con ejemplo, donde la humildad contemplo que en esto los tres mostraban.40

Spelling and punctuation will be modernised where appropriate. Saints also appear as youths in El niño inocente de La Guardia and La niñez del Padre Rojas. Similarly, La madre de la mejor is concerned with the conception, birth and childhood of the Virgin. 40 Obras selectas, II, 422.

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A similar, broad overview of Isidro’s piety as a child is contained in the canonisation bull: ‘Desde su infancia practicó Isidro las virtudes cristianas con tal grado de perfección que en su edad adulta prefirió vivir de la agricultura, por parecerle el oficio más humilde, más penoso y más apto y seguro para la salvación de su alma.’41 The lack of concrete details relating to Isidro’s childhood would imply that Lope was less constrained in terms of content in the composition of this play than when he came to write La juventud de San Isidro and was faced with a wealth of models to work from. However, the very absence of the child from the dramatic action until the end of Act I and from the dialogue until Act II suggests that Lope was unconvinced that his audience would immediately accept an unknown child as their patrón. As a result, the child Isidro is made recognisable to the spectators through a variety of dramatic devices. Lope establishes a link between the adult and child Isidro, particularly in Act I, through the use of the offstage voz, the transformation of Bato, the gracioso, into a prophet-like character, the incorporation of the miracle of the angels as a vision in a dream of the unborn child’s father and the future parents’ description of their ideal son. Having consolidated a relationship between adult and child, the child Isidro’s saintliness can then be emphasised in Act II primarily through his own words and actions. According to Elma Dassbach, ‘las profecías y voces celestiales, aunque son expresiones sobrenaturales de menos espectacularidad escénica que las demás, suelen presentarse como un primer paso para trazar el primer contacto del santo con el mundo del más allá’.42 In Act I of La niñez de San Isidro, the function of the offstage voz is to reveal the child Isidro’s future role as a saint and his veneration by the inhabitants of Madrid. The prophecies of the voz which are heard by Pedro both prior to, and following, Isidro’s birth intensify the connection between the child Isidro and his adult counterpart of La juventud de San Isidro. The first prediction of the voz, which follows Pedro’s prayer for a saintly son and which precedes his dream, establishes the first specific association between the unborn child and the adult Isidro for the audience. In a celebratory tone, the ‘voz cantando’ (I, fol. 6r) stresses the prestige of Isidro and the good fortune shared by Pedro and Madrid as a result of their connections with the unborn child. The voz proclaims: Venturoso el labrador que coge tan rica prenda del fruto del matrimonio para enriquecer la Iglesia. Y venturosa Madrid cuando por hijo le tenga, 41 42

Moreno, San Isidro, p. 107. See La comedia hagiográfica, p. 99.

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pues le ha de dar más honor aunque los Reyes lo sean. (I, fols 6r–6v)

The song portends the saintly nature of Isidro who will appear on stage later in this play and subsequently in La juventud de San Isidro. In addition, it underlines the significance of Isidro as patron of Madrid and a saint of the Catholic Church even before his birth. When the voz instructs Pedro for the second time at the end of Act I, he draws attention to the transfer of Isidro’s body to the altar of San Andrés following his death. In the first instance, Pedro misinterprets the voz’s claim ‘aquí ha de tener lugar / tu hijo (I, fol. 11r) as a prediction of his newly born son’s imminent death. However, he interprets the message as a ‘prodigio extraño’ when the voz elaborates: Aquí ha de vivir, y ver muchos siglos esta Villa, con notable maravilla del mundo. (I, fol. 11r)

Pedro’s inability to accept the voz’s prediction, concluding that it must be a form of ‘engaño’ (I, fol. 11r) reflects his questioning of the validity of his vision of his unborn child in a dream. He asks himself: cielos, ¿qué es esto que vi en vuestro divino oriente? ¿Esto se puede soñar? ¿esto mirar los sentidos exteriormente dormidos? (I, fol. 6v)

More significantly, however, Pedro’s hesitation to acknowledge himself as a witness of some supernatural revelation mirrors his son’s inability as a child and adult to accept that he is worthy of a visit from Christ. In Act II of La niñez de San Isidro, Isidro attributes the encounter with Christ to his infantile imagination following his own self-questioning: ¿Qué es esto que ofrecieron a mis ojos mis imaginaciones? ¿Son sueños, o ilusiones? Sin duda sueños son, o son antojos, que como a tan pequeño, con tales sombras se me atreve el sueño.

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¿Qué es aquesto que vi? Pero sería de mi niñez efecto, (II, fol. 18r)43

In La juventud de San Isidro, the adult Isidro is also unable to grasp the implications of such a ‘spiritual’ reality, explicitly stating that he is undeserving of a meeting with Christ: ‘sueño fue, que mi humildad, / no tiene merecimientos’ (I, fol. 27v). This humble reaction to the supernatural is not the only common feature shared by father and son. In fact, Pedro in La niñez de San Isidro exhibits several qualities demonstrated also by his adult son in both La juventud de San Isidro and San Isidro, labrador de Madrid. Both he and his wife Inés are complimented by Álvaro de Vargas, who describes them as ‘buenos cristianos’ (I, fol. 9r), while Isidro and María are categorised as ‘buenos novios’ by their employer, Iván de Vargas, in La juventud.44 Like Isidro, whose daily attendance at mass is confirmed by Pascual de Valdemoro and the sacristán in San Isidro, labrador,45 Pedro is also an ardent churchgoer. The sacristán of La niñez de San Isidro claims in this regard: No hay mejor hombre en Castilla, ni ha tenido San Andrés parroquiano más galán. (I, fol. 11r)

Pedro also engages in prayer through which he defines God in terms of his relationship with nature, just as his son does later in this play and in La juventud 43 The preoccupation of both Pedro and Isidro with the relationship between illusion and ‘reality’ mirrors Segismundo’s inability to distinguish between lo real and lo soñado in Calderón’s La vida es sueño. In addition, the reaction of these characters serves to reinforce the seventeenth-century theocentric view of the illusory nature of life, which is analysed in more detail in part 2 of this study. Indeed, as will be seen in due course, the incorporation of supernatural characters and dreams/visions into La niñez and La juventud, and the use of the different levels of the stage in both are fundamental to the interplay between illusion and reality. Consequently, both plays could also be examined in detail from this perspective. 44 The edition of La juventud de San Isidro used is contained in Relación de las fiestas, fols 20v–35r. All subsequent quotations will be taken from this edition. As with La niñez de San Isidro, spellings and punctuation will be amended where appropriate. The reference cited above can be found in I, fol. 21v. Iván de Vargas, Isidro’s employer in both La juventud de San Isidro and San Isidro, labrador de Madrid, is the son of Álvaro de Vargas, Isidro’s parents’ employer in La niñez de San Isidro. This is a further example of the continuity which exists between these plays. 45 Pascual de Valdemoro informs Benito Preciado and Juan de la Cabeza, ‘que no amanece el alba sin que aguarde / a la puerta de nuestra iglesia, atento / a cuando el sacristán a abrirla venga, / y que jamás al campo va sin misa;’ (San Isidro, labrador, I, 360). The sacristán subsequently remarks regarding Isidro’s presence in the church of Santa María: ‘¡Que siempre esté este villano! [. . .] no deja en Santa María / pilares, losas y cantos / detrás de donde no esté’ (I, 367).

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de San Isidro.46 Furthermore, both Pedro and Isidro in San Isidro, labrador de Madrid offer their respective newly born sons to God.47 In San Andrés, Pedro implores Saint Andrew to teach his son to be a pious and exemplary individual, thanks God for the gift of his son and informs Him ‘desde aquí queda sagrado / a vuestro servicio’ (I, fol. 11r). In San Isidro, labrador, Isidro likewise hands his son over to God’s service: ¡Gracias a Dios, suyo es! Ya se las he dado allá; a ver la parida voy. (II, 377)

In spite of the fact that Pedro’s character is defined before the birth of his son in the play, his personality is based on traits which are traditionally associated with Isidro and would have been identified as such by the audience. It is possible, therefore, that Lope recreated Pedro in his son’s image in order to remind his audience of some of the saint’s fundamental characteristics, which he would then highlight in both La niñez and La juventud. Moreover, by depicting Pedro as hardly less saintly than his son, Lope is able to ensure Pedro’s acceptance as a suitable parent for Madrid’s patrón. The relationship between the adult and child Isidro established by the voz is reinforced by the prophecies of the gracioso in Acts I and II. Bato, however, also displays the characteristic traits of the typical gracioso whom Thomas Case defines in terms of ‘su comicidad, su cobardía, su amor a la comida [. . .] al vino, al sueño y su papel como sirviente o lacayo’.48 Like Bartolo of San Isidro, labrador and Tirso of La juventud, Bato is an entertainer. As the child Isidro is presented at San Andrés to be baptised and the dancing begins, Antón instructs Bato ‘relincha, voltea, / hazte rajas’ (I, fol. 11r). In La juventud

See pp. 66–68 of this chapter for an analysis of these prayers. The birth of Isidro’s son is not included in La juventud de San Isidro. On the absence of this detail, Gilson claims: ‘Lope omits this detail in La juventud de San Isidro, perhaps so as to maintain the image of María’s purity and to avoid the added conflict of the duty to her child’ (‘Lope de Vega’s Female’, p. 100). 48 See his ‘El morisco gracioso en el teatro de Lope’, in Lope de Vega y los orígenes, ed. Manuel Criado de Val, pp. 785–90 (p. 790). On the role of the gracioso in Lope’s hagiographic plays, see especially Robert Morrison, ‘Graciosos con breviarios: The Comic Element in the Comedia de Santos of Lope de Vega’, CH, 12 (1990), 33–45 and Elma Dassbach, ‘Personajes cómicos’, in La comedia hagiográfica, pp. 145–60. In his discussion of La niñez and La juventud de San Isidro in ‘Graciosos’, Morrison states: ‘As in the earlier San Isidro, labrador de Madrid, Bato provides the comic element’ (p. 42). The gracioso in San Isidro, labrador is in fact named Bartolo. Morrison’s statement is ambiguous because it suggests that Bato is the name of the gracioso in both La niñez and La juventud, despite the fact that he subsequently highlights that Tirso, Bato’s son, is the gracioso of La juventud. 46 47

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(I, fol. 20v) and San Isidro, labrador (I, 363; 364–65), Bartolo and Tirso get involved in the dances at the wedding celebrations of Isidro and María. As the main provider of comedy, many of Bato’s humorous comments, like those of his son Tirso in La juventud, relate to the temptation of food and his preoccupation with his empty belly. Whereas Bato considers putting a ‘for rent’ sign on his stomach if Inés does not quickly feed him (II, fol. 12r), Tirso provides Isidro with a detailed and entertaining commentary concerning how he was tempted by a ‘pastel’ (II, fols 29v–30r).49 Both father and son also provide amusing descriptions of their singing donkeys. Bato claims that when he goes riding ‘me ayuda a cantar; / que en diciéndole arre, luego / piensa que es re, y me responde / sol, sol, ut, ut’ (I, fol. 7v), while Tirso narrates to Isidro how he was greeted by the donkey: ‘él me dio los buenos días / en la solfa que otras veces’ (II, fol. 30r). One of the most comical scenes in the play, in which the glutton is duped, is a re-creation of an episode which appears in San Isidro, labrador following the birth of Isidro’s son (II, 376–77). In the original scene, Bartolo tricks Perote and Tomás by declaring a competition in which the person who tells the best dream wins the last torrija. Bartolo’s explanation of his dream, in which he describes a hook which is trying to swipe a torrija from him, involves the eating of the last torrija as a demonstration of his action in the dream. Afterwards, Perote and Tomás dupe Bartolo by pretending to reluctantly allow him to play a flute. When Bartolo begins to play, his face is covered in soot. Lope borrows this scene, but with variations. Bato appears on stage with a plate of torrijas following the birth of Isidro in La niñez (I, fol. 10r). His refusal to accept a favour from Dominga in exchange for one torrija suggests that the satisfaction of his greedy appetite is even more of an urgency for him than for Bartolo. He stresses the importance of self-satisfaction by informing Antón ‘que en habiendo tiempos dulces, / las amistades se acaban’ (II, fol. 10v). Lope possibly permits the gracioso to be deceived twice in this play because of his outright rejection of love and friendship. Like Bartolo, he too is attracted to the Aragonese flute, the dulzaina, but is covered with both soot and flour following two attempts to play it. The double trick played on Bato obviously adds an extra element of humour to La niñez. Nevertheless, apart from fulfilling the conventional role of the gracioso, Bato is significantly transformed into a prophet-like character who forecasts several events in the life of the adult Isidro, including his canonisation and the transfer of his body to San Andrés.50 His reiteration of facts already presented 49 In San Isidro, labrador, Perote playfully uses religious imagery by describing Bartolo’s stomach as an ‘arca de Noé’ (II, 376). 50 In a discussion on standard cast-lists in the comedia, Victor Dixon states: ‘Such standardization by no means precluded variation within each of the standard types, most obviously perhaps in the different combinations of characteristics assigned, from play to play, to the gracioso.’ See his Characterization in the Comedia of Seventeenth-Century

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by the voz prevents the audience from losing sight of the child Isidro’s true identity. The presentation of the newly born child for the first time on stage in Bato’s arms is deliberate on Lope’s part. It serves to establish a visual and physical link between the two characters which is exploited throughout the play as Bato foretells Isidro’s future. Bato performs his prophetical role for the first time when he appears with the child. He comments on the child’s laughter: Quizá está viendo algo que le está esperando, que todos nacen llorando, y este muchacho riendo (I, fol. 9v)

Although Bato’s observation is vague, it accentuates the uniqueness of the child. Bato strengthens his remark on what lies in store for the child Isidro by explicitly focusing on his sainthood. He reveals God’s plan for him to Álvaro, Juan and Elvira who disclose their hope that the child will be granted divine protection: Álvaro: Juan: Elvira: Bato:

Dios te bendiga. Y te guarde. Y te haga un santo. Si hará, que Dios puede, y Dios querrá, y para Dios nunca es tarde. (I, fol. 9v)

Bato’s hypothetical statement concerning the status of the adult Isidro – ‘aunque con el Rey se iguale’ (I, fol. 10r) – suggests that, in spite of the fact that Isidro is the son of a labrador, spiritual piety may grant social mobility. Bato continues to play the role of the prophet in Act II by confronting the child with his forthcoming canonisation (II, fol. 12r) and the eventual veneration of his body in San Andrés (II, fol. 12v). The absence of any attempt on the child’s part to investigate his future role as a saint suggests that the details are provided for the benefit of the audience, rather than the character. In order to consolidate the relationship between the child and adult versions of Isidro which Bato has successfully established through his predictions, Lope manipulates dramatic action, rather than dialogue, and recreates for his audience the celebrated miracle of the angels ploughing the fields.51 As Pedro Spain (Manchester: Department of Spanish and Portuguese, University of Manchester, 1994), p. 26. 51 For a summary of the miracle of the angels, see pp. 52–53 of this chapter.

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rests by the Manzanares while he waits for Inés to arrive with some food, the audience witnesses the staging of his dream in which he sees two angels ploughing with oxen and his future son dressed in a star-covered garment and a shining crown with a silver goad in his hand.52 The stage directions read: ‘Tóquense chirimías, y abriéndose una nube por lo alto del carro, pasen dos ángeles arando con dos bueyes, y se ve a San Isidro con vestido sembrado de estrellas, una corona de resplandor en la cabeza, y su aguijada plateada’ (I, fol. 6v).53 The incorporation of the ‘sueño-representación’ as opposed to the ‘sueño-narración’ into the dramatic framework enables Lope to introduce the adult Isidro as Pedro’s future son.54 As a result, a direct correlation between the child and the saint is established. Before Pedro explains his dream to Antón, Helipe and Bato, the labradores return to find him staring intently at the sky and wrongly suspect that their supervisor is attempting to read the stars.55 This assumption prompts Bato not only to launch a lengthy attack on astrology but to comment on the mundo al revés topos.56 Bato concludes: ‘no alcanza la astrología / más que a engañar ignorantes’ (I, fol. 7r). His rejection of superstition and recognition of the power of God who, in his opinion ‘hace después lo que quiere’ (I, fol. 7r) is a perfect starting point for Pedro to describe the divine revelation which he has just experienced. As Pedro recounts his dream to the labradores, he elaborates on the information provided by the stage directions. He informs them that the young man he saw was dressed in the typical garment of the contemporary labrador but that his attire was woven from gold and bore the letters I, D, M. He adds that the mozo wore golden sandals on his feet (I, fol. 7r). In his analysis of this

52 Gallego Roca acknowledges that sleep is characteristic of those who witness prophetic scenes – ‘Condición general a las escenas que tienen un carácter profético, es que el personaje que las presencia se sienta momentos antes vencido por el sueño.’ See ‘Efectos’, p. 125. 53 Isidro’s attire is similar to that of the angels in El Isidro. In canto III, p. 442, Lope discusses their ‘ricas aguijadas, / de piedras y oro bordadas,’ and ‘capotes de estrellas’. 54 Teresa Kirschner discusses the ‘sueño-representación’ and ‘sueño-narración’ in several of Lope’s historical/legendary plays in ‘El “velo” del sueño y de la imaginación en el teatro histórico-legendario de Lope de Vega’, in El mundo del teatro español, ed. J. M. Ruano de la Haza, pp. 197–212. Kirschner compares the staging of a dream to ‘una minipieza’ (p. 202) and categorises it as a ‘modelo magnífico de metateatro’ (p. 203). The play within the play is a common metatheatrical device. Pedro’s dream is also what Kirschner categorises as ‘symbolic staging’, that is, the representation on stage of the mental processes of dreaming or thinking. See her ‘Typology of Staging in Lope de Vega’s Theater’, in The Golden Age Comedia, eds Charles Ganelin and Howard Mancing, pp. 358–71 (pp. 359–61). 55 It should be noted that in La vida es sueño, Basilio, king and father of Segismundo, misreads the stars concerning the fate of both himself and his son. 56 On this topos, see Helen F. Grant’s ‘The World Upside Down’, in Studies in Spanish Literature of the Golden Age Presented to Edward M. Wilson, ed. R. O. Jones (London: Tamesis, 1973), pp. 103–35.

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‘apariencia’, Gallego Roca asserts that the various elements symbolise several of Isidro’s attributes: ‘Los ángeles arando con los bueyes, significando su entrega a la oración; un vestido sembrado de estrellas, que simboliza la sabiduría conseguida desde la ignorancia; una corona de resplandor, símbolo de su santidad; y la aguijada plateada, que recuerda los milagros que realizó en vida’ (‘Efectos’, p. 124). Pedro’s vision of his son constitutes a complex representation of two images of Isidro. On the one hand, it presents Isidro, the common labrador, whose desire to dedicate himself to God through prayer is rewarded with divine assistance in his daily work. In addition, it highlights Isidro’s coronation as a saint, which the play was written to celebrate. The interpretations of Pedro’s dream by the labradores not only function as light-hearted assessments of the event but accentuate the presentation of Pedro as a sabio. Helipe, for example, attributes the dream to excessive drinking (I, fol. 7r). For Bato, the gracioso obsessed with food, wheat is synonymous with gold of the highest order and Isidro’s golden sandals thus signify ‘el trigo / que trilla con pies contentos’ (I, fol. 7r). Pedro correctly interprets the dream as a revelation that a labrador, divinely blessed, will be born in Madrid for the good of the villa, the letters I, D and M meaning ‘Jesús de mi alma’ (I, fol. 7v). As a shrewd interpreter of dreams, Pedro becomes the biblical Joseph who lucidly explains the dreams of the cupbearer, the baker and Pharoah himself (Genesis 40 and Genesis 41. 1–40).57 Antón’s speech in which he dissociates himself from the biblical ‘sabio intérprete de sueños’ (I, fol. 7r) presages the representation of Joseph in the character of the devout Pedro. Pedro mirrors his biblical counterpart in two significant ways. Firstly, he is endowed with an astuteness similar to that of Joseph which sets him apart, like the biblical hero, from other aspiring exponents of dreams. Secondly, and more importantly, Pedro’s future status as father of Madrid’s patron saint echoes Joseph’s privileged position of power in Egypt. Both characters assume a prestige which belies their status as labrador and Hebrew respectively. As a result, the dream reaffirms Isidro’s saintly nature and presents his father as a shrewd and privileged individual. The prayers of Isidro’s holy and aspiring parents in which they express hope for a virtuous, god-fearing son underline Isidro’s saintly qualities even further.58 However, Inés, Isidro’s mother performs a particularly significant

57 As mentioned previously, the story of Joseph is presented in Los trabajos de Jacob, based on Genesis 37–47. However, Genesis 40, in which Joseph, while in prison, explains the dreams of the cupbearer and the baker, is omitted. Instead, the cupbearer himself, Asiris, recounts how Josef interpreted the dreams of the baker and himself while they were in prison following Elio’s and Isacio’s unsuccessful attempts to interpret Pharoah’s dreams. 58 See especially Inés’ prayer to the Virgin of Almudena at the beginning of Act I (fol. 4r) and Pedro’s prayer prior to the voz’s prediction and his dream (I, fols 5v–6r).

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role in establishing a connection between Isidro and Isidore of Seville.59 Following her description of the procession in honour of Isidore, whom she refers to as Isidro, rather than Isidoro, Inés promises to call her son after the holy saint of Seville (I, fol. 8r).60 While the procession itself does not add a metatheatrical quality to the play, since it is described, rather than witnessed by Lope’s audience, the illusion of the drama and reality do in fact merge as references to the procession in honour of Isidro of Seville recall the festivities taking place in Madrid to celebrate the canonisation of Isidro of Madrid.61 Consequently, the dramatic dialogue forces the audience to ponder the reality of the historical moment and to fuse illusion and reality in their mind’s eye. Lope manipulates the link between Isidore of Seville and Isidro in order to present Isidro as a literal as well as a metaphorical ‘pastor’. Following the birth of Isidro, Juan Ramírez compares the role of Isidore of Seville with Isidro’s impending role as a shepherd, stating: Bien le viene a un labrador nombre de quien fue pastor, aunque diferentes tanto, que Isidro de almas lo fue, y este lo será de ovejas. (I, fol. 10r)

Unwittingly, Juan not only refers to Isidro’s role as a typical shepherd but also casts him in a Christlike role for the contemporary audience as the shepherd 59 Isidore of Seville (c. 560–636) was canonised in 1598 and declared a Doctor of the Church in 1722. He succeeded his brother, St Leander, as bishop of Seville in approximately the year 600. Among his most famous writings is the Etymologiae. On St Isidore of Seville, see Book of Saints, p. 364, and Donald Attwater, The Penguin Dictionary, p. 177. According to Moreno, San Isidro, p. 18, St Isidore’s body was transferred to León by Ferdinand I in 1063. The fact that it is generally accepted that Isidro was not born until approximately 1100 suggests that Lope deliberately manipulated the presentation of historical events in order to emphasise the link between the two saints. The attribution of the title santo to Isidore in the play during a period when he had not been officially declared a saint draws attention to the Spanish custom of popularly acclaiming holy individuals as saints. 60 The connection between Isidro and Isidore of Seville was established in El Isidro, canto I. In this canto, Lope had already referred to the latter as Isidro, had compared and contrasted these saints and commented on the removal of Isidore’s remains from Seville to León. 61 Processions are included in Hornby’s classification of the metatheatrical device of the ceremony within the play. Hornby describes the ceremony within the play as ‘a formal performance of some kind that is set off from the surrounding action’ (p. 49). The festivities of 1622 involved an appeal to local patriotism. Consequently, there are references to the Virgins of Almudena and Atocha in La niñez and La juventud, as well as the incorporation of the local legend of Gracián Ramírez into Act II of La niñez. Lope included this legend in El Isidro, cantos VIII and IX and dramatised it in El alcaide de Madrid in 1599.

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who protects the lost sheep.62 In other words, the audience cannot fail to recognise Lope’s depiction of Isidro as patron saint caring for the ovejas of Madrid in Juan’s innocent statement. Lope exploits his audience’s affiliation with, and informed opinion of, Isidro in order to highlight his status as a Christlike figure. With the integration of the child Isidro into the dramatic action and dialogue in Act II, Lope’s audience is brought face to face with a character who is at once mysterious yet familiar. The child Isidro’s first words draw attention to his faith in God and the Virgin. Lope’s audience is instantly confronted with a pious child who announces his return from school to his parents with the greeting ‘Loado sea Cristo, y su Madre / bendita’ (II, fol. 12r). Throughout Act II, Isidro voices his devotion to God in lengthy monologues which mirror and at times exceed the rhetoric of the adult Isidro in La juventud and San Isidro, labrador. As a result of the recitation of the Christus to his parents and Bato, the first prayer delivered by him in the play, Isidro demonstrates an awareness of the omniscience of God and the purity of the Virgin. Isidro concludes the holy alphabet, which focuses on issues such as Man’s fall from grace and the doctrine of transubstantiation, with a definition of the letters A, B and C in terms of their association with the Holy Trinity que el A es el Padre, la B el Hijo, la C se llama el Espíritu, [. . .] (II, fols 12v–13r)

The prayer serves two significant purposes in the play. In the first instance, it functions as a reaffirmation of Catholic dogma for Lope’s audience. Secondly, as a complex summary of the Catholic church’s tenets, it defines the child who is responsible for its delivery as a devout, holy individual. The faith and knowledge which the child exhibits are uncharacteristic of his age and render him almost unchildlike. In fact, the child Isidro’s definition of the Christus is more intricate than the adult Isidro’s explanation in San Isidro, labrador.63 In Act II of San Isidro, labrador, Isidro converses with three angels and summarises the Christus in eighteen lines, focusing like the child Isidro on the representation of the Trinity in the letters A, B and C (II, 371–72).64 62 When Isidro (i.e. Isidore of Seville) appears to Ordoño in El Isidro, canto I, p. 417, Ordoño describes him as a ‘pastor de ovejas’. The image of Christ as a shepherd is common in the Bible. In Matthew 10. 6, for example, Christ sends the twelve disciples out to the lost sheep of Israel. 63 In El Isidro, canto I, pp. 418–19, Lope also refers to Isidro’s knowledge of the Christus. He states: ‘No supo letras, ni a quien / preguntárselas también, / que un abecé que oyó: / solo el Cristus aprendió, / pero este súpole bien. / De este libro inescrutable / que abarca de polo a polo, / fue una sibila, un Apolo.’ Isidro does not recite the Christus in the poem. 64 In San Diego de Alcalá, the illiterate Diego confesses to the portero at the end of Act I that he only knows the A, B and C of the Christus. The portero proceeds to relate the

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In comparison, Isidro’s explanation is almost four times as long in La niñez. Lope makes the child Isidro almost priest-like in order to stress his piety. He exploits his priestly role by having him question the boys Iván and Luis concerning their recital of prayers, including the Rosary, before he decides to play a game with them (II, fol. 14v). With the absence of miracles attributed to the child Isidro and general details relating to his childhood, Lope resorts to the exploitation of dialogue in order to create the infantile version of the adult figure. By doing so, he also presents a child analogous to the boy Jesus as described in Luke 2. 40: ‘And the child grew and became strong; he was filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was upon him.’ Bato emphasises the relationship between Isidro and the Christ child by drawing a comparison between the Holy Family – Jesus, Mary and Joseph, and that of Pedro. He tells Pedro and Inés: Sin comparación, que es necia toda la que fuese humana, me parecisteis los tres, Jesús, Josef, y María, no con humana osadía, que Dios ha de ser quien es, su Madre, reina del cielo, y Josef su dulce esposo, mas un retrato dichoso de aquel cielo en este suelo. (II, fol. 13r)65

In spite of the subtle association of Isidro with the Christ child, Isidro is more explicitly rendered unchildlike in the play as a result of the links established with his adult counterpart of La juventud and San Isidro, labrador. As demonstrated by his delivery of the Christus, Isidro is successfully transformed into his adult equivalent through prayer. Lope continues to cast Isidro in the image of Madrid’s well-known patrón by attributing other prayers to him in Act II. In one particular prayer, his acclamation of God and desire to learn through Him echoes one of Isidro’s speeches in La juventud. The child Isidro, who defines God as ‘perfección’ (II, fol. 13r) makes an ardent request for divine instruction in the following manner:

holy alphabet to him. See Lope de Vega, San Diego de Alcalá, ed. Thomas E. Case (Kassel: Reichenberger, 1988), pp. 87–88. 65 In San Isidro, labrador (II, 376), Envidia compares the piety of the family of the adult Isidro to the Holy Trinity. Thus, in this case, it is Isidro’s son who is likened to the Christ child, not Isidro himself. In El Isidro, canto IV, p. 455, Lope establishes a similar connection. He claims: ‘Así, que Isidro y su esposa, / en casa pobre y gozosa, / y un niño tierno y hermoso, / de Jesús, María y su esposo / eran una estampa hermosa. [. . .] no digo que los comparo, / más digo que los parecen.’

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Señor, enseñad mi fe: sed vos el maestro mío, enseñadme solo vos, porque solamente en vos lo que he de saber confío. [. . .] Yo solo quiero leer en vuestro Christus, mi Dios, porque solamente en vos el alma puede aprender. (II, fol. 13r)

In La juventud, Isidro informs the ‘Emperador del cielo soberano’ in a more concise manner that he wants to learn through him: ‘no sé leer, leer en vos deseo’ (II, fol. 32v).66 Furthermore, Isidro’s monologue through which he compares the countryside to a book in which he can contemplate God parallels another speech made by Isidro in La juventud.67 In this case, the adult Isidro’s eulogy in which he praises God and the wondrous creation of nature is longer than that of the child Isidro. Nevertheless, the emphasis in both is on the role of nature as instructor in matters of the divine. The child Isidro comments ‘pues que la flor más pequeña / me está diciendo y me enseña / que sois Dios’ (II, fol. 17r), while the adult Isidro of La juventud requests instruction from the trees, plants, flowers and birds (I, fol. 25v). Lope highlights the fact that the child Isidro’s words of wisdom and thought processes are too complex for his age through the comments of other characters, young and old. Juan Ramírez expresses his wish for Isidro to teach his son Luis and his son’s cousin because he is ‘cuanto niño en años, / viejo en el entendimiento’ (II, fol. 14r). Even the child Iván realises that Isidro is a ‘viejo niño, / viejo en seso, mozo en años’ (II, fol. 14v).68 Nevertheless, it appears that the presentation of the ‘niño viejo’ serves two main purposes in the play. In the first instance, his association with the adult Isidro prevents the audience from losing sight of the fact that the play is a celebration of its patron saint. Secondly, Isidro’s saintliness is exaggerated as Lope stresses that his piety is not simply a product of his adult life, but was also a feature of his childhood years. 66 In San Isidro, labrador, Isidro expresses a similar desire. In his conversation with the angels, he states: ‘no sé letras, leer quiero / ese libro celestial’ (II, 371). 67 In El Isidro, canto I, p. 424, Lope comments on Isidro’s conversion of nature into ‘libros divinos’. He states: ‘libros divinos hacía / los campos, aguas y flores’. 68 At this point in the play, Juan Ramírez’s son is mistakenly called Iván (II, fo1. 14r). Isidro himself clarifies the relationship between Juan and Luis Ramírez and Álvaro and Iván de Vargas, stating ‘vos, señor Iván, sois hijo / de D. Álvaro, [. . .] Vos, señor Don Luis Ramírez, / sois hijo, hechura, y retrato / de Don Juan Ramírez,’ (II, fols 14r–14v). Luis and Iván are also wrongly presented as ‘primos’. Iván was the brother of Elvira, Juan Ramírez’s wife. Consequently, he must be the brother-in-law of Juan and uncle of Luis.

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The well-documented, charitable nature of the adult Isidro is characteristic of the child Isidro in La niñez. Pascual de Valdemoro’s statement in San Isidro, labrador on Isidro’s acts of charity, ‘lo que es rezar y dar de su pobreza / limosna a cualquier pobre, es cosa extraña’ (I, 360), is as applicable to the child as it is to the adult. In Act II, on encountering a beggar who is seeking alms, Isidro offers him his coat, having neither money nor food to give him.69 When the coat is finally rescued by Juan Ramírez, who provides the beggar with a donation instead, Isidro insists that his reasons for parting with the garment were honourable. He tells Juan: ‘yo pretendo / aprender la caridad, / porque la fe ya la tengo’ (II, fol. 14r). The fact that there is nothing miraculous about this act of charity suggests that Lope was more concerned with the portrayal of the child as an unselfish individual, rather than as a worker of miracles. With Rome’s approval of the canonisation of Madrid’s patron saint and recognition of the miracles attributed to him, Isidro was already a proven miracle worker. Consequently, in order to recreate for his audience an acceptable and entertaining representation of the holy patrón, Lope was not compelled to emphasise Isidro’s saintly character through the dramatisation of his miracles. Instead, Isidro’s virtuous character could be recreated through original scenes, such as the confrontation with the beggar and an encounter between Isidro and Christ in both this play and La juventud. The avoidance of the re-creation of the child Isidro as a miracle worker prevents a superfluous exaggeration of his already overstated piety. Rather, the kindness shown by the child towards the beggar foreshadows the presentation of the more human side of Isidro’s character in La juventud. Isidro’s concern with his ‘rudeza’ in La juventud is also presented by the child Isidro in La niñez. In a short prayer, the adult Isidro of La juventud apologises to God for his rusticity: pero si soy un rústico villano, ¿cómo os sabré decir tiernos amores? Perdonad la rudeza en que me veo, (II, fol. 32v)

Similarly, Isidro’s father Pedro in La niñez asks God to excuse his ‘rustiqueza’ in a monologue in which he prays for the birth of a devout son. He qualifies himself in terms of his ‘rústico discurso’ and adds ‘no sé yo deciros más, / perdonad mi rustiqueza’ (I, fol. 6r). The child Isidro in this play expresses concern with the rusticity of his physical dress, his ‘sayal’, and wonders how he can join the company of Iván and Luis, who are dressed in ‘brocado’ (II, fol. 14v). His comments cause Iván and Luis to engage in 69 Isidro’s charitable deed mirrors that of Tobías (viejo) in Historia de Tobías. Tobías gives the very clothing that he is wearing to a pobre (I, 94). The criado states regarding Tobías’ charitable nature: ‘no se ha visto caridad / que iguale a la de Tobías’ (I, 95).

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an appraisal of his spiritual richness which contrasts with their material wealth. Iván claims: [. . .] estimo tu virtud, tu amor, tu trato, tu compañía, de suerte, que lo que sin ella paso, lo paso en mortal tristeza. (II, fol. 14v)

while Luis refers to the impact of Isidro on his very soul (II, fol. 14v). Isidro’s allusion to the boy’s ‘brocado’ recalls Inés’ description of the brocade covering which rested on the body of St Isidore of Seville as he was carried in procession on the outskirts of Madrid (I, fol. 8r). In addition, it reminds the audience of Bato’s suggestion that Madrid should prepare a brocade garment for the ‘labrador divino’ of Pedro’s dream (I, fol. 7v). Consequently, the ‘brocado’ symbolises both material and spiritual wealth. In his comparison of the ‘sayal’ and the ‘brocado’, Isidro highlights his own future exchange of costume when he will become Madrid’s patrón. Towards the end of Act II, Lope specifically emphasises the saintly nature of the child in two original episodes. The first involves a seemingly innocent game of hide and seek which is transformed into a religious experience for those taking part.70 When Iván and Luis begin to look for Isidro, their search not only reveals his whereabouts but underlines for them and the audience the extent of the child’s religious fervour. Led by the song ‘Venite’, which the boys mistakenly assume is Isidro’s voice and which Isidro subsequently interprets as a divine instruction, Iván and Luis discover Isidro praying ‘en lo alto’ surrounded by candles. The stage directions read: ‘Descúbrese en lo alto un aposentico con un altarico, su imagen y sus velas, e Isidro rezando’ (II, fol. 14v).71 Thus, a literal game of hide and seek for Iván and Luis becomes a metaphorical one for Isidro. It provides him with an opportunity to take refuge in God from the world and its deceits. Iván makes this point explicit, stating,

70 Lope comments on Isidro’s attitude towards games in El Isidro, canto I, p. 420. He states: ‘No anduvo en juegos ningunos / con muchachos importunos.’ 71 In ‘Metatheater and World View in Lope’s El divino africano’, BCom, 42 (1990), 129–42, Thomas Case describes the three levels of staging (proscenium, ‘discovery’ and the balcony) used by Lope in El divino africano and comments that the balcony is normally called ‘en lo alto’ in the stage directions (pp. 135–36). On the three levels of staging, Case claims: ‘The main action of the life of the saint is what we would normally call the historical level, whereas the other two are metaphysical or mystical’ (p. 136). In this scene, Isidro forms an almost mystical union with Christ. On Lope’s use of the diminutive form to describe the room and the altar, Gallego Roca states: ‘Las palabras [. . .] responden a la utilización de pequeñas dimensiones para el entorno del pequeño santo.’ See ‘Efectos’, p. 124.

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‘¡Oh niño bendito y santo, / que así te escondes en Dios, / del mundo y de sus engaños!’ (II, fol. 15r). For both Iván and Luis, and indeed for the audience, the incident points up the exemplariness of the holy child. The holiness of the child is emphasised in a second scene in which he receives a visit from Jesus and is invited to dine at his table.72 In the garb of a shepherd, Jesus promises friendship between himself and Isidro, claiming ‘mira que habemos de ser / amigos (II, fol. 17r).73 The child Isidro innocently asks Jesus questions regarding the identity of his father and mother, his knowledge of prayers including the Creed and the Articles of Faith and his attendance at mass. Through Jesus’ answers, Lope once again cleverly and subtly integrates important tenets of the Catholic faith into the play. The use of the ‘tramoya’ to lower the table, chairs and the angels to the proscenium and to take them back into the air in the company of Christ essentially converts the scene into a supernatural experience for the audience.74 Case acknowledges this specific impact of complex staging: ‘In the comedias de santos the different levels on the stage acquire particular importance. These special effects confer on the action a kind of divine authority and confirm the spectator’s belief in the supernatural, which both playwright and public shared.’75 Consequently, the use of different stage techniques, and the incorporation of supernatural characters and visions into the play serve to establish the immediacy of the divine experience for the audience. 72 The theme of dining is extremely important in a religious context. In the Last Supper, for example, an invitation to Christ’s table signifies ultimate union with him. In Tirso’s El burlador de Sevilla, the final meal which don Juan shares with the stone guest is crucial to the play’s dénouement. Recent studies on this play include Joan Ramón Resina, ‘What Sort of Wedding? The Orders of Discourse in El burlador de Sevilla’, MLQ, 57 (1996), 545–78 and Francisco J. Martín, ‘The Presence of the Four Elements in El burlador de Sevilla’, in A Star-Crossed Golden Age: Myth and the Spanish Comedia, ed. Frederick A. de Armas (Lewisburg: Bucknell UP, 1998), pp. 30–45. On the appearance of supernatural characters in hagiographic plays of the Golden Age, Dassbach claims: ‘Estos personajes sobrenaturales resultan tan frecuentes y reales en las comedias como los mismos personajes humanos.’ See La comedia hagiográfica, p. 110. 73 In Santos, pp. 124–26, Garasa briefly examines the appearance of Christ as a pilgrim, shepherd and child in Lope’s hagiographic plays. On p. 125 in a discussion of Christ as a ‘pastor’, he excludes references to La niñez and La juventud and mistakenly claims that Christ appears as a shepherd in San Isidro, labrador. He subsequently cites part of the conversation between Isidro and Jesus taken from La niñez (II, fol. 17r), without specifying the text’s source. Garasa’s citation of San Isidro, labrador would erroneously suggest that the text is taken from that play. 74 This is the only use of the ‘tramoya’ in this play. Dassbach provides the following description on the use of the ‘tramoya’: ‘Las tramoyas añaden el espectáculo de los desplazamientos escénicos, aéreos en su mayor parte, e incorporan diferentes planos espaciales a la escena’, La comedia hagiográfica, p. 104. In ‘Efectos’, pp. 114–15, Gallego Roca draws attention to Lope’s criticism of the ‘tramoya’ in Lo fingido verdadero, as well as his assertion in the Arte nuevo that the playwright must please the audience. For an analysis of Lo fingido verdadero in terms of its metatheatrical properties, see chapter 4. 75 ‘Metatheater’, p. 131.

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Isidro’s encounter with Christ is crucial to his character development since it portrays him as more childlike than in any other episode of the play. Isidro becomes more childlike as a result of his naïve questioning. He asks the stranger to answer basic questions, including ‘¿de quién sois hijo?’ and ‘¿dónde tenéis vuestra madre?’ (II, fol. 17r), but admits that he does not understand the responses which he receives. In contrast to this episode, Christ’s appearance to the adult Isidro in La juventud does not give rise to a similar question and answer session (I, fols 26v–27v).76 Essentially, Isidro’s interrogation of the stranger with basic questions detracts somewhat from his characterisation as a serious, god-fearing child. Ultimately, his childlike innocence is underlined when he invites Jesus to accompany him to the ‘villa’ in order to sample, among other things, some of the morello cherry jam which Iván de Vargas’ mother makes (II, fol. 17v). In spite of the fact that Isidro’s acknowledgment of certain treats is somewhat deflated by his subsequent remark regarding his tendency to fast – ‘me inclino / más a ayunar que a comer’ (II, fol. 17v), it represents the child’s only reference to culinary pleasures.77 The ending of the play, which focuses on the peasants’ arrival at the church of the Virgin of Atocha in order to honour the Virgin, is an adaptation of a scene from San Isidro, labrador in which the peasants, who are on their way to the convent of la madre de Dios with a cross, are halted by the Manzanares and Jarama rivers which foretell several glorious events relating to Isidro (III, 384–85). The main purpose of the scene in La niñez is to strengthen the connection between Isidro and the Christ child. Pedro instructs his son to offer a cross, not to the Virgin of Atocha, but to her son. This intensification of the relationship between the child Isidro and the Christ child, which has already been suggested earlier in the play, presages the parallels between the adult Isidro and Christ which will be drawn in La juventud. In spite of its title, La niñez presents the saintly nature of both adult and child. The saintliness of the adult Isidro is highlighted particularly in Act I through Pedro’s dream, Bato’s prophecies and the proclamations of the voz. The incorporation of this image of the adult Isidro into a play which 76 It is essentially Isidro’s questioning and curiosity which exhibits his childlike innocence, not the fact that he does not understand the explanations which Christ gives him. In his encounter with Christ in La juventud (I, fol. 27r), the adult Isidro also admits that he does not understand the ‘pastor’: ‘No entiendo / las cifras con que me habláis.’ It should also be noted that a younger Christ figure appears in La niñez. Isidro describes him as a ‘niño tan discreto’ (II, fol. 18r), although Christ himself states that he is already a man when Isidro says that they will be great friends as adults (II, fol. 17r). In contrast, in La juventud Isidro simply addresses Christ as ‘pastor’, ‘labrador’ and ‘señor’ (I, fols 27r–27v). Lope may have presented a younger version of Christ in La niñez in order to intensify Isidro’s connection with him and to provide a suitably aged character for Isidro’s questions concerning the identity of his parents, for example. 77 In El Isidro, canto I, p. 425, Lope claims that if the adult Isidro felt hungry while working, he thought of Christ’s fasting in the desert: ‘y si hambre le apretaba, / el grande ayuno de Cristo / en el desierto pensaba’.

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dramatises his childhood is crucial because it allows the audience to identify in the young protagonist the qualities of Madrid’s patrón. Lope is perhaps prevented from presenting Isidro truly as a child because such a presentation would work contrary to the audience’s horizon of expectation. Isidro’s elaborate expressions of faith, encounter with Christ and conversion of a game into a prayer session accentuate his holiness and thereby make him recognisable to the audience as its patron saint. His prayers and monologues, through which he expresses adoration for the divine, at once transform him from a child into his adult equivalent. Ironically, in a play in which Lope is less restrained by the source material, he is in fact compelled to recreate the child in the image of the acclaimed patrón. With the succcessive dramatisation of Isidro’s adult life in La juventud, Lope would no longer be concerned with the presentation of an ‘unfamiliar’ Isidro, but with the re-creation of a much celebrated individual.

La juventud de San Isidro Like La niñez de San Isidro, La juventud de San Isidro is preceded by a loa in which Lope praises Philip IV and offers a succinct acclamation of Spain’s four recently canonised saints (Isidro, Teresa de Ávila, Francisco Javier and Ignacio de Loyola).78 Act I of the play begins with the celebrations to mark the wedding of Isidro and María, and subsequently focuses on the confrontation of the gracioso, Tirso, with the allegorical character Envidia, and Envidia’s false description of Isidro’s sloth to his master, Iván.79 Following the miracles of the wolf and the angels ploughing the fields, together with Isidro’s conversation with Christ, Act I ends with Iván’s account of the miracle of the angels and condemnation of Envidia. Act II opens with a lengthy discussion between Isidro and María concering the appropriateness yet pain of departure, and includes the miracle of the feeding of the birds as well as Iván’s vision in a dream of Profecía, who predicts the canonisation of four Spanish saints during the reign of Philip IV. The play ends with the reunion of Isidro and María following María’s miraculous crossing of the Jarama river. As indicated already, the subject matter of La juventud had been treated previously in the poem, El Isidro, and in the play, San Isidro, labrador.80 Although he was not commissioned, so far as we know, to write either of these works, it would appear that Lope composed both in order to promote the

78 As Morrison has indicated, both loas are more concerned with paying homage to Philip IV than to Isidro. See ‘Graciosos’, p. 42. 79 In La niñez, Bato prepares the audience for the arrival of Envidia in this play by declaring to Isidro’s father: ‘¡Pardiez, Pedro, que es rapaz, / para envidiar y querer!’ (II, fol. 16v, my italics). 80 Of the ten cantos of El Isidro, Isidro’s birth and youth are only described in canto I. The rest of the poem focuses on his adult life.

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canonisation of Madrid’s popularly acclaimed saint. Gallego Roca characterises San Isidro, labrador as a propagandistic work, while classifying La niñez and La juventud as both propagandistic yet celebratory dramas – ‘San Isidro fue escrita cuando estaba en marcha el proceso de canonización, por tanto se la puede considerar como una obra de propaganda; La juventud y La niñez son obras que celebran la canonización, son pues obras también de propaganda pero con un mayor sentido festivo’ (‘Efectos’, p. 129). In the poem and the earlier play, an attempt is made on Lope’s part to describe all the main events in Isidro’s life, including the miracles attributed to him prior to, and following, his death.81 The more extensive use of the adjective ‘santo’ to define his character and miracles in San Isidro, labrador than in La juventud is evidence of Lope’s desire to have Isidro officially recognised as such. With the declaration of Isidro as a saint and proven miracle worker, it was not necessary for Lope in La juventud to recreate every miracle and detail associated with him in order to verify his holiness and to make him recognisable. Accordingly, Lope presents the image of Isidro the miracle worker through carefully selected miracles. At the same time, he accentuates his saintliness through the reworking of the miracle of the angels, as well as a second encounter with Christ. More significantly, through the creation of original scenes involving conversations between husband and wife, Isidro is presented on a more human level as a man who is forced to make sacrifices for the purposes of his faith. The four miracles presented in La juventud are successfully woven into the play’s dramatic framework. The inclusion of the miracles of the wolf and the feeding of the birds serves to highlight qualities traditionally associated with the saint, while the crossing of the Jarama and the miracle of the angels stress María’s and Isidro’s respective associations with the divine. In his dramatisation of the miracle of the wolf, Lope stresses Isidro’s constancy and complete trust in God’s protection of the blessed. In contrast to San Isidro, labrador, where the saint remains absent from the stage while Envidia and Demonio narrate his reactions to the boys’ warnings and the resurrection of his donkey (II, 375–76), in La juventud Isidro remains devoted to prayer while Envidia taunts him with the cries of the offstage voices. The use of the campo as the setting for Isidro’s prayer session, rather than the church which features in his source material, is highly suitable given Isidro’s repeated acknowledgment in both this play and La niñez of his ability to learn about God through nature. Isidro manifests his faith in God’s protection following Envidia’s advice that he should abandon his prayers and return to his donkey. He affirms: 81 On the use of miracles in the comedias de santos, George Ticknor claims: ‘Pero en tiempo de Lope, el público no sólo acudía con fe a tales espectáculos, sino que recibía con agrado la representación de milagros, que hacían familiar la vida del Santo y sus benéficas virtudes’. See his History of Spanish Literature, 3 vols (London: John Murray, 1849), II, 247–49.

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que yo sé que mi jumento estará en viéndole vivo, que a nadie que habló con Dios hacienda se le ha perdido. (I, fol. 26v)

In an attempt to undermine his statement, Envidia cites several biblical episodes, including the story of Joseph, as examples of God’s abandonment of his beloved. Isidro, the embodiment of piety and goodness, proves his knowledge of the Bible by providing the successful resolutions of each story. Envidia Si miras a Job, verás muertos sus queridos hijos, derribados sus palacios, quemados sus verdes trigos, preso a José, y a Israel, del Rey Faraón cautivo. Isidro A Job dobló Dios la hacienda, y a José Virrey le hizo, y a Israel dio libertad. (II, fol. 26v)

The efforts of Envidia, the embodiment of evil, to downplay Isidro’s speech are thwarted. The confrontation between good and evil not only serves as a form of instruction in biblical narrative for the audience, but also underlines Isidro’s awareness that even the blessed are subject to some form of suffering. Isidro himself experiences the hardship of winter in the well-known miracle of the feeding of the birds. With the exclusion of the miraculous feeding of the pilgrim and the miracle at the confraternity dinner, the miracle of the birds, a ‘milagro útil’ according to Dassbach, is representative of Isidro’s charitable nature in this play.82 Following Isidro’s self-justification for the feeding of the palomas, which contains resonances of Isidro’s defence of his actions to Envidia in San Isidro, labrador (II, 375), Envidia arrogantly comments that his behaviour will cost him his job. He claims ‘que esta ocasión es famosa / para que Iván le despida’ (II, fol. 31r). However, the authority of the labrador

82 The miraculous satisfaction of hunger is one of the several ‘milagros útiles’ presented by Dassbach: ‘Los milagros en las comedias son, por lo general, milagros útiles, esto es, dirigidos a satisfacer necesidades físicas o espirituales concretas (hambre, enfermedad, conversión); librar de peligros, sufrimientos o tentaciones; o destinados a mostrar el poder y favor divinos’ (La comedia hagiográfica, p. 109). An abridged version of the miracle relating to the feeding of the pilgrim is narrated by Envidia in San Isidro, labrador (III, 379). In the same work, the miracle at the confraternity dinner is dramatised (III, 379–81). In El Isidro, Lope presents both miracles in detail. See canto IV, p. 459 – canto V, p. 467, and canto V, p. 471 – canto VI, p. 479.

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is revealed as Envidia hears, over the sound effects of the milling machinery, the offstage comments of Tirso and Bartola regarding the abundance of flour produced.83 To Bartola’s exclamation ‘¡y cómo crece la harina!’, Tirso adds ‘esto parece milagro; / la abundancia lo confirma’ (II, fol. 31v). The sole presence of Envidia on stage as the miracle is confirmed concentrates the audience’s attention on his destruction at the hands of Isidro. Lope not only exaggerates the saintly nature of Isidro through the representation of a miracle, as will become apparent in an analysis of his reconstruction of the miracle of the angels, but also that of his wife. María de la Cabeza is blessed with a visit from the Virgin in a new version of her miraculous crossing of the Jarama, based on the presentation of the miracle in San Isidro, labrador and El Isidro.84 In Lope’s previous two works, an angel appears to inform María that she has been wrongly accused of adultery. In La juventud, however, the stage directions indicate that María’s informer is in fact the mother of God. They read as follows: ‘La Virgen en una nube, y una voz’ (II, fol. 35r).85 Although Envidia of San Isidro, labrador informs Demonio that the Virgin was María’s guide, following María’s own deconstruction of her name to designate herself the ‘mar’ of the title and the Virgin, the ‘guía’ (III, 382), María does not enjoy the privilege of direct instruction from her namesake. María manifests her belief in divine protection by taking the initiative in La juventud to cross the river on her mantle as proof of her innocence. In San Isidro, labrador, on the other hand, it is the angel who instructs María to cross the river (III, 382). At first sight, the miracle of the angels does not appear to have been subject to very significant reconstruction in La juventud. However, a closer 83 In San Isidro, labrador, the multiplication of the flour is simply narrated to Envidia by Demonio. To Envidia’s complaint regarding Isidro’s act of charity, Demonio replies: ‘¿Qué mucho, si ve crecer / tanto el harina de un grano? / Vesle allí, que muele trigo, / y que el harina se vierte’ (II, 375). It should be noted that Lope does not make excessive use of stage machinery in any of his plays on Isidro. Gallego Roca attributes this not simply to Lope’s personal choice, but to the life of Isidro himself. He states in this regard: ‘Pero no sólo es el ánimo de Lope el que pone freno a una escenografía desbordante; es, especialmente, el carácter del protagonista San Isidro, un santo contemplativo, que lleva una vida de oración y no de acción. Los grandes milagros y las grandes victorias quedan fuera de la religiosidad que propone la figura del patrón de Madrid.’ See ‘Efectos’, p. 116. 84 Garasa briefly comments on the appearance of Virgins to saints in Lope’s hagiographic plays in Santos, p. 126. 85 Orozco Díaz highlights the dramatic effectiveness of the presentation of the king or the Virgin by means of ‘la pintura’ or ‘la imagen’: ‘Ante la imagen de una Virgen o el retrato del Rey, la reacción de los espectadores no es la misma que si contemplara a una comediante vestida con la indumentaria y atributos correspondientes. La relación que en ese momento se crea entre el cuadro y el espectador, era muchas veces de la misma índole que la que había de producirse en la vida real; como si en un lugar y momento solemne se encontrara ante la efigie de la Virgen o de su monarca. Es indiscutible que con esa duplicidad de punto de vista se reforzaba el general poder emocional desbordante y comunicativo de la escena.’ See Emilio Orozco Díaz, El teatro y la teatralidad del barroco (Barcelona: Planeta, 1969), p. 223.

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examination reveals some important innovations, such as the appearance of Christ on stage, the acclamation of Isidro by Christ himself and Isidro’s defamation at the hands of Envidia. For the first time in Lope’s plays on Isidro, we hear Christ summon the angels to plough and his reasons for doing so.86 He tells them to work ‘mientras Isidro atiende, / a la oración que de mi amor le enciende’ (I, fol. 27r), and again orders them: Arad, ángeles, luego los surcos desta tierra venturosa, porque con más sosiego levante en oración tan fervorosa el espíritu suyo adonde yo mi gloria constituyo. Arad, dejadle ocioso (I, fol. 27r )87

Christ not only acknowledges Isidro’s devotion to him through prayer, but sings the praises of the labrador whom he characterises in terms of his ‘puro corazón’ (I, fol. 26v). He is not seeking out the lost sheep, but ‘el regalo de la más querida’ (I, fol. 27r).88 Christ’s recognition of Isidro as an exceptional individual constitutes the ultimate consolidation of his image as a saintly man. His subsequent, brief encounter with him, a newly created scene which serves as a sequel to that of La niñez, underlines that Isidro is not only deserving of Christ’s compliments, but also the privilege of his company. Lope continues to modify elements of the miracle by assigning the role of detractor to the allegorical figure, Envidia.89 In both San Isidro, labrador and 86 In El Isidro, we also hear God summon the angels to help Isidro in his work. He orders them: ‘Id, celícolas, volando / a la tierra, en que ya veo / su humildad, por quien deseo / que ayudéis a Isidro orando; / Isidro nuevo Eliseo’ (canto III, p. 438). In San Isidro, labrador, the angels simply inform Isidro that they have been sent by God (II, 371). 87 There are no stage directions to indicate the appearance of the angels. Christ’s remark ‘¡Oh, qué bien parecéis labrando el campo [. . .]!’ (I, fol. 27r) may represent an attempt on Lope’s part to create an imaginary picture of the scene for his audience. 88 In contrast, the pastor is looking for Clara, the lost sheep, in La buena guarda. See Lope de Vega, La buena guarda, ed. Pilar Díez y Giménez Castellanos (Zaragoza: Editorial Ebro, 1964). All references will be taken from this edition. The pastor, who is not named ‘Jesús’ or ‘Cristo’ as he is in La niñez and La juventud respectively, appears twice in La buena guarda in his search for the lost sheep (see II, 75–78 and III, 108–110). Unlike Isidro, Clara has sinned by abandoning her role as abadesa at a convent in order to escape with her lover, Félix. The pastor reveals that the sheep he is looking for is white, except that ‘en la frente sola / una mancha tenía’ (II. 480–81). In III. 495, the pastor stresses that the lost sheep can still be found because although she was bitten by the wolf, she was not eaten. In other words, Clara was not completely devoured by human passion. For an analysis of roleplaying within the role in this play, see chapter 5. 89 It should be noted that although Envidia and Mentira appear in La juventud, they had played a much more prominent role in El Isidro and San Isidro, labrador.

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El Isidro, as in the source material, it is Isidro’s co-workers who approach Iván de Vargas in order to denounce him.90 In San Isidro, labrador, Envidia approaches Lorenzo, Esteban and Tadeo and defames Isidro’s name (I, 364). The labradores do not question Envidia’s portrayal of Isidro, but rather they falsely accuse Isidro before Iván and even implicate other labradores (II, 368).91 The characters of Lorenzo and Esteban are degraded further as they expose their awareness of the fact that their accusations are false, yet still proceed in their campaign to undermine Isidro (II, 373). In an episode in which Esteban and Lorenzo misinterpret Benito’s description of Bartolo for an account of Isidro’s shortcomings, the labradores are provided with an opportunity to reiterate Isidro’s negative qualities. Despite the fact that Pascual and Benito rise to Isidro’s defence, their comments cannot eliminate the ridicule to which Isidro is exposed. In addition to the criticism of the labradores, Isidro is branded a ‘bausán’ and ‘haragán’ (II, 369) by his angry master. The validity of his miracles is also questioned by Fernando, criado del rey, following his death (III, 387). In La juventud, with the exception of Envidia’s accusations, Isidro is not subject to any form of condemnation. As a result, any connection with Isidro’s detractors in the form of the nobility, labradores or criados, which may have been experienced by the audience of San Isidro, labrador is absent from La juventud. The criticism of Isidro by Envidia, an allegorical and therefore unreal character, prevents the audience forming any kind of association with him. Consequently, Lope’s spectators do not witness a negative portrayal of themselves as they may have done in La hermosa Ester, but rather see themselves in a positive light as faithful, honest, god-fearing individuals. Lope’s manipulation of the source material and characters introduced in San Isidro, labrador enables him to create a suitable, non-challenging tone for this celebratory play. The audience is indeed reminded that the play is a celebration of Isidro’s canonisation through Iván’s vision in a dream of España and Profecía.92 With the appearance of both allegorical characters ‘por alto’, ‘en dos nubes’ (II, fol. 33v), Iván listens to Profecía’s predictions regarding the canonisation of four Spanish saints during the reign of Philip IV. He encourages the veneration of Isidro by describing his canonisation as a glorious event and addresses Madrid in the following manner: Famosa Villa, apercibe a tu hijo, a tu Patrón, la gloria desta visión; y con triunfo le recibe, (II, fol. 34v)

For the criticism of Isidro by the labradores in El Isidro, see canto II, p. 437. It should be noted that only Lorenzo and Esteban approach Iván; Tadeo is absent. 92 See p. 63, n. 52 for Gallego Roca’s statement on the relationship between sleep and prophetic scenes. 90 91

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Iván promotes the appreciation of the celebration and depicts the audience as privileged spectators of the canonisation. The members of the audience are thus presented with another positive image of themselves. Lope elevates Isidro to the highest point of perfection by taking him beyond the status of a saint and establishing a direct link between him and Christ. In El Isidro, San Isidro, labrador and La niñez, Isidro has already been referred to as a ‘labrador divino’.93 However, for the first time on the stage, Isidro shares the title with Christ.94 It is Envidia, the embodiment of evil, who attributes the description to Isidro, while Isidro himself addresses God in prayer as the ‘divino labrador’.95 In a monologue in which Isidro praises God through pastoral imagery, the literal labrador describes the role of the metaphorical one and asks him to provide him with what is necessary so that he may follow his example. Isidro expresses his desire to emulate the heavenly labrador, now his namesake, who exemplifies selflessness and goodness. He is therefore prompted to ask for the ‘arado’, the metaphorical cross which Christ is forced to bear.96 His desire to become the disciple of the ‘divino labrador’ and to suffer for his sake illustrates his wholehearted dedication to his saintly role. Apart from a direct association with Christ, Isidro’s piety and humility are exemplified through the introduction of two scenes in which both he and his wife speak frankly about their devotion to God. Their lengthy discussion on the decoration of their marital home immediately following their wedding replaces Juan de la Cabeza’s description of María’s dowry in San Isidro, labrador (I, 362–63). While Juan mentions money and basic necessities such as mattresses, sheets and pillows first, Isidro concentrates on the domestic furnishings of a religious nature. The first thing that he and María will do is construct an altar, hang their prints of St Roque and St Sebastian and put up the wall-hanging depicting David’s victory over Goliath (I, fols 22r–22v). Isidro even forgets to mention the bed, the first item mentioned in Lope’s description of the marital home in El Isidro, in an effort to be ‘honesto’ (I, fol. 22v).97 However, it is the second conversation between Isidro and María which provides an insight into the conditions which must be met and the sacrifices 93 In El Isidro, see for example canto I, p. 419, canto IV, p. 450 and canto IX, p. 518. In La niñez, Bato refers to the ‘mozo’ of Pedro’s dream as a ‘labrador divino’ (I, fol. 7v), while the Reina of San Isidro, labrador attributes the title to Isidro when she visits his body in San Andrés (III, 387–88). Iván also describes the angels as ‘divinos labradores’ in this play (II, 372). 94 In El Isidro, Lope establishes a connection between the births of Christ and Isidro, stating ‘sus padres, pobres e iguales, / diéronle pobres pañales, / entre animales naciendo. / Mirad: ¿qué va pareciendo / con nacer entre animales?’ (canto I, pp. 419–20). 95 See II, fols 26r and 26v. 96 Even as a child, Isidro associates Christ with the pastoral, refers to the doctrine of transubstantiation and remarks that Christ has ordered him to follow his cross (La niñez, II, fol. 14r). The child claims: ‘Mis letras son vuestro divino arado, / pues yo soy labrador, con él os sigo, / que seguir vuestra cruz me habéis mandado.’ 97 See El Isidro, canto II, p. 429.

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which have to be made in order to live a holy, pious life. This dialogue precedes the separation of husband and wife for the purposes of ‘la castidad celestial’ (II, fol. 28v) and underlines the pain of departure.98 Isidro and María must relinquish human love in order to commit themselves to the veneration of the divine. Moreover, Isidro’s list of instructions to his wife concerning the conditions to be met in order to remain chaste, highlights the daily sacrifices made by both.99 Their separation is characterised by ‘dolor’, but in Isidro’s opinion, their decision to part is ‘santa’ (II, fol. 28v). Both characters explicitly highlight their love for one another. As far as María is concerned, ‘no he de ver / cosa que tenga alegría / sin tu dulce compañía’, while Isidro admits, ‘Mucho siente el corazón / el apartarse de ti’ (II, fol. 28v). Their fires of passion will be kept in check by the river which separates them as María moves to the convent of the Mother of God on the other side of the Jarama. Isidro’s recognition of the temptation of human love underlines his more human side, despite his acknowledgement, like Asuero in La hermosa Ester, that only divine love is associated with reason. To serve God, according to Isidro, is [to] ‘obedecer / las leyes de la razón’ (II, fol. 29v).100 Isidro continues to receive the support of Tirso, the gracioso, following his wife’s departure. Apart from providing comedy and voicing his obsession with food like his father in La niñez, Tirso is also concerned with winning the love of a woman (Bartola) and defending the reputation of a friend (Isidro). The light-hearted episode of San Isidro, labrador, in which Constanza throws flour over her zealous lover, Bartolo, is reconstructed for the purposes of the development of the main plot in La juventud.101 Essentially, this playful scene is presented in Act II of the play, but is preceded by a new, serious scene in which love is scorned.

98 In San Isidro, labrador, Demonio informs Envidia of the separation of Isidro and María (III, 379). We learn only that Isidro and María have missed one another when they reunite following María’s miraculous crossing of the Jarama (III, 383–84). The tone of the discussion, however, is very lighthearted and is in complete contrast to the conversation between Isidro and María analysed here. 99 These include daily prayer, conservative dress, daily attendance at Mass and the observation of silence and modesty. See II, fols 29r–29v. 100 In the Middle Ages, churchmen associated human love with locura and claimed that human love prevented the individual from focusing on divine love, or real love. In the Corbacho, for example, the Arcipreste de Talavera makes the following comments: ‘Amor e luxuria traen muchas enfermedades e abrevian la vida a los onbres; fáselos antes de tienpo envejescer o encanescer, los mienbros tenblar, e, como ya de alto dixe, los cinco sentydos alterar e algunos dellos en todo o en parte perder, e con muchos pensamientos a las veses enloquecer; e a las veses priva de juyzio e razón natural al onbre e muger, en tanto que non se conosce él mesmo a las oras quién es, dónde está, qué le contesció, nin cómo bive. [. . .] Pues, por Dios nuestro señor, en tal guisa de amor usemos verdadero que para syenpre bivamos, solo Dios amando.’ See Alfonso Martínez de Toledo, Arcipreste de Talavera o Corbacho, ed. J. González Muela, 4th edn (Madrid: Castalia, 1985), p. 76. 101 See San Isidro, labrador, II, 370.

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In their first encounter, Bartola rejects Tirso outright, categorising him as a ‘traidor’ and ‘grosero’ and classifying his love as ‘fingido’ (I, fol. 24v). Unlike Constanza, who grants Bartolo permission to speak to her father in La niñez, Bartola does not give Tirso permission to ask their master for her hand in marriage. Instead, she threatens to tell their master about the inappropriateness of the relationship. The references made by both characters to the influence of ‘el dimuño’ on their respective attitudes reminds the audience of the presence of Envidia on stage. Bartola tells Tirso ‘el dimuño / te hace andar tan altanero’, while Tirso subsequently makes almost the same accusation by informing Bartola ‘el dimuño / os hace andar altaneras’ (I, fol. 24v). Envidia exerts a critical influence on the relationship in his attempt to introduce ‘celazos’. Tirso’s proposal of marriage to Bartola is undermined by Bartola’s declaration that Gil, another villano, is in love with her. As Tirso is left feeling dejected and desperate, Envidia approaches him and attempts to cast him in the role of the jealous labrador whose mission will be to defame Isidro to Iván. The re-creation of the love scene of San Isidro, labrador is crucial to plot development and the role of the gracioso in La juventud. In the belief that Tirso may already be suffering from the affects of jealousy because of Gil’s potential feelings for his beloved, Envidia is confident that the gracioso will accept his allegation against Isidro. Indeed, Envidia describes his timing as ‘buena ocasión’ (I, fol. 25r).102 For Lope’s audience, Tirso, a labrador, was suitable for the role of the accusing co-worker of Juan Diácono’s text. Consequently, the spectators may have deduced at this point in the drama that the sub-plot was introduced in order to present Tirso as a vulnerable victim of the influential Envidia and, therefore, less blameworthy. However, as has already been stated, it is Envidia who criticises Isidro in the presence of his master because he cannot destroy Tirso’s loyalty to the labrador. The gracioso is portrayed as a resilient, faithful friend, steadfast in his beliefs even during a crisis point in his personal life. When put to the test, he proves himself the servant of Isidro, a role which he promised to fulfil following the wedding celebrations (I, fol. 21v). Clearly, then, one of Tirso’s most important duties in the play is that of defender of Isidro’s virtuous qualities against the slander of Envidia. In San Isidro, labrador, the gracioso Bartolo does not have any contact with Envidia, but does safeguard Isidro’s reputation when Iván de Vargas complains about Isidro’s laziness (II, 371). Here, Lope intensifies this specific function of the gracioso by converting Bartolo’s seven lines of defence into various heated discussions between Tirso and Envidia. In the first instance, Tirso responds aggressively to Envidia’s initial accusations by threatening to stone him, thereby proving, albeit in a violent manner, his determination to defend 102 There is no reaction on the part of Tirso to jealousy. By this I mean that Tirso does not confront Gil, nor does he lose himself in lengthy monologues in which he complains that he is the shunned lover.

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Isidro’s honour.103 Subsequently, when Iván de Vargas arrives, Tirso takes on the defence of the innocent against the prosecuting Envidia. In two lengthy speeches, he remarks on the productivity of Isidro’s land and describes Isidro as an exemplary worker: a la fe, no tien, señor, en todo Madrid, ni fuera, tal labrador como Isidro. (I, fol. 25r)

In addition, Tirso subtly transforms Envidia’s negative comparison of Isidro and himself as bad workers into a positive one. To Envidia’s comment that Iván’s land is deteriorating at the hands of Isidro, who, he claims, Tirso must be like, Tirso responds ‘si yo fuera / como él, ¿qué me faltara?’ (I, fol. 25r). In spite of Tirso’s efforts to save Isidro’s reputation, the prosecution wins, a necessary outcome for the presentation of the miracle of the angels. Nevertheless, Tirso is not discouraged and continues to defend Isidro throughout the play, in spite of the fact that he is aware of who/what Envidia really is. Envidia reveals his identity to Tirso following their conversation with Iván. After stating that he is ‘quien dio la muerte primera / al primero labrador’ (I, fol. 25v), he commands the inferno to open up and disappears from the stage amid the beating of drums and smoke. The fearful Tirso, who makes a general appeal to labradores to flee from the path of this evildoer, demonstrates bravery and courage when he comes face to face with Envidia throughout the play. During the second encounter between Tirso and Envidia, Envidia catches the gracioso dipping into food on the way to the mill and threatens to reveal his greed to the other villanos (II, fols 31r–31v). Tirso, resolute in his efforts not to be overcome by the evildoer, shows no sign of worry or fear in the face of Envidia’s threats. In fact, he is characterised by constancy and courage when he acts as Isidro’s advocate and resolutely defines Envidia as ‘señor serpiente engañosa’, the antithesis of Isidro who is characterised by ‘santas costumbres’ (II, fol. 31v). Tirso demonstrates selflessness by showing no concern for Envidia’s threats to tarnish his reputation. Towards the end of Act II, Lope makes Tirso the privileged spectator who, in the company of Isidro, watches María’s miraculous crossing of the Jarama. His re-creation of the popular story and indeed the same scene in San Isidro, labrador, where Isidro is the only witness, serves two purposes in the play.104 First of all, Lope makes María’s crossing more real to his audience by 103 There are resonances here of the conflict between Bato and the pobre in La niñez, where Bato insults the pobre who refuses to return the child Isidro’s coat (II, fol. 13v). In this case, it is the pobre, not the gracioso, who threatens violence. 104 See San Isidro, labrador, III, 383.

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providing another witness. Secondly, by granting the exceptional and exemplary individual (Isidro) and the flawed yet loyal and honest character (Tirso) a similar privilege, Lope suggests that it is not only saintly perfection which is recognised and rewarded by the divine. He highlights to his audience the importance of belief in orthodox, religious values, yet at the same time proposes that there is room for human shortcomings. The play ends with a playful treatment of envidia. Tirso expresses that he is jealous of the embrace of Isidro and María, the reunited couple.105 However, he envies the embrace for positive reasons, admitting ‘¡Pardiez, que por ser tan castos, / tales envidio!’ (II, fol. 35r). In contrast to the malicious and potentially destructive envidia of the labradores in San Isidro, labrador and the character of Envidia in both plays, Tirso’s assertion of jealousy is a simple, inoffensive comment. It reflects his desire to partake in the celebrations. At the same time it injects humour into the scene by drawing attention to the importance of physical bonding for Tirso. The play ends on a celebratory note with the reunion of Isidro and María and the nymphs’ dance. Tirso is not required to seek forgiveness for his innocent envidia, unlike Lorenzo and Esteban who rightly express regret and desire for forgiveness by Isidro at the end of San Isidro, labrador (III, 386). La juventud concludes with a celebration of Madrid’s patron saint together with the virtues of the common man as presented by the character Tirso. In La juventud, Lope is no longer dependent on the dramatisation of miracles in order to portray Isidro’s saintly nature, since the audience is already aware of his holy status. As a result, the dramatist ironically enjoys more dramatic freedom in the composition of this play than in La niñez. In La juventud, well-known miracles are replaced with newly created scenes and devised so that Isidro might transcend the status of saint and become essentially Christlike. The direct relationship established between the saint and Christ represents the ultimate acclamation of Isidro. By depicting the sacrifices made by Isidro for the first time on stage, Lope paradoxically makes Isidro even more Christlike, and therefore even more worthy of the title of saint. In his Arte nuevo, Lope defines the comedia as a three-act play: ‘El sujeto elegido, escriua en prosa, / Y en tres actos de tiempo le reparta.’106 In spite of that, both La niñez and La juventud are two-act plays.107 Morrison outlines possible reasons for this: ‘The comedias de santos remind us of the medieval religious drama in that their authors paid little heed to the dramatic rules.

105 The reunion of the lovers is treated very briefly at the end of the play and, unlike their separation, does not permit a detailed analysis of the conflicting imperatives of human and divine love. 106 See El arte nuevo, 211–12. 107 The only other two-act play found among Lope’s corpus of comedias de tema religioso is El robo de Dina. It could be argued that the sequel to this play, Los trabajos de Jacob, constitutes the third act.

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Often unity is absent, plot is scanty, and character development is illogical. [. . .] The absence of the unities was criticized only rarely.’108 However, it would seem that Lope disregards his own dramatic theory in the cases of La niñez and La juventud because of reasons relating to performance / staging and the demands of the Consejo. Each of the Isidro plays was performed on two medios carros, just like autos, and as indicated previously, the content of these was more than likely prescribed by the Council of Castile. In addition, time restrictions may have prevented the presentation of two three-act plays. Nevertheless, the interrelationship which exists between La niñez and La juventud and which has been exposed in the course of this chapter makes it possible to consider these works as two acts of one play. Moreover, I would argue that the canonisation of Isidro and the celebrations surrounding the event in Madrid, of which Lope’s audience was very much aware, constitute the perfect, triumphant resolution of both Isidro plays. This is, perhaps, Lope’s most elaborate working out of the interplay between illusion and reality. The availability or absence of source material, coupled with the expectations of his audience, shaped Lope’s representation of saint and biblical heroine for the stage. While his plays on Isidro were restrained by the necessity to comply with a specified agenda, Lope was able to rewrite biblical scenes, introduce new characters and subtly comment on contemporary issues in La hermosa Ester. His successful and complex dramatisation of the biblical story is proof of the dramatist’s ability to manipulate both the source material and the horizon of expectation of his audience when he alone is the sole creator of his work and does not have to abide by the dictates of an external authority.

108 Lope de Vega and the Comedia, p. 25. The absence of unities in the comedias hagiográficas is understandable, given the breadth of material available on the lives of saints which Golden Age dramatists may have wanted to incorporate into their works. However, the analysis presented in this chapter alone on La niñez and La juventud contests Morrison’s claims on plot development and characterisation. His reference to scanty plots may in fact be an easy solution to the two-act play problem.

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PART II DRAMATISING THE DRAMATIC: METATHEATRE AND THE COMEDIA DE TEMA RELIGIOSO

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3 METATHEATRE AND THE SPANISH COMEDIA RELIGIOSA: AN OVERVIEW1 With the publication of Lionel Abel’s seminal work on metatheatre,2 critics were provided not only with a basic definition of the concept of metadrama, but also with specific terminology with which to analyse self-referential plays.3 According to Abel, metaplays are Theatre pieces about life seen as already theatricalized. By this I mean that the persons appearing on the stage in these plays are there not simply because they were caught by the playwright in dramatic postures as a camera might catch them, but because they themselves knew they were dramatic before the playwright took note of them. What dramatized them originally? Myth, legend, past literature, they themselves. They represent to the playwright the effect of dramatic imagination before he has begun to exercise his own; [. . .]. (Metatheatre: A New View, p. 60)

Abel was intent on giving metatheatre a working definition, treating it as a genre in itself as opposed to tragedy. He polarises tragedy and metatheatre by providing a summary of what he describes as the values and disvalues of tragedy and metatheatre.4 Catherine Larson regards Abel’s concern with the ‘generic purity’ of the metaplay as ‘an unnecessary complication of the issue’ and suggests that we move away from Abel’s attempts to pin down what metatheatre is and focus instead on what metatheatre does.5

1 The title of this chapter is adapted from and is my response to Thomas Austin O’Connor’s article ‘Is the Spanish Comedia a Metatheater?’, HR, 43 (1975), 275–89. See p. 88 for details on the significance of this article in the mid-1970s debate concerning the appropriateness of a definition of the comedia in terms of its metatheatrical qualities. 2 See his Metatheatre: A New View of Dramatic Form (New York: Hill and Wang, 1963). 3 This does not mean, of course, that some critics were not already studying to some extent the incorporation of metatheatrical devices into plays, but they were doing so without the explicit label. See, for example, Robert J. Nelson, Play Within a Play. The Dramatist’s Conception of His Art: Shakespeare to Anouilh (New Haven: Yale UP, 1958). 4 See p. 113 of his work for further details. 5 See ‘Metatheater: Past, Present’, p. 206. Larson’s essay addresses the difficulty in defining what metatheatre actually is and examines how critics have reacted to the notion of the comedia as metatheatre. Larson also presents a variety of possibilities that are open

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However, before the publication of Larson’s article, Abel’s ideas on metatheatre were already having an impact on comedia scholarship. The mid1970s witnessed a major debate between those critics who believed that Abel’s theories could be usefully and significantly applied to the comedia, and those who regarded them as invalid. Thomas Austin O’Connor’s article which posed the vital question, ‘Is the Spanish Comedia a Metatheater?’, was specifically responsible for initiating this debate.6 O’Connor believed that the concept of metatheatre was at odds with seventeenth-century Spain’s theocentric and moral view of the world in which role-playing was viewed negatively. O’Connor states: ‘To be an actor is to be false, a mime or mimic of what really is. The Christian cannot be thus and be sure of salvation’ (p. 287). O’Connor recognises that metatheatre gives many insights into the structure and form of the serious Spanish comedia, but claims that it fails to explain the Christian response to pretence and theatricality (p. 287). He defines role-playing as ‘The road to sure deceit and possible damnation’ (p. 288). However, as will be highlighted in the following chapters, it is in fact because of the contemporary theocentric world view that the comedia can be deemed a metaplay. O’Connor is supported by Arnold G. Reichenberger who insists on the uniqueness of the comedia and who also stresses the theocentric concept of life which was commonplace in the seventeenth century.7 Nevertheless, there are various scholars such as Frank P. Casa and Stephen Lipmann who oppose the theories of O’Connor and Reichenberger.8 Casa dispels some of the negativity attributed to role-playing by O’Connor and insists that O’Connor’s thesis regarding the disharmony between Abel’s theory on metatheatre and seventeenth-century Spain’s ‘Catholic’ drama is inconclusive, since other social factors had an impact on the make-up of the comedia. Stephen Lipmann states from the outset that he finds Abel’s definition of metatheatre entirely to comedia scholarship in this field (e.g. an analysis of the relationship between comedy and metatheatre, as well as the exploitation of self-conscious language, the staging of selfconscious comedias and the inclusion of literary references within Golden Age plays). An extensive bibliography on the subject is also provided. 6 Prior to the debate of the mid-1970s, several studies focused on the concept of roleplaying in the comedia. These included Alan S. Trueblood, ‘Role-Playing and the Sense of Illusion in Lope de Vega’, HR, 32 (1964), 305–18; Robert Sloane, ‘Action and Role in El príncipe constante’, MLN, 85 (1970), 167–83; Peter N. Dunn, ‘El príncipe constante: A Theatre of the World’ and Bruce W. Wardropper, ‘The Implicit Craft of the Spanish Comedia’, in Studies in Spanish Literature of the Golden Age Presented to Edward M. Wilson, ed. R. O. Jones (London: Tamesis, 1973), pp. 83–101; pp. 339–56. For details of other related works which predated the debate, see Catherine Larson, ‘Metatheater: Past, Present’, p. 209. 7 See his ‘A Postscript to Professor Thomas Austin O’Connor’s Article on the Comedia’, HR, 43 (1975), 289–91. 8 See Casa’s ‘Some Remarks on Professor O’Connor’s Article “Is the Spanish Comedia a Metatheater?” ’, BCom, 28 (1976), 27–31 and Lipmann, ‘ “Metatheater” and the Criticism of the Comedia’, MLN, 91 (1976), 231–46.

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applicable to the comedia, despite the fact that ‘he is somewhat less than thorough in developing the implications of his generic formulation’ (p. 231). In the wake of this controversy, several critics began to examine Golden Age drama using metatheatre as a valid analytical tool. For some of them, an analysis of metatheatre or metatheatrical devices in a particular play was the main focal point of their essays or articles, while for others it featured only as a secondary concern. In the 1970s, Fischer and Madrigal were among those who began to study the comedia in this ‘new’ theoretical light.9 They were followed by scholars such as Kirby and Moore in the 1980s10 and Case, Larson, Stoll and Dixon in the 1990s.11 Most recently, works by Thacker have served to reinforce the metatheatrical qualities of the comedia.12

9 Susan L. Fischer, ‘The Art of Role-Change in Calderonian Drama’, BCom, 27 (1975), 73–79 and José A. Madrigal, ‘Fuenteovejuna y los conceptos de metateatro y psicodrama: Un ensayo sobre la formación de la conciencia en el protagonista’, BCom, 31 (1979), 15–23. See also Fischer, ‘Calderón’s Los cabellos de Absalón: A Metatheater of Unbridled Passion’, BCom, 28 (1976), 103–13; William McCrary, ‘The Duke and the Comedia: Drama and Imitation in Lope de Vega’s El castigo sin venganza’, JHPh, 2 (1978), 203–22 and ‘Theater and History: El rey don Pedro en Madrid’, CH, 1 (1979), 145–67. 10 Carol Bingham Kirby, ‘Theatre and the Quest for Anointment in El rey don Pedro en Madrid’, BCom, 33 (1981), 149–59 and Roger Moore, ‘Metatheater and Magic in El mágico prodigioso’, BCom, 33 (1981), 129–37. See also Fischer, ‘Lope’s El castigo sin venganza and the Imagination’, KRQ, 28 (1981), 23–36 and Alejandro Paredes L., ‘Nuevamente la cuestión del metateatro: La cisma de Inglaterra’, in Calderón: Actas del congreso internacional sobre Calderón y el teatro español del Siglo de Oro, ed. Luciano García Lorenzo, 3 vols (Madrid: Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, 1983), I, 541–48. For further details on major studies of the 1970s and 1980s, see Catherine Larson, ‘Metatheater: Past, Present’, pp. 209–11. I will also engage with more recent contributions to the debate not considered in Larson’s article. 11 See Case, ‘Metatheater’; Catherine Larson, ‘Lope de Vega and Elena Garro: The Doubling of La dama boba’, Hisp, 74 (1991), 15–25; Anita K. Stoll, ‘Staging, Metadrama, and Religion in Lope’s Los locos por el cielo’, Neophil, 78 (1994), 233–41 and Victor Dixon, ‘El post-Lope: La noche de San Juan, meta-comedia urbana para palacio’, in Lope de Vega: comedia urbana y comedia palatina. Actas de las XVII Jornadas de teatro clásico, eds. F. B. Pedraza and R. González Cañal (Almagro: Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha, 1996), pp. 61–82. Dixon’s most recent articles on Lope’s Lo fingido verdadero concentrate on an examination of a range of metatheatrical devices which present themselves in the play. See introduction, p. 3, n. 10 for complete bibliographical references. The 1990s have witnessed the publication of a significant number of critical analyses which concentrate on the relationship between metatheatre and the comedia. Other works include: Michael Kidd, ‘The Performance of Desire: Acting and Being in Lope de Vega’s El laberinto de Creta’, BCom, 47 (1995), 21–36; Jonathan Thacker, ‘Comedy’s Social Compromise: Tirso’s Marta la piadosa and the Refashioning of Role’, BCom, 47 (1995), 267–89 and Harry Vélez Quiñones, ‘ “Entre verdad y mentira”: Woman and Metatheater in Lope de Vega’s Los amantes sin amor’, BCom, 47 (1995), 43–53. 12 See Jonathan Thacker, ‘ “Que yo le haré de suerte que os espante, / Si el fingimiento a la verdad excede”: Creative Use of Art in Lope de Vega’s Los locos de Valencia (and Velázquez’s Fábula de Aracne)’, MLR, 95 (2000), 1007–18 and Role-play and the World as Stage in the Comedia (Liverpool: Liverpool UP, 2002).

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For the purposes of this analysis, a review of the studies by several of these critics is important for a number of reasons. In the first instance, such analyses serve to highlight the variations in approaches which can be adopted in an exploration of the comedia as self-referential drama. Additionally, and most significantly, they stress the fact that metatheatrical devices abound in both secular and religious Golden Age plays, in spite of Abel’s claim that ‘There is no such thing as religious metatheatre’.13 Before engaging with studies of the 1980s and 1990s, I will focus on several studies of the 1970s, and we will see that the analytical approaches are similar. In ‘The Art of Role-Change’, Fischer examines the relationship between the social convention of honor and complex forms of role-change. In a study of what she terms ‘socially conditioned role-change’ (p. 74), Fischer concentrates on the character of Roca of El pintor de su deshonra, a type of dramatist who confers on Serafina the role of faithless wife and who himself becomes the determined avenger. Fischer concludes that the fact that certain aspects of twentieth-century psychological theory can be applied to Calderón’s depiction of the individual means that Calderón’s comedia is probably more universal than unique (p. 78).14 Madrigal’s ‘Fuenteovejuna y los conceptos’ centres on two main issues. First of all, it aims to evaluate Abel’s theories on metatheatre and their appropriateness to a study of the comedia. Secondly, by applying Moreno’s theories on psychodrama, Madrigal examines how the individual or collective protagonist acquires full consciousness of the part which has been assigned by the playwright through the performance of roles.15 Madrigal concludes that Abel’s theories on metatheatre constitute useful critical apparatus for analysing the comedia. He states: ‘A mi entender, su aporte al enfoque crítico reside en llamar la atención no sólo a la importancia que posee la ontogenia psíquica de los personajes, sino también a la técnica de ⬍role playing⬎. [. . .] El personaje dramático no se ha estudiado tan meticulosamente como merece’ (p. 16).16 However, he warns that his theories should not be considered definitive or absolute (p. 17). This is what he regards as Sloane’s fundamental error in ‘Action and Role’, in which Sloane claims that this play, although a sizable step in Abel’s direction, is some distance from true ‘metatheatre’ because God plays the role of a dramatist (p. 183). In response to Sloane’s assertions, Madrigal claims that ‘decir que la comedia no es metateatro, a causa de que hay un dramaturgo final (Dios), equivaldría a decir que Lionel Abel está negando, lo cual

13 Metatheatre: A New View, p. 113. As will be seen in chapter 4, an analysis of Lo fingido verdadero alone challenges this claim. 14 For the debate concerning the uniqueness or universality of the comedia, see Eric Bentley, ‘The Universality of the Comedia’ HR, 38 (1970), 147–62 and Arnold G. Reichenberger, ‘The Uniqueness of the Comedia’, HR, 38 (1970), 163–73. 15 See Joseph Moreno, Psychodrama (New York: Beacon House, 1972). 16 The italics are mine.

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no creo sea su propósito, el fondo o mentalidad religiosa que era parte integral de la idiosincrasia de aquella época’ (p. 17). Madrigal devotes the second part of his article to a study of the involvement of Laurencia and the villanos in roleplaying within the role in Lope’s Fuenteovejuna. He identifies Laurencia as the best illustration of the actor/author dichotomy within the play. The studies of the 1980s and 1990s on the comedia and metatheatre which are considered illustrate that metadramatic properties are characteristic of both secular and religious plays of the Golden Age. In ‘Theater and the Quest’, Kirby examines the function of metatheatrical devices in Calderón’s El rey don Pedro en Madrid. She considers the implications of role-playing and its impact on the audience by focusing on the king’s appearance at the beginning of the drama as an unidentifiable, sweaty, untidy rider with a bloodied sword in hand, and his subsequent public performance as king in Act II. Kirby proposes that Pedro is both consciously and unconsciously a playwright who manipulates his subjects to perform particular roles. Moreover, she underlines the fact that the other characters in the play are not always aware that the king is influencing their course of action. She refers to Pedro as ‘autor’ of the ‘comedia palaciega’ (p. 153). Kirby traces the roles that Pedro adopts and demonstrates how they are at odds with the spiritual nature which he is supposed to boast, in accordance with the political–theological doctrine of the king’s two bodies. She stresses that the king’s spiritual completion depends on the election and performance of new roles. Moore examines the metatheatrical nature of El mágico prodigioso in ‘Metatheater and Magic’ and presents five reasons why he considers this particular drama to be a metaplay. Firstly, he identifies Cipriano, the devil and God as three competing dramatists in the play. He acknowledges that the devil’s main role is that of magician, while Cipriano plays various roles before finally assuming his definitive role as martyr in God’s play.17 Moreover, Moore claims that Cipriano can also be viewed as an apprentice dramatist. Finally, Moore divides the characters of the play into two groups. The first comprises those who are deceived by the devil and whose performances are thus directed by him, while the second contains those who focus upon a higher order of reality and truth.18 The analyses conducted by Larson, Case and Stoll in the 1990s, which focus specifically on Lope’s plays, demonstrate that both his religious and secular works can be viewed in a metatheatrical light. Larson’s study is based on two examples of metaplays. Specifically, Larson’s primary concern in ‘Lope and Elena Garro’ is a comparative study of the self-referential devices in Lope’s La dama boba and Elena Garro’s adaptation of the play. Her analysis includes an examination of Finea’s self-referential language (p. 18) and the confusion 17 In Lo fingido verdadero, Ginés engages in the art of role-playing before finally becoming a martyr. 18 See p. 135 of his article.

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of the audience within Elena Garro’s version who watch a performance of Lope’s La dama boba (p. 22). Larson concludes that ‘through her imitation of Lope’s self-conscious strategies, Elena Garro’s reading actualizes Lope’s text by incorporating it within a new horizon of expectations’ (p. 24). In his investigation of the metatheatrical features of El divino africano in ‘Metatheater’, Case maintains that metadramatic techniques are an essential part of the comedias de santos (p. 140). He also highlights the significance of faith in this particular drama, which alerts Agustino to his true role in life. Case identifies two levels of reality in the play – the reality of Agustino’s historical life and the reality of the mystical world of salvation and God’s grace. He qualifies God as a dramatist in the voz and emphasises how Mónica and Alipio are responsible for the creation of plays within the play through the dramatisation of their dreams. Case also draws attention to an interesting metadramatic ingredient in his reference to Agustino’s writing of his Confessions in Act III. In point of fact, these Confessions constitute the script of Acts I and II of El divino africano (p. 134). Finally, in ‘Staging, Metadrama’, Stoll begins by asserting that the view of life in the Golden Age as having various levels of reality easily relates to the concept of metatheatre in drama. She analyses the function of various metatheatrical devices and pinpoints the play within the play as the most significant in Los locos por el cielo (p. 233). Stoll also investigates the use of the vestuario or ‘discovery space’, which she describes as ‘an excellent vehicle for metatheater’ (p. 233). Additionally, she draws attention to the dramatic impact of the integration of the ‘stage’ audience with the ‘real’ audience as they watch the play within the play (pp. 236–37). Ultimately, Stoll convincingly proposes that Lope combines metatheatrical devices, staging techniques and his Christian faith in an attempt to reconstruct his personal, profound beliefs for the audience (p. 239). Indeed, I would suggest that the self-conscious comedia is inextricably linked to the seventeenth-century concept of theatrum mundi which Weisinger describes in the following manner: Theatrum mundi is [. . .] an extended metaphor; the world is symbolized as a theatre, and all its events, or plot, and all its inhabitants, or dramatis personae, are depicted as taking place and acting within its confines and within its particular terms as a medium of representation.19 19 See Herbert Weisinger, ‘Theatrum Mundi: Illusion as Reality’, in The Agony and the Triumph: Papers on the Use and Abuse of Myth (East Lansing: Michigan State UP, 1964), pp. 58–70 (p. 59). On the same theme, see also Katarzyna Mroczkowska-Brand, ‘Overt Theatricality and the Theatrum Mundi Metaphor in Spanish and English Drama, 1570–1640’, Kwartalnik Neofilologiczny, 26 (1979), 201–14. As this critic points out, ‘The comparison of the world to a stage and of men to actors was certainly not a new one in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. [. . .] We find more or less ample fragments on the Theatrum Mundi metaphor in the works of Plato, Plotinus, Democritus, Epictetus, Seneca, Petronius, and Terence among the more notable ancients’ (p. 206).

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‘The world is a stage’ and ‘life is a dream’ topoi stressed the illusory nature of life in which the individual was an actor or role-player.20 Consequently, it would appear that the use of self-referential techniques in the comedia not only enabled the Golden Age playwright to manipulate the horizon of expectation of his audience, but also to reinforce the principal themes of the age. It is evident, then, that most studies to date have been concerned with identifying the metatheatrical qualities of the comedia, but have not engaged with the effects of metatheatre on the audience.21 In the following chapters, I will examine several metatheatrical devices which present themselves in Lope’s Lo fingido verdadero (approx. 1608) and La buena guarda (1610). My analysis will be based on an application of Richard Hornby’s categories of metadrama presented in Drama, Metadrama, which, according to Larson, ‘gives what is arguably the most comprehensive approach to the concept of self-conscious theater’.22 Hornby defines metadrama as ‘drama about drama’ and stresses that the ‘seeing double’ of the audience constitutes the essence of metatheatre.23 Of the five overt forms of metadrama catalogued by him, two in particular will be considered in my analysis of Lo fingido verdadero and one in my examination of La buena guarda. While I will concentrate on Lope’s manipulation of role-playing within the role in both plays, I will analyse in detail the function of the play within the play in Lo fingido verdadero. I will 20 The topoi of course provided Calderón with the titles of two of his most famous works – La vida es sueño and El gran teatro del mundo. For a discussion of these in relation to metatheatre, see, for example, Thomas Austin O’Connor, ‘La vida es sueño: A View From Metatheater’, KRQ, 25 (1978), 13–26 and Manuel Sito Alba, ‘Metateatro en Calderón: El gran teatro del mundo’, in Calderón: Actas del congreso, II, 789–802. For further references, see Catherine Larson, ‘Metatheater: Past, Present’, p. 216, n. 6. 21 There are of course exceptions. These include Stoll’s ‘Staging, Metadrama’ which has already been discussed briefly in this chapter, and Thacker’s ‘Comedy’s Social Compromise’. In his article which focuses on Tirso’s Marta la piadosa, Thacker examines Marta’s role-playing within the role and considers the onstage and offstage audiences’ reactions to incidents in the play. Furthermore, audience reception is taken into account by María del Pilar Palomo and Victor Dixon in their analyses of Lope’s metadrama, Lo fingido verdadero. See ‘Proceso de comunicación en Lo fingido verdadero’, in El castigo de venganza y el teatro de Lope de Vega, ed. Ricardo Doménech (Madrid: Cátedra/Teatro español, 1987), pp. 79–98 and ‘Lo fingido verdadero y sus espectadores’ respectively. Both works are discussed further in chapter 4. 22 ‘Lope and Elena Garro’, p. 16. See introduction, p. 4, n. 14 for full bibliographical details of Hornby’s work on metatheatre. Hornby identifies five categories of overt metadrama. They are as follows: 1) The Play within the Play; 2) The Ceremony within the Play; 3) Role-Playing within the Role; 4) Literary and Real-Life Reference; 5) Self Reference (p. 32). For a definition of role-playing within the role and the play within the play, see chapter 4, p. 98 and p. 110 respectively. The second part of Hornby’s work is dedicated to an examination of drama and perception, which he describes as a broader and more subtle type of metadrama (p. 32). As will be seen subsequently, the theme of perception is a fundamental component of audience reception. 23 Drama, Metadrama, p. 31; p. 32. Hornby also highlights that ‘The metadramatic experience for the audience is one of unease, a dislocation of perception’ (p. 32).

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aim to determine the factors which stimulate role-change within the role, to differentiate between positive and negative forms of role-playing and to assess the connection between role-playing and destino. The relationship between language, role, costume/disguise and identity will also be considered. In the case of Lo fingido verdadero, I propose to compare the impact of the two plays within the play on both the corral audience (which I will define as the outer audience) and the audience within the main play (which will be described as the inner audience), with specific focus on the complex fusion of both the main play and inset play.24 Ultimately, I hope to uncover the varying degrees of audience estrangement provoked by the exploitation of particular forms of metadrama and to demonstrate how such self-referential devices serve to illuminate the thematic tension of the plays – the conflict between human and divine love.25

24 Hornby categorises the play within the play as being of either the ‘inset’ type or ‘framed’ type. In the ‘inset’ type, Hornby states that ‘the inner play is secondary, a performance set apart from the main action [. . .]’. In contrast, in the ‘framed’ type, ‘[. . .] the inner play is primary, with the outer play a framing device’ (Drama, Metadrama, p. 33). Both plays created by the character Ginés in Lo fingido verdadero are of the inset type and will be classified as such in chapter 4. 25 Larson indicates that a variety of audience reponses to a metaplay is possible: ‘It is obvious that reader or audience reactions to a metaplay will vary – at least to a certain extent – due to the same kinds of reader–response factors that govern any type of reaction to literature: [. . .] Readers respond to a given text based on their own horizons of experience and expectations’ (‘Metatheater: Past, Present’, p. 207).

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4 LO FINGIDO VERDADERO AS METAPLAY Lo fingido verdadero, described by Menéndez y Pelayo as ‘de las más notables del repertorio religioso de Lope’, was probably written about 1608, but first appeared in print in Decimasexta parte de las comedias in 1621.1 Traditionally categorised as a comedia de santos, it is essentially a dramatisation of the conversion and martyrdom of St Genesius, patron saint of actors, as well as the representation of the rise to power of the Roman emperor Diocletian.2 Act I of the play presents Diocleciano’s transition from soldier to emperor following the deaths of the emperor Aurelio and his sons Carino and Numeriano. It opens with the complaints of the soldiers Maximiano, Marcio, Diocleciano and Curio concerning their campaign against the Persians and lack of food, together with their condemnation of Aurelio and Carino and an appraisal of the qualities of Numeriano, soldier and second son of the emperor. This is followed by Diocleciano’s criticism of Aurelio, though later he repents and urges respect for his role as emperor. With the appearance of Camila, the labradora and breadseller, Diocleciano requests some bread and lightheartedly promises to repay

1 Estudios, I, 251. For Menéndez y Pelayo’s complete study of this play, see pp. 249–68. All references to the play will be taken from this early edition (Madrid: Viuda de Alonso Martín,), fols 261r–84v. Spelling and punctuation will be modernised where appropriate. 2 Lo fingido verdadero has been included in all of the main studies of Lope’s hagiographical works to date. See for example Garasa, Santos; Aragone Terni, Studio sulle; Dassbach, La comedia hagiográfica and Morrison, Lope de Vega and the Comedia. Menéndez y Pelayo identifies Pedro de Rivadeneira’s Flos Sanctorum (1599–1601) and Pero Mexía’s Historia imperial y cesárea as the probable sources of this play (II, 251; 258). The relevant passage from the Flos Sanctorum relating to the conversion and martyrdom of Ginés, entitled Vida de San Ginés representante, mártir, is presented in Estudios, I, 251–54. The emperor Diocletian was ruler of Rome from 284–305 AD. Born of humble parents in Dalmatia, he became an officer in the Roman army and was proclaimed Emperor by his troops when emperor Numerianus died in 284 AD. Carinus, Numerianus’ brother, contested Diocletian’s right to control the empire, but Diocletian’s rule was assured when Carinus was killed by one of his own officers. Diocletian selected Maximianus, a Dalmatian, to be co-ruler of the Roman Empire, and believed that a successful reign depended on the veneration of pagan gods and the imposition of traditional laws and customs. Diocletian is particularly remembered for his persecution of Christians. On this topic, see for example Karl Christ, The Romans (London: Chatto and Windus, 1984) and Antony Kamm, The Romans. An Introduction (London: Routledge, 1995).

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her when he becomes emperor of Rome. Camila teasingly predicts that he will become emperor when he kills a jabalí, or wild boar. Following Camila’s prophecy, the emperors Aurelio and Carino are introduced into the dramatic action. Firstly, the arrogant Aurelio utters a lengthy monologue in which he asserts his authority and challenges the Roman god Jupiter, only to be struck down and killed by lightning. Subsequently, Carino is presented on his nightly mission in Rome in search of adventure accompanied by his criado, amante and músicos. After a discussion with Ginés regarding theatre in general and a play about himself which he would like Ginés to present, Carino is killed by Lelio, a consul whose wife has been seduced by the libertine ruler. At this point, the Roman soldiers are presented for a second time, now in the company of Apro, father-in-law of Numeriano. The discovery by the soldiers that Apro has killed his son-in-law in order to gain personal control of the empire results in the murder of Apro, the metaphorical jabalí, by Diocleciano. With the fulfilment of Camila’s prediction, Act I ends with Diocleciano’s instructions to the army to return to Rome. In Acts II and III of Lo fingido verdadero, plays created by Ginés for the entertainment of Diocleciano and his favourites complicate the dramatic action of the main play. Act II opens with the celebration of Diocleciano’s election as emperor and the presentation of the emperor’s generosity towards the soldiers who supported him. Diocleciano makes Maximiano his co-ruler and repays Camila by granting her wish to have unlimited access to the royal chambers and his personal company. Following Ginés’ appearance to pay his respects to the newly-crowned emperor, Diocleciano entrusts him with the responsibility of preparing a comedia for performance in the palace. The discussion between emperor and autor/actor concerning various types of plays ends with Ginés’ decision to present one of his own dramas. The dramatisation of Ginés’ play, which he bases on his personal experience as the jealous lover, and through which the inset play and main play become inextricably linked, constitutes the remainder of Act II. In Act III, Camila’s and Diocleciano’s declaration of love is followed by Rutilio’s detailed description of the mythical fieras which have been gathered together for the fiestas. A second play within the play is presented as a result of Diocleciano’s request for a representation of the baptised Christian. Ginés ultimately assumes the role of Christian within the framework of the main drama which he only set out to adopt for the purposes of the inset play. Act III ends with Ginés’ conversion, martyrdom and declaration concerning his participation in the comedia divina. While Lope’s comedias de santos have been largely disregarded by comedia scholars, Lo fingido verdadero has attracted some critical attention.3 The 3 See especially Susan L. Fischer’s ‘Lope’s Lo fingido verdadero and the Dramatization of the Theatrical Experience’, RHM, 39 (1976–77), 156–66; J. V. Bryans, ‘Fortune, Love

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play’s complex interplay between lo fingido and lo verdadero, explicit in its title, together with its engagement with the theatrum mundi topos and exploitation of metatheatrical devices such as role-playing within the role and the play within the play, have been principally highlighted.4 In fact, several critics who have acknowledged Lo fingido verdadero as a metaplay have questioned its classification as a comedia de santos. McGaha, for example, claims: ‘Ostensibly a religious drama based on the life and martyrdom of St Genesius, patron saint of actors, the play is in fact a sustained meditation on the phenomenon of role-playing and its consequences in human life.’ He adds that the religious overtones of the play ‘seem to have been introduced almost as a casual afterthought’.5 Dixon explicitly criticises scholars for categorising the play as a hagiographical drama: ‘De hecho no es más que parcialmente otra comedia de santos; ha sido un error de la crítica encasillarla como tal, y condenarla luego por no haberlo sido centralmente y en su totalidad.’6 The critics to whom Dixon alludes include Menéndez y Pelayo, who describes the first play within the play in terms of its ‘gravísimo defecto de pertenecer enteramente a la comedia profana, y de no preparar de ningún modo el ánimo a las impresiones solemnes y trágicas de la conversión y martirio de Ginés’.7 Garasa, on the other hand, defines the play as a comedia hagiográfica in which the vida–teatro metaphor is developed throughout. However, by proposing that Lope was forced to add episodes to his play because the life of Ginés, ‘por conmovedor y fascinante que sea, no alcanza a colmar tres jornadas’, he underlines his classification of the play primarily as a comedia hagiográfica.8 and Power in Lope de Vega’s Lo fingido verdadero’, RCan, 9 (1985), 133–48; María del Pilar Palomo, ‘Proceso’; Victor Dixon, ‘Lo fingido verdadero y sus espectadores’ and ‘Ya tienes’. In ‘Dramatization of the Theatrical’, Fischer divides the play into three inner dramas and discusses the relationship between fiction and reality within the play. Bryans, on the other hand, examines the themes of fortune, love and power through an analysis of the subgenres of the tyrant play and the martyr play. In ‘Proceso’, Palomo defines the theatrum mundi metaphor as the central idea of the play (p. 87) and looks briefly at the Baroque fondness for art within art. She also examines Lope’s captivation of his audience through what she describes as ‘la complicidad entre emisor y receptor’ (p. 92). Dixon’s articles in particular provide an invaluable insight into the use of metatheatrical techniques within the play. In ‘Lo fingido verdadero y sus espectadores’, Dixon demonstrates that all six of Hornby’s varieties of metadrama are present in Lo fingido verdadero. In ‘Ya tienes’, he discusses the adaptation and staging of Lo fingido verdadero for a modern audience, examines the play within the play and explores audience reception. 4 Dixon points out that this play constitutes the first Spanish dramatisation of the theatrum mundi concept. See ‘Ya tienes’, p. 59. 5 See Lope de Vega, Lo fingido verdadero/Acting is Believing: A Tragicomedy in Three Acts, trans. Michael McGaha (San Antonio: Trinity UP, 1986), p. 21; p. 25. 6 ‘Ya tienes’, p. 54. 7 Estudios, I, 263–64. 8 See Santos, p. 19. Garasa provides a brief summary and commentary on this play on pp. 18–23.

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Clearly, the dramatisation of the conversion and martyrdom of Genesius in Act III of Lo fingido verdadero renders the play a type of comedia de santos, if not a fully developed one, and therefore merits its inclusion in this study.9 However, it is also true that the play’s appeal rests with Lope’s fascination with the association between illusion and reality and the incorporation of a variety of metatheatrical devices into the fabric of the drama.10 In fact, Lo fingido verdadero is the most patent example of the metaplay among Lope’s corpus of plays, both religious and secular. I would suggest that the two concepts, religious drama and a metatheatrical approach, are not mutually exclusive but are interdependent. Through an analysis of role-playing within the role and the play within the play in Lo fingido verdadero, with particular focus on the difficulties of perception encountered by both the characters and the corral audience, I will demonstrate how a metadramatic methodology serves to uncover the essential themes of Lope’s play.

Role-Playing within the role According to Hornby, ‘Role playing within the role is an excellent means for delineating character, by showing not only who the character is, but what he wants to be’.11 In Act I of Lo fingido verdadero, Carino, Apro (the fatherin-law of Numeriano) and Diocleciano engage consciously in the art of roleplaying.12 Motivated by a range of factors, the characters are responsible for 9 Dassbach stresses that Ginés even experiences quite an atypical martyr’s death: ‘Ginés no sobrevive milagrosamente torturas y no se da evidencia de hechos sobrenaturales en torno a su muerte. [. . .] Su martirio no atrae seguidores ni genera elogios, [. . .]. Por el contrario, los actores de la compañía de Ginés, como sucede a los torturadores, no entienden su obstinación en querer morir por la fe cristiana y, por tanto, culpan a Ginés de su propia muerte’ (La comedia hagiográfica, p. 58). Dassbach states that the reason for this might be the lack of historical detail relating to Genesius and Lope’s consequent greater freedom of expression in dramatising this saint (p. 66, n. 24). 10 Dixon describes the play’s ‘metateatralidad’ as ‘el atractivo primordial de la obra de Lope’ (‘Ya tienes’, p. 55). 11 Drama, Metadrama, p. 67. 12 Role-playing within the role is extremely important in Acts II and III, where Ginés and several other characters, including Fabio and Marcela, adopt roles within the inset plays. As Hornby points out regarding the various types of metadrama, ‘They are rarely found in pure form, but often occur together or blend into one another’ (Drama, Metadrama, p. 32). This type of role-playing will be analysed in conjunction with the play within the play in the course of this chapter. It is important to note that the degree of dislocation of perception produced by a particular metatheatrical device varies. Voluntary role-playing within the role, for example, is the most metadramatic type of role-playing. Involuntary role-playing, on the other hand, causes less estrangement, as Hornby indicates: ‘we feel less estranged than when the role playing is voluntary, because we are more secure as to who the character really is’ (Drama, Metadrama, p. 74). As will be seen in the course of this study, even voluntary forms of role-playing produce different degrees of audience dissociation.

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the manifestation of both positive and negative forms of role-playing. The various roles which they play, however, are not affected by the tension between human and divine love which characterises the performance of Ginés in Acts II and III. Prior to the appearance of Carino who is acting as deputy in Rome and who sees and refers to himself as an emperador, the audience is introduced to him principally through Maximiano’s comments. Maximiano tells the other soldiers: Dicen que vive en Roma deshonesto, forzando las mujeres más honradas, sin que se escapen Senadores desto, ni las monjas a Vesta reservadas: que a mil nobles ha muerto y descompuesto, sin respetar las canas veneradas de hombres que han sido cónsules, jueces, Pretores, y triunfando muchas veces. (I, fol. 262r)

The spectators therefore expect an indecent, dishonourable character dressed in the attire of an emperor.13 What they witness, however, is the presentation of Carino disguised ‘en hábito de noche’ (I, 264v) with those same negative traits.14 Despite the fact that Carino explains to Ginés that he has adopted the part of un noble – ‘un noble no más, un hombre / pretendo representar,’ (I, fol. 265v), his discussion with Celio, his criado, and Rosarda, his amante concerning the pleasure he derives from dishonouring women emphasises the artificiality of this assumed title. Carino boasts: Mucho me deleito y gusto de quitar, Celio, el honor a una mujer casta y noble, y virtuosa, y al doble si es mujer de Senador. (I, 266r)

It is ironic that Carino dresses as a lesser-ranking citizen in order to enjoy the world of prostitution and corruption since his actions as seducer are identified

13 McGaha defines Carino and Diocleciano as the tyrant and good king respectively. He also compares Carino to Philip III. See Lo fingido verdadero / Acting is Believing, pp. 31–34. 14 At the beginning of El castigo sin venganza, an acting scene is overheard by the Duke of Ferrara, who, like Carino, is ‘de noche’. See El perro del hortelano, El castigo, ed. A. David Kossoff, p. 231. On the use of disguise in Spanish drama, Richard F. Glenn states: ‘Of the many commonplaces in the Spanish theatre, one that had extensive success during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries is the use of disguise and masquerade.’ See ‘Disguises and Masquerades in Tirso’s El vergonzoso en palacio’, BCom, 17 (1965), 16–22 (p. 16).

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by several characters as evidence of his defective role as emperor’s son and deputy.15 Characterised by soberbia like his father, Aurelio, who threatened to raise an army against Jupiter (I, fol. 263v), Carino not only plays the role of emperor badly, but also the secondary role which he imposes on himself.16 In the belief that all emperors are ‘casi iguales / a los Dioses celestiales,’ and untouchable by human law (I, fol. 265r), he exploits his privileged position in order to create his own perverted version of the noble.17 Not only is he a seducer but an indiscreto who discusses his deeds in public. Lelio, whose wife has been dishonoured by Carino, makes this point explicit by identifying himself as Un Cónsul de tu Senado, cuya mujer has forzado más en decirlo después que en hacer tan gran maldad. (I, fol. 266r)

Consequently, Carino not only negates the image of the ruler as an ‘espejo del bien’, but also presents a distorted image of the nobleman.18 Although Carino voluntarily engages in a form of role-playing within the role, the self-proclaimed noble is in fact analogous to the unruly son of Aurelio described by Maximiano at the beginning of the act. The proximity of his primary and secondary roles would therefore have reduced the intensity of the metadramatic experience for Lope’s audience. In spite of this, the debate between Carino, Celio and Rosarda concerning the relationship between theatre and life draws attention to the theatrum Carino’s ‘hábito de noche’ is not only representative of his assumed role of nobleman, but, as McKendrick points out, it also fixes the action temporally: ‘Night scenes could be signalled at a stroke by a long cloak and hat’ (Theatre, p. 194; p. 195). While the relationship between disguise and role-playing is not a major concern in the play, it is important to note that Rosarda accompanies Carino on his nocturnal adventures ‘en hábito de hombre’. McKendrick describes the female dressed as a male as ‘one of the commonest and most popular stock types of the theatre’ (Theatre, pp. 194–95). Lope himself highlights the popularity of the ‘mujer vestida de hombre’ in his Arte nuevo: ‘porque suele / el disfraz varonil agradar mucho’ (282–83). While the ‘mujer vestida de hombre’ is not a common feature of Lope’s comedias de tema religioso, it is important in the dénouement of Los locos por el cielo. In Lo fingido verdadero, the importance of costume as a visual sign of status is highlighted particularly through the emperor Diocleciano. 15 See, for example, Lelio’s speech in which he tells Carino: ‘perdiste la majestad / cuando tu honor ofendiste,’ (I, fol. 266r). 16 In ‘Ya tienes’, p. 61, Dixon states regarding Aurelio, Carino and Apro, ‘Cada uno desempeña mal el papel que le ha asignado el destino’. 17 For an analysis of Amán in La hermosa Ester and Apro in Lo fingido verdadero, who are also exponents of soberbia, see, respectively, chapter 1 and pp. 102–105 of this chapter. 18 See chapter 1, p. 25 on Asuero’s contemplation of kings as ‘espejos del bien’ in La hermosa Ester, and p. 25, n. 43 for details on Seneca’s treatise concerning the behaviour of the emperor Nero and a discussion of the comedia as espejo.

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mundi topos, a prevalent theme in seventeenth-century Spanish literature and art.19 The discussion is set in motion by Carino who asks Celio regarding several actresses: ‘¿Y podrá un Emperador / ser galán de esas mujeres?’ (I, fol. 265r). By defining himself as a galán, Carino unintentionally draws a parallel between drama and reality which he subsequently rejects in a lengthy monologue in which he dissociates himself from the ‘emperador fingido’ (I, fol. 265r). The theatrum mundi metaphor is explicitly addressed for the first time in the play by Celio who compares Carino to the actor-king: [. . .] Les dura hora y media su comedia, y tu comedia te dura toda la vida. Tú representas también, mas estás de Rey vestido, hasta la muerte, que ha sido sombra del fin. (I, fol. 265r)

His views on the illusory nature of life are supported by Rosarda. She describes herself as ‘dama de esta comedia’ and rebukes Celio for his unsuccessful representation of the criado, thereby intensifying the relationship between vida/ comedia and comedia/espejo presented by Lope in his Arte nuevo (I, fol. 265r).20 In contrast, Carino rejects the very notion of the comedia as ‘imagen de la vida’ by instructing Ginés to organise the performance of a play based on a fictitious version of his relationship with Rosarda.21 Carino would like himself to be presented as ‘necio, y celoso’ and Rosarda as ‘discreta’ (I, fol. 265v). Only when faced with death does Carino recognise that he is a player on the world stage without any control of destino. His previous insistence on the permanence of his role is completely undermined by the fact that he does not even die in the garb of an emperor but with ‘la Majestad’ ‘embozada’.22 He emphasises the significance of costume as a visual sign of status as he relinquishes his robes to the next actor-king: sospecho que no duró toda mi vida hora y media. Poned aquestos vestidos

19 On the theatrum mundi metaphor, see chapter 3, p. 92. For Palomo, the theatrum mundi topos is the ‘idea nuclear’ of the play (‘Proceso’, p. 87). 20 See chapter 1, p. 25, n. 43 for Lope’s assertions in the Arte nuevo on this theme. 21 Just before the presentation of Ginés’ play in Act II, the first play within the play in Lo fingido verdadero, Diocleciano announces that he is ready ‘para escuchar la imagen de la vida’ (II, fol. 273r). Unlike Carino, Rosarda asks Ginés to present a play which is an ‘imagen de la vida’ in which she is ‘de mil celos llena’ and Carino is ‘amado, e ingrato’ (I, fol. 265v). 22 See Lelio’s speech, I, fol. 266v.

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De un representante Rey, pues es tan común la ley a cuantos fueran nacidos, adonde mi sucesor los vuelva luego a tomar, porque ha de representar. (I, fol. 266v)

The theatrum mundi topos presents itself throughout the play and is exploited to its full potential in Act III with Ginés’ conversion to Christianity. Following Carino’s death, the depiction of the individual as a roleplayer is reinforced by Severio who, unlike the audience, is unaware of the emperor’s fate. In his description of Carino, he maintains ‘ni toma / un papel en la mano’ (I, fol. 267r). The double meaning implicit in papel as both ‘paper’ and ‘role’ expresses a lack of industry on Carino’s part in the role as deputy ruler, as well as an inability to take on that very role. It is also possible that Severio’s reference served as a reminder to the audience that the papel of emperor would have to be assumed by another individual. It is precisely Apro’s desire to play the role of ruler of the empire which causes him to function as a type of intratextual dramatist as described by Larson.23 According to her: ‘Characters may become self-dramatizing or function as intratextual dramatists or directors, writing new scripts or directing the actions of other characters in a patently self-referential attitude.’24 Apro casts Numeriano, his son-in-law, in the role of enfermo when he is already dead, while he himself poses as the concerned relation. Apro is, in fact, the murderer. This means that the audience is immediately presented with an illusion within the dramatic illusion of the main drama. Apro is transformed from caring minder to professed murderer through his revelation of the secret killing to Felisardo. He openly confesses to him: ‘yo le he muerto, y le he traído / así cubierto y tapado’ (I, fol. 267v). Apro’s complex double image may have generated various levels of estrangement depending on, firstly, the audience’s susceptibility to his references to his son-in-law’s future role as emperor and, secondly, the audience’s awareness of the significance of his name. Following the death of Aurelio, Apro expresses his wish for Numeriano to become emperor, a rejuvenated version of his father. He instructs the soldiers regarding the removal of Aurelio’s body: Llevad el cuerpo luego adonde se le dé el honor debido

23 It should be noted that Apro is intially referred to as ‘Apio’ in the text of the 1621 edition, as well as in the list of characters presented at the beginning of the play. He is first referred to as Apro in I, fol. 267v. 24 See ‘Metatheater: Past, Present’, p. 213.

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para que de su fuego salga, y de su valor recién nacido el Fénix Numeriano. (I, fol. 264r)

Subsequently, when he discusses Numeriano’s feigned illness with Severio, he describes him as: ‘el más gallardo / Príncipe que habrá visto aqueste Imperio’ (I, fol. 267r). There is no indication on Apro’s part that he wishes to eliminate his son-in-law from accession to the throne. Instead, he simply states that Numeriano still has not recovered from his illness: ‘largos caminos, y la mar revuelta / convalecer apenas le han dejado,’ (I, fol. 267r). If Lope’s audience had paid attention to the lack of conflict between the two characters, as well as Apro’s positive depiction of Numeriano’s qualities, then adverse or antagonistic forms of behaviour on the part of either character would not have been anticipated. Consequently, the mimetic reality established up to that point would have been destroyed with the discovery of Apro’s malicious deed through his conversation with Felisardo. The irony of Apro’s previous statement in his discussion with Severio, in which he maintains ‘felicidad de su gobierno aguardo’ (I, fol. 267r), would also have become apparent.25 Both the audience and Felisardo are thus confronted with the fact that Apro’s true identity lies beneath the projected image which was presented intially. The degree of unease experienced by the audience as a result of this sudden exposition of role-change may have been affected by an understanding of the relationship between Apro and ‘aper’, the Latin term for ‘wild boar’. In other words, the establishment of a link between this metaphorical jabalí and that which Camila predicted would be killed by Diocleciano may have raised suspicions regarding Apro’s more barbaric nature. This being the case, Apro’s admission of his unsavoury behaviour may not have produced the same degree of shock or surprise found in an unsuspecting public. In addition, recognition of Apro’s association with the jabalí stresses the futility of his aspirations to become emperor. Of course, the unsuccessful nature of 25 Apro’s declaration is an example of what Catherine Larson describes as ‘linguistic manifestations of dramatic irony’. See ‘Speech Act Theory and Linguistic Approaches to Teaching the Comedia’, in Approaches to Teaching Spanish Golden Age Drama, ed. Everett W. Hesse (York, South Carolina: Spanish Literature Publications Company, 1989), pp. 43–55 (pp. 47–48). In this article, in which she describes speech act theory in terms of its ability to underscore the ways that speakers use language in order to act (p. 43), Larson discusses the function of multi-levelled discourse and linguistic subversion in relation to audience reception: ‘Linguistic game-playing, double entendres, parodic language, and other examples of word play show how language can turn in on itself to create specific effects for the audience’ (p. 48). On speech act theory, see also Inés Azar, ‘Self, Responsibility, Discourse: An Introduction to Speech Act Theory’, and Albert Prince, ‘Dramatic Speech Acts: A Reconsideration’, in Things Done With Words: Speech Acts in Hispanic Drama, ed. Elias L. Rivers (Newark, Delaware: Juan de la Cuesta, 1986), pp. 1–13 and pp. 147–58 respectively.

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Apro’s quest is anticipated generally since Camila’s prediction has identified Diocleciano as the future emperor. Nevertheless, the case of Apro proves that the potential for variation in the degree of estrangement of individual spectators is considerable, depending on their appreciation of details relating to a particular character. Apro is motivated to assume the roles of both murderer and carer as a result of his lust for power, or, in his own words, ‘el deseo de reinar’ (I, fol. 267v). He is acutely arrogant, unremorseful and confident that ‘con tan grande poder, / opinión y sangre mía, / ninguno se ha de elegir / adonde estuviere yo’ (I, fol. 267v). Devoid of any sense of shame, he eliminates Rome’s promising ruler, in spite of his reputation. Although Severio reveals that ‘la gente / a Numeriano espera alegremente’ (I, fol. 267r), Apro endeavours to reshape the fate of both his son-in-law and himself. The self-acknowledged murderer reverts to his position as concerned relation in the company of the soldiers, who are unaware of his crime, in order to ensure his acceptability as Rome’s newly-crowned emperor. He informs the soldiers: ‘Dios sabe con el cuidado / que por su vida miré’ (I, fol. 267v), before highlighting his personal redeeming characteristics: [. . .] Siempre he sido yo padre de cualquier soldado. ¿Qué hacienda no he repartido? ¿Qué pobre no remedié? ¿A quién jamás agravié? Ni fui desagradecido. A cualquiera doy licencia que diga en qué le ofendí. (I, fol. 268r)

The audience now witnesses, as it had done earlier, the presentation of a fictitious pose as an authentic display of emotion. This shift between lo fingido and lo verdadero is emphasised further by Felisardo. Having promised himself as Apro’s confidant, informing him ‘bien puedes fiar de mí / cualquiera dificultad’ (I, fol. 267v), he becomes the traitor who communicates the wicked crime to the soldiers, and consequently ensures Apro’s downfall.26 Apro is the ‘burlador burlado’; the deceiver is ultimately deceived.27 Apro’s engagement in role-playing within the role not only underlines the intangible nature of reality, but also makes a vital contribution to plot development in two significant ways. In the first instance, the murder of Numeriano eliminates Carino’s natural successor and thereby clears the way for Diocleciano’s ascent to the throne. Secondly, by performing as an 26 27

See Felisardo’s speech, I, fol. 268v. See Fischer, ‘Dramatization of the Theatrical’, p. 161.

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assassin, Apro provides Diocleciano with a plausible excuse for murdering him, the jabalí of Camila’s prophecy, and thus converts her prediction into a reality. Felisardo’s transition from confidant to traitor, on the other hand, is not critical to the plot, since the soldiers have already decided that Apro is the murderer. Prior to Felisardo’s declamation against Apro, the audience is exposed to attacks on Apro’s reputation by Maximiano and Curio, following Marcelo’s assertion that illness has not caused Numeriano’s death:28 Maximiano Curio

Eso es cosa muy cierta, y que Apro le ha muerto. En lo que nos dijo ahora, se conoce bien que es Apro, y que le ha dado ponzoña. (I, fol. 268r)

In spite of this, Felisardo’s statement is proof of the villainous conduct of Numeriano’s father-in-law, for which he deserves to be punished. Unlike Apro and Carino who, as intratextual dramatists, create individual positions which lead to the degradation of other individuals, Diocleciano’s change of role within the play is more problematic. His substitution of the role of soldier for that of emperor is preceded by two playful suggestions through which he makes reference to his future status. As the ‘hijo de un esclavo’, he informs the other soldiers that he could become emperor one day: ‘ya ser podría / que fuese Emperador’ (I, fol. 262r). Subsequently, he informs Camila, as he had done on previous occasions, that he will repay her for the bread ‘cuando sea Emperador / de Roma’ (I, fol. 262v). Despite his aspirations, it is Camila who provides the method by which Diocleciano will become emperor, jesting twice that his transformation will occur following the slaughter of a wild boar, or jabalí. In the first instance, Camila maintains: ‘toma, que cuando matares / un jabalí, tú serás / Emperador’. On the second occasion, she simply reinforces what she has already said: ‘tú serás César romano / en matando un jabalí’ (I, fol. 262v). This type of ‘performative language’, as described by Larson, exemplifies how dialogue and action interact in order to produce what she categorises as a ‘representable text’.29 Camila promotes the assumption of both the role of murderer and emperor, the former being crucial to the fulfilment of the latter. As a result of her light-hearted prediction, the question is

28 Marcelo is not included in the list of characters at the beginning of the play. He seems to have replaced Marcio, whose name does feature in the character list and who accompanies the other soldiers at the beginning of Act I. Marcelo’s name first appears in I, fol. 263v, when he is presented with Diocleciano, Curio and Maximiano following the death of Aurelio. 29 See ‘Speech Act Theory’, p. 49; p. 43. In relation to Camila’s prophecy, McGaha claims: ‘One of Lope’s favourite dramatic devices was to begin a play with a foreshadowing of later developments’. See Lo fingido verdadero / Acting is Believing, p. 28.

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raised as to whether Diocleciano engages voluntarily or not in role-playing within the role. In his discussion of involuntary role-playing, Hornby states: ‘Involuntary role playing within the role may be caused by factors outside the character, or caused by some inner weakness, or, quite commonly, caused by some combination of outer and inner factors.’30 While the means of becoming emperor are not detected by Diocleciano himself but presented to him, he willingly and consciously assumes the role for which he yearned. According to Fischer: ‘He takes the prophecy as a cue for his future stage appearance.’31 However, the degree of dissociation experienced by the audience is reduced since Diocleciano’s role-change constitutes a fundamental part of the plot of the play. In other words, his conversion to the status of emperor is imperative since he will be responsible for instructing the martyrdom of Ginés. For those who were not aware of the historical background of the drama, Diocleciano’s change of role would have been anticipated as a result of Camila’s repeated prophecy.32 The conversion, then, of soldier to emperor would have been expected generally. Essentially, then, it is Camila who is the primary intratextual dramatist responsible for the rewriting of the script of Diocleciano’s life. However, the soldier himself also resorts to the creation of his own fiction before acting as Apro’s assassin. He informs Apro: [. . .] La imagen espantosa de Numeriano, tu yerno, convertida en negra sombra anoche me apareció, y me dijo con voz ronca que de su sangre inocente diese esta venganza a Roma. (I, fol. 268v)

By doing so, Diocleciano justifies his role as murderer to Apro, to the other soldiers and, most importantly, to himself. While he is not driven by a desire to become the tyrannical, authoritarian ruler, it cannot be denied that he engages in an element of deceit, like Apro, in an attempt to validate his course

Drama, Metadrama, p. 74. ‘Dramatization of the Theatrical’, p. 159. 32 Palomo describes Diocleciano’s first claim presented to the soldiers regarding his future role as emperor as ‘un primer dato de la complicidad entre emisor y receptor: el público sabe que no es locura sino premonición’ (‘Proceso’, p. 83). While I suspect that a significant proportion of the audience might well have known that Diocletian was emperor during the martyrdom of Genesius as a result of the availability of texts on the life of the emperor, such as Mexía’s Historia imperial, it is possible that several spectators were unaware of the precise historical details. This being the case, not every individual would have interpreted Diocleciano’s assertion as a statement of fact. 30 31

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of action. Nonetheless, it appears that Diocleciano is more concerned with the manifestation of his inherent generous nature and the rewarding of deserving individuals. Following Camila’s prediction, he invites the soldiers to share his bread, claiming: que a verme yo por misterio en el imperio algún día, también repartir sabría como este pan el imperio. Toma y come, Maximiano, que has de ser mi coadjutor. Tú, amiga, por tanto amor, si llego a César romano, verás lo que eres por mí. (I, fol. 262v)

Unlike Apro’s, Diocleciano’s aspirations to the throne do not involve the infliction of suffering on the innocent. In addition, there is no indication that the role will be manipulated, as it was by Carino, in order to humiliate those of a lesser rank for personal pleasure. Diocleciano, endowed with humildad, not only acknowledges the risks involved in killing Apro by reminding himself ‘mira que nadie te abona, / que soy hijo de un esclavo (I, fol. 268v), but also offers himself up for punishment following his justification of his deed (I, fols 268v–269r). In effect, it is the soldiers who confer the title of emperor upon Diocleciano. Despite the fact that Diocleciano has been motivated by Camila’s prediction, he nevertheless has doubted his acceptability as ruler of the empire. His newly-acquired status, therefore, is not one which he has taken by force, but one which he has earned. On the basis of this evidence, it could be argued that Diocleciano’s change of role within the play is one which has a positive impact on himself and those around him. Indeed, once he assumes his position as emperor, in keeping with his promise, he transforms Maximiano from soldier to César, and makes Camila both a privileged subject with unlimited access to his quarters and his lover.33 Such changes would have been expected, of course, by those who regarded Diocleciano as a man of his word.34 Humildad is rewarded through the character of Maximiano as Diocleciano ignores his plea for his status to 33 It should be noted that, while we have been concerned in this section with roleplaying within the role and the conversions of roles in Act I of the play, the change of roles conferred upon Maximiano and Camila by Diocleciano occur at the beginning of Act II. 34 In her discussion of ‘performative language’, Catherine Larson highlights the significance of the promise: ‘In addition to the promise, curses, blessings, and warnings offer a focus of attention that can lead to an examination of the world-changing power of words.’ See ‘Speech Act Theory’, p. 49.

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be lowered to that of criado and elevates him to the rank of César instead.35 The placing of the ‘hojas consagradas’(II, fol. 270r) upon Maximiano’s head is an outward symbol of his changed position. The laurel constitutes a visual representation of identity and role, which is of extreme importance to Diocleciano who relinquishes wealth in exchange for the emperor’s attire.36 He informs the soldiers: Pues esa tienda toda de Numeriano y su suegro, dineros, armas y joyas, repartid entre vosotros, que a mí me basta esta ropa y esta espada que os defienda. (I, fol. 269r)

However, it is highly probable that the corral audience would not have seen Diocleciano in such a positive light since he is the pagan who is ultimately responsible for imposing a death sentence upon Ginés, the Christian. In spite of the fact that the emperor would have been expected to react in such a manner to a convert’s open confession, the degradation of the Christian at the hands of the pagan would surely have provoked a negative reaction from Lope’s audience. In comparison with Carino and Apro, Diocleciano appears to play his role well, earning himself the titles of ‘invicto señor’ and ‘César ínclito’ and being defined in terms of his ‘sacra Majestad’ and ‘raro divino entendimiento’.37 Nevertheless, the fact that he can be viewed in a negative light emphasises the difficulties which arise when categorising behaviour/role. In spite of the necessity of Diocleciano’s assumption of the role of emperor for the purposes of plot development, his change in status may serve as a critique for some members of the corral audience of a restrictive hierarchical structure such as that which characterised seventeenth-century Spanish 35 Maximiano implores Diocleciano: ‘suplícote que me tengas / por tu criado en tu casa / que ya de lo justo pasa, / que a igualarme a tu ser vengas’ (II, fol. 269v). 36 It should be noted that contemporary costumes were used in the corrales, with the result that Diocleciano was more than likely presented in the garb of a contemporary king. On the use of costume in the comedia, McKendrick comments: ‘As in the Shakespearean theatre, contemporary dress was normally worn whatever the period depicted, with vaguely distinguishing costumes or accessories for kings and queens, Moors, Turks, angels, devils and so on. [. . .] However, ethnic and historical accuracy apart, a limited range of costumes and accessories was normally perfectly adequate for the drama’s requirements’ (Theatre, p. 195). Lope presents his reservations about the use of costume in his Arte nuevo: ‘Los trages nos dixera Iulio Pollux, / Si fuera necessario, que en España / Es de las cosas bárbaras que tiene / La Comedia presente recebidas: / Sacar un Turco un cuello de Christiano, / Y calças atacadas un Romano’ (356–61). 37 See Maximiano’s and Ginés’ speeches, II, fol. 269v and fol. 270v respectively.

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society.38 A slave of lowly birth, he himself is dubious about his approval by the other soldiers. Furthermore, he is exposed to the pessimistic remarks of Curio, the ‘anti-playwright’, who presents his position as soldier as a fixed, stable one, and negates the possibility of change. Curio advises him: ‘nunca en agüeros confíes. [. . .] Come, y deja de pensar / en lo que no ha de llegar’ (I, fol. 262v). However, Diocleciano’s successful realisation of his dream to become emperor, as well as Felisardo’s rejection of the importance of ‘sangre’ and ‘opinión’, promote the individual’s ability to transcend socially-imposed limitations.39 The relationship between changeability/unpredictability and ‘fortuna’ is one which presents itself throughout the play. Camila, for example, who has herself experienced a change of fortune as a result of Diocleciano’s promotion, comments on this issue prior to the presentation of Ginés’ second play within the play in Act III: Ved lo que puede la fortuna varia, que a unos levanta y a otros aniquila; ¿en qué piensa parar esta voltaria, que ya vuela en maroma, y ya en esfera del viento? (III, fol. 280v)

It is through Diocleciano and, as we shall see, Ginés, that the potential for profound change is best exemplified in the play. It is evident, then, that varying degrees of audience dislocation are generated primarily as a result of the spectators’ sensitivity to, and interpretation of, the material presented within the dramatic framework. Moreover, the various forms of role-playing undertaken by the three characters presented above are all crucial to plot development. With the elimination of both Carino and Apro from succession to the throne as a consequence of their vile actions as seducer and murderer respectively, the path is cleared for Diocleciano’s essential progression towards control of the empire. In spite of the problems posed when differentiating between positive and negative forms of role-playing, especially in the case of Diocleciano, it is clear that soberbia is ultimately punished, while humildad is rewarded. The failure of both Carino and Apro to assume the principal position of authority is proof of the individual’s powerlessness to control or reshape destino. On the other hand, Diocleciano’s success in the same quest testifies to the capricious nature of existence, or the illusory nature of life, which has been emphasised 38 Of course, those spectators who knew that Lope was following the account given in Pero Mexía’s Historia imperial would not have interpreted Diocleciano’s assumption of his new role in the same manner. 39 Felisardo informs Apro: ‘que el romano Senado, / cualquiera César que toma / el ejército y legiones / aprueba sin distinción / de sangre, ni de opinión’ (I, fol. 267v).

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throughout Act I. The fate of the three characters highlights that life is indeed a perplexing, deceptive dream or play. The degree of audience estrangement reaches its height in Acts II and III with the presentation of Ginés’ inset plays. Hence, the play within the play, as we shall see subsequently, offers the audience the prime opportunity to reflect on the concerns of the playwright.

The Play within the play For a play within the play of either the inset or framed type to be fully metadramatic requires that the outer play have characters and plot [. . .]; that these in turn must acknowledge the existence of the inner play; and that they acknowledge it as a performance. In other words, there must be two sharply distinguishable layers of performance. (Drama, Metadrama, p. 35)

In Lo fingido verdadero, the inset plays presented by Ginés to an inner audience comprising Diocleciano and his favourites are not only highly metatheatrical but extremely complex performances.40 Not only do they impact on the action of the main play itself, but also frustrate the expectations of both the outer and inner audiences.41 Moreover, the actors themselves, including Ginés, creator and main protagonist, are often perplexed by plot

40 For a definition of the inset play and the framed play, see chapter 3, p. 94, n. 24. It should be noted that Fischer defines the play in terms of three inner dramas, ‘with or without the element of artistic formality but always with the key ingredient of impersonation’ (‘Dramatization of the Theatrical’, p. 158). She describes the first as ‘a political drama that deals with Diocleciano’s ascent to the Roman throne’ (p. 158). For the purposes of this study, I am concerned with the full metadramatic quality of the play within the play as defined by Hornby. Thus, Diocleciano’s rise to power cannot be qualified as an inset play given the absence of two explicit layers of performance in the first act. The play within the play is a device which features in several other religious plays by Lope. In Los locos por el cielo, for example, an auto on the birth of Christ is presented in Act III to a church congregation of 20,000 Christians in order to reinforce the tenets of the Christian faith. See Stoll, ‘Staging, Metadrama’ for an analysis of this inset play. As well as that, the crucifixion of Juanico, a Christian child, is presented in Act III of El niño inocente de La Guardia by the Jews Hernando, Francisco, Benito, Pedro and Quintanar. The various characters associated with the crucifixion are enacted by the Jews. Finally, a section of the story of Esther, from Amán’s denunciation of the Jews to Esther’s appearance before the king, is enacted in Act II of La limpieza no manchada. On the play within the play, see also Nelson, Play Within a Play. 41 Palomo argues that the actors of Ginés’ company and the inner audience receive a ‘mensaje equívoco’, while the outer audience experiences a ‘mensaje inequívoco’ (‘Proceso’, p. 92). As will be highlighted in the course of this study, the concept of audience reception is more complex than that. Dixon makes this point explicit: ‘en varios momentos de la acción el público externo queda engañado, o cuando menos auténticamente perplejo’ (‘Lo fingido verdadero y sus espectadores’, p. 111).

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development.42 In fact, as will become evident, Ginés ultimately assumes a role to which he had never aspired, substituting his preoccupation with human love for devotion to the divine. It is his love for the actress Marcela, however, which inspires his first inset play. The first play within the play is preceded by two canciones and a loa. The first canción celebrates the election of Diocleciano as emperor, while the second highlights the beauty of Lucinda, Lope’s poetic name for Micaela de Luján.43 The play begins with the harsh rejection of Rufino (played by Ginés) by Fabia (played by Marcela). The shunned lover questions his beloved: ‘¿tan resuelta vives, Fabia, / de tratarme con rigor / y no agradecer mi amor?’ (II, fol. 274r). The illusion of the inset play is broken almost immediately as Ginés, overwhelmed by ‘loco amor’ (II, fol. 274r) for Marcela, addresses her as such rather than by her character’s name. Subsequently, Rufino is granted Fabia’s hand in marriage by her father, Señor Tebandro, who is impersonated by Fabricio, father of Marcela in the main play. Once the engaged couple have embraced, Rufino and Tebandro leave the stage in order to discuss the proposed marriage with Rufino’s father. An onstage conflict ensues between Fabia and the jealous Octavio, performed by the character Octavio of the main play. Octavio rebukes Fabia for her treatment of him, her supposed lover, while Fabia uses obedience to her father as justification for her actions. Following Pinabelo’s suggestion that the lovers should take flight and his revelation to the outer audience of his plot to keep Fabia for himself, Marcela/Fabia expresses her wish for the action of the comedia to become a reality. The lovers’ escape is made public by Celio, a criado, after Tebandro and Rufino disclose the successful outcome of their meeting with Rufino’s father. While Tebandro leaves to pursue the couple, Rufino/Ginés engages in a lengthy monologue in which he expresses his desire that the ship carrying the lovers will get out of control. His second, improvised speech in which he calls on Neptune to wreak destruction is followed by the confusing dénouement which leaves the actors within the inset play, the inner audience and the outer audience bewildered. Fabricio announces that the actors who were playing Fabia and Octavio have really fled, Ginés calls upon the perplexed Diocleciano to act as restorer of justice, but Pinabelo declares that Octavio has returned. Ultimately, Pinabelo’s statement marks the end of the inset play for the inner audience, while his subsequent conversation with Ginés

42 Garasa incorrectly maintains that the actors in the first play within the play can distinguish between fiction and reality: ‘Pero los actores, al tanto del conflicto real entre bastidores, ven claramente los límites entre la vida y la ficción’ (Santos, p. 20). 43 On the presentation of the canción and the loa, Dixon states: ‘el público habrá pensado en las representaciones de particulares en Palacio’ (‘Lo fingido verdadero y sus espectadores’, p. 106). The song which celebrates Lucinda’s beauty exploits the language and conventions of the Petrarchan sonnet. Lucinda’s mouth, for example, is described in the following manner: ‘que su boca celestial / no sea el mismo coral, / bien puede ser, / mas que no excedan la rosa / en ser roja, y olorosa, / no puede ser (II, fol. 273v).

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stresses to the outer audience that the fiction of Ginés’ play has in fact become a reality within the main drama. In other words, Ginés’ play ends with the departure of Octavio and Marcela, rather than the return of Octavio and Fabia. The intricate fusion of the action and characters of the main play and those of the inset play is of course responsible for the establishment of a complex form of audience reception. Nevertheless, both the inner and outer audiences’ interpretation of the play within the play is also affected by their individual horizons of expectation. The inner audience’s expectation is summed up by Diocleciano immediately preceding the first canción. He tells Camila that he is ready ‘para escuchar la imagen de la vida’ (II, fol. 273r).44 This assertion follows a conversation with Ginés, who emphasised to the emperor the relationship between acting and imitation and the advantages of having experienced the feelings associated with a particular role. Ginés explains: El imitar es ser representante; pero como el poeta no es posible que escriba con afecto y con blandura sentimientos de amor, si no le tiene, y entonces se descubren en sus versos cuando el amor le enseña los que escribe, así el representante, si no siente las pasiones de amor, es imposible que pueda, gran señor, representarlas; (II, fol. 271v)

Therefore, while Diocleciano’s description of the play he is about to hear suggests that he foresees it as a performance based on Ginés’ personal experiences as a lover, having requested a representation of an amante, there is no indication that he is aware of the galán’s true feelings for his leading lady, Marcela. In contrast, the outer audience is not only introduced to Ginés, the jealous lover, prior to his performance before the emperor, but is also acquainted with Marcela’s love for Octavio and details relating to the inset play. The impact of jealousy upon Ginés is made explicit in a monologue in which the actor forms a decisive link between the individual and role-playing. Ginés identifies his senses as ‘representantes’ which are each assigned a particular role. His ‘oídos’, for example, play the part of the ‘sordo’ who refuses to listen to reason, while his ‘tristes ojos’ perform the role of the ‘ciego’ who recites his passion. His ‘olfato’, on the other hand, ‘imita una gente / que dicen mil escritores / que 44 Lope comments on the aural reception of the comedia in his Arte nuevo: ‘Si hablare el Rey, imite cuanto pueda / La grauedad real; si el viejo hablare / Procure vna modestia sentenciosa; / Descriua los amantes con afectos / Que mueuan co[n] estremo a quie[n] escucha. / Los soliloquios pinte de manera / Que se transforme todo el recitante, / Y con mudarse a sí mude al oyente’ (269–76).

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del olor de las flores / se sustenta solamente,’ (II, fols 271v–272r). Ginés emphasises the proximity of his fictional role within the inset play and his sentiments as the jealous lover in the main play by asking his senses to act for him: ‘pues vístanse mis sentidos, / y representen por mí’ (II, fol. 272v). Despite the fact that Pinabelo advises him, ‘entra a ponerte galán’ (II, fol. 272v), the outer audience is conscious of the fact that the use of costume is unnecessary since he is, to a large extent, the part that he will play. Apart from an insight into the character of Ginés, Lope’s audience is also presented with material concerning the relationship in the main drama between Ginés, Marcela and Octavio, and introduced to the theme of the inset play. It is the conversation between Ginés and Pinabelo which serves as the source of this information. Ginés stresses that his unrequited love for Marcela causes him to suffer in the manner of the courtly lover. Following Pinabelo’s enquiry concerning the pampering of the beloved, Ginés retorts: ¿Regalo a quien me desvela, y nunca me tuvo amor? No me nombres, Pinabelo, esa mujer. (II, fol. 272r)45

Ginés also makes direct reference to the bond between Marcela and Octavio and the impact that his dismissing the latter would have on the former. He explains: ‘hará en ausencia de Octavio / algún sentimiento injusto’ (II, fol. 272r). In addition, the corral audience is informed that the theme of jealousy will present itself in the inset play. Specifically, according to Ginés, the play will not be a ‘celosa comedia’, but, given its subject matter, a ‘tragedia’. In the guise of Rufino, Ginés will have the opportunity to embrace Marcela/Fabia on several occasions, since he admits that he has exploited his dual role as dramatist/protagonist: ‘compúsela con cautela, / por darle tantos abrazos, / cuantas prisiones y lazos / pone al alma que desvela.’ Finally, the inset play will be manipulated ‘por tratar mal / a Octavio’ (II, fol. 272v). In essence, the outer audience anticipates an enactment of the relationship between Ginés, Marcela and Octavio, albeit with modifications. While the illusion of the main play constitutes the basis of the inset play, it is evident that this will be reworked somewhat to Ginés’ advantage. Moreover, as a result of the complicity between the outer audience and the playwrights (both Ginés, now as ‘writer’, and Lope as original author), some degree of thematic

45 On insomnia as one of the effects of love in courtly love poetry, see chapter 1, p. 26, n. 45. Félix and Clara in La buena guarda also suffer from insomnia as a result of their love for one another. Additionally, they suffer from loss of appetite, another common trait of the courtly lover. Félix explains ‘Ya no como ni duermo’, while Clara tells her lover ‘No he comido ni dormido’. See I. 689 and I. 946 respectively.

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conflict will be expected. The inner audience, on the other hand, simply looks forward to a performance in which love will be the prominent theme. As a result of the intermingling of the main play with the first inset play, the deliberate destruction of mimetic reality takes place and generates varying levels of identification and non-identification between the outer and inner audiences. The first instance of the interplay between lo fingido and lo verdadero occurs in the introductory scene in which Fabia rejects Rufino’s love for her. Ginés/Rufino addresses his dama in the following manner: Bien sé, Marcela, que nace el hacerme aqueste agravio de que quieres bien a Octavio; Octavio te satisface, Octavio te agrada, ingrata; por él me dejas a mí. (II, fol. 274r)

Having been introduced previously to Ginés’ feelings for Marcela, the outer audience would recognise the invasion of reality upon the fiction of Ginés’ play. On the other hand, since there is no indication of the inner audience’s familiarity with the relationship between the two, we would expect its experience of the inner play to be somewhat different. This is indeed the case, as illustrated by the comments of Maximiano, Léntulo and Diocleciano. While Maximiano believes that the characters have become confused, Léntulo attributes this to the presence of the emperor.46 Diocleciano himself interprets the confusion of the lover as a deliberate dramatic technique employed by Ginés: Mas pienso que es artificio deste gran representante, porque turbarse un amante fue siempre el mayor indicio. (II, fol. 274r)47

However, it should be noted that Ginés stresses the fact that he is speaking as himself, rather than Rufino, following Marcela’s/Fabia’s enquiry regarding his use of her real name: Marcela

¿Cómo me llamas Marcela, si soy Fabia?

46 Maximiano states: ‘sospecho que se han turbado, / que hablando a solas están.’ Léntulo subsequently addresses Diocleciano: ‘con mirarte olvidarán, / señor, lo más estudiado’ (II, fol. 274r). 47 Confusion, of course, was the cornerstone of the secular love poetry of the Cancionero general (1511) anthology.

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Por hablarte de veras, por obligarte a que tu desdén se duela de aqueste mi loco amor. (II, fol. 274r)

The inner audience’s failure to even suspect Ginés’ love for Marcela increases the estrangement of members of the outer audience who, rather than see its own role reflected in the onstage audience, sees it negated. For the corral audience, the Ginés/Rufino interchange within the inset play serves to reinforce the illusory nature of life which is central to seventeenth-century Spain’s theocentric view of the world. Hornby specifically refers to the association between such a world view and the use of the play within the play: Whenever the play within the play is used, it is both reflective and expressive of its society’s deep cynicism about life. When the prevalent view is that the world is in some way illusory or false, then the play within the play becomes a metaphor for life itself. The fact that the inner play is an obvious illusion (since we see other characters watching it), reminds us that the play we are watching is also an illusion, despite its vividness and excitement; by extension, the world in which we live, which also seems to be so vivid, is in the end a sham. (Drama, Metadrama, p. 45)

The transformation of the fate of both Octavio and Marcela within the main drama as the action of Ginés’ play becomes a reality is indeed proof of the deceptive and unpredictable nature of existence. In fact, it is the flight of Octavio and Marcela that is chiefly responsible for the disruption of harmony of both the inset and main plays in Act II. Marcela’s/Fabia’s declaration, in which she links the comedia to reality, follows Pinabelo’s exposition of the plot and prompts Octavio’s reference to her by her real name. Pinabelo’s allusion to the flight of the lovers proves so attractive to Marcela/Fabia that she remarks: ‘¡Ay, cielo, si verdad fuera / la comedia!’ (II, fol. 275v). Moreover, she reiterates her desire to escape as Marcela with her beloved by informing Octavio ‘tan perdida estoy, / que quisiera que a Ginés / le hiciéramos este tiro’ (II, fol. 275v). While the lovers’ conversion of fiction into reality will only be revealed explicitly to the outer audience and to Ginés himself by Fabricio/Tebandro as the inset play draws to a close, Marcela hints at the course of action which will be taken. In response to Octavio’s expression of admiration for her loyalty to him, Marcela replies: ‘mayor la verás después’ (II, fol. 275v). Hence, as a consequence of Marcela’s allusion to the lengths to which she is prepared to go for her lover, it is possible that the outer audience might anticipate the ensuing dénouement. Undoubtedly, then, outer audience estrangement is dependent upon how it receives the coded message of the inset play. However, the degree of dissociation experienced by the outer audience is also affected by their subjection to

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the various interpretations of the scene by the inner audience. Diocleciano’s admission that he suspects that a relationship exists between Octavio and Marcela is counterbalanced by Léntulo’s lack of awareness of the situation.48 In fact, Léntulo’s summary of the plot development he anticipates confirms his indifference to the previous name changes and dialogue: Ahora quiere el criado ser traidor a su señor, que Octavio al padre traidor viene a quedar engañado. De suerte que aquel Rufino y este Octavio han de quedar sin Fabia, y la ha de gozar su esclavo. (II, fol. 275v)

Essentially, then, it is the complexity of reality and its relationship with falsification and misconception that is brought to the outer audience’s attention. Furthermore, the association of human love with random, irrational forms of behaviour is also underscored, regardless of whether the departure of Marcela and Octavio or Fabia and Octavio is envisaged.49 For the remainder of the inset play, the delusion and confusion of both the outer and inner audiences highlights the intangible nature of reality. The first individual to allude to the lovers’ actions is Celio, the criado. He relates to Fabricio/Tebandro and Ginés/Rufino that Fabia and Octavio have escaped by boat.50 Consequently, by referring to the characters by the names attributed to them in the inset play, Celio presents their flight as fictional, that is, as part of the action of the play within the play, even if it may have been interpreted by the outer audience as ‘real’.51 Moreover, the delay of the lovers to reappear on stage may have increased the outer audience’s expectation of their flight within the main play. Ginés stresses that their return constitutes the next scene of his play by instructing Celio ‘di que salgan’ (II, fol. 276v). Nevertheless, their failure to present themselves does not raise Ginés’ suspicions. Instead, he believes that ‘sin duda se están vistiendo’ and repeats their cue to enter (II, fol. 276v). It is only through Fabricio’s direct reference to the

Diocleciano states: ‘sospecho que representan / éstos su misma verdad’ (II, fol. 275v). On the association of human love with madness and irrationality, see chapter 2, p. 80, n. 100. 50 See his speech, II, fol. 276r. 51 The choice of Celio as criado and bearer of news also contributes to the complex interplay between fiction and reality, if he is the same Celio who was servant to the philandering Carino. This being the case, Celio is the part he plays. The outer audience’s ability to identify him as such increases the probability that his announcement will be viewed in the context of its impact on the main play. 48

49

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disappearance of his daughter, made all the more poignant with the removal of the false beard of Tebandro, that Ginés and the outer audience are clearly informed of the reality of the situation for the first time. Fabricio laments: Castigo, invicto señor, que el mismo paso que hacía Fabia, o Marcela, hija mía, a quien amaba el autor, han hecho tan verdadero que han salido del palacio, y en este pequeño espacio que aun era el paso primero, no parecen, ni hay un hombre que diga por dónde van. (II, fol. 277r)

Yet the sensibilities of both character and audience are frustrated once again as Pinabelo announces the return of Octavio, the lover who bears the same name in both the main play and inset drama. This deliberate creation of ambiguity on Lope’s part is only clarified for Ginés and the outer audience following the close of the inset play. At this point, Pinabelo advises Ginés: ‘recoge / al pensamiento la vela’, ‘[. . .] Ella y Octavio / se van, Ginés, a embarcar’ (II, fol. 277r). As the outer audience attempts to establish an understanding of the sequence of events presented on stage, it is exposed to the confusion and duping of the inner audience. Indeed, it witnesses the destruction of mimetic reality for Diocleciano in particular following Fabricio’s explicit reference to the departure of Marcela and Octavio. Ginés’ plea to Diocleciano to act as restorer of justice perplexes the emperor, in spite of his allusion to Octavio’s true love for Marcela. In response to Ginés’ claim ‘muy cierto es / que Octavio amaba a Marcela’, Diocleciano questions the actor/playwright ‘¿hablas de veras o no?’ (II, fol. 277r). His inability to ascertain the course of action required illustrates to the outer audience the difficulties encountered in attempting to detect the necessary or appropriate form of behaviour in reality. The final deception of the inner audience, for whom the return of Octavio constitutes the ending of the inset play and who is not fully aware of the link between the performance and the reality of the main play at this stage, exemplifies, and is symbolic of, the powerlessness of the individual to comprehend the true nature of existence.52 52 By Act III, Diocleciano is conscious of the fact that Marcela and Octavio have converted fiction into reality and asks Ginés to describe the outcome of their actions – ‘¡Oh Ginés! / No te hemos visto después / de aquella riguridad / que usó Marcela contigo. / ¿Qué se hicieron?’ (III, fol. 278v). While Diocleciano, at the end of the first play within the play, asks Ginés to return the following day to perform the part of a Christian (II, fol. 277r),

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Ultimately, the outer audience ‘sees double’, not only as a result of the presentation of the inset play within the main play, but also through the duplicity within the inset play itself. As we shall see, this multiple layering effect, which constitutes the most complex form of metadrama, is also a primary feature of Ginés’ second play within the play. In essence, the first inset play reinforces the illusory nature of life by approximating lo fingido and lo verdadero. Moreover, it underlines the inability to detect authenticity, a theme which recurs throughout Lo fingido verdadero. Beyond the confines of the inset play, Octavio, for example, still cannot distinguish between fiction and reality when he discovers his newly-wed in the company of Ginés. He informs his wife: ‘que aun las burlas, no las veras / que representa contigo / me parecen verdaderas’ (III, fol. 279v). In addition, the inset play stresses the impossibility of control, even within fiction, and the futility of the individual’s attempts to steer events of life in a certain direction – the presumption of assuming the position of God. In the case of Ginés, his efforts to create a situation in his drama which is inconceivable within the reality of the principal play are thwarted.53 Specifically, his anticipated performance as the abandoned betrothed who finally confronts his beloved and her lover is prevented by Marcela’s and Octavio’s manipulation of fiction for their own ends.54 While the course of action taken by these characters is evidence of the sacrifice which the individual is willing to make for the sake of love, human love is fundamentally associated with negative forms of behaviour and sentiments within Ginés’ play. Not only is it responsible for the suffering of Ginés/Rufino, who is only briefly relieved of his pain with the promise of his marriage to Marcela/Fabia, but it also causes conflict between the true lovers of the inset play. Octavio hurls bitter accusations at Fabia, describing her as ‘ingrata’, following his discovery that she has been embraced by Rufino (II, fol. 275r). Moreover, Ginés/Rufino exemplifies the relationship between the unfulfilment of human love and aggression. As the personification of the abandoned lover, Ginés/Rufino engages in an improvised, hostile outburst through which he promotes the annihilation of the lovers by calling upon Neptune to act as a destructive force.55 Ultimately, the overpowering and debilitating effects of human love are manifested through Ginés’ description of the events following the departure of the couple (Fabricio’s discovery of the lovers, the marriage of Marcela and Octavio and Ginés’ forgiveness of them) suggests a longer time span. 53 Ginés himself emphasises the impossibility of a future relationship with Marcela. In response to Pinabelo’s advice to ask Fabricio for Marcela’s hand in marriage, he replies: ‘que los casamientos son / unión de las voluntades, / y en distintas calidades / es imposible la unión’ (II, fol. 272v). 54 Marcela subsequently identifies Ginés as the culprit regarding her newly-found reality. She tells him: ‘pero tú, que compusiste / la comedia en que me diste / a Fabia, que a Octavio amó, / el camino me enseñó; / luego la culpa tuviste’ (III, fol. 279r). 55 See his speech, II, fol. 276v.

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Marcela’s/Fabia’s willingness to risk honour and reputation for union with her beloved.56 In Ginés’ second inset play, his preoccupation with human love in the first is replaced with a concern with the divine. As the following analysis of this play will demonstrate, the fiction of the inset play once again imposes on the reality of the main drama, resulting in Ginés’ conversion to Christianity by the end of Act III. As in the first play within the play, the second is introduced by a canción which alludes to the birth and crucifixion of Christ and the martyrdom of Christians, together with a loa recited by Marcela. The canción, which establishes a relationship between Christianity, suffering and martyrdom, prepares the audience subconsciously for the dénouement of the second inset play: the conversion and martyrdom of Ginés. The drama itself opens with the presentation of Ginés/León, the professed Christian, in the company of three soldados and a capitán. Following an invitation by an angel to receive the sacrament of baptism and the soldiers’ and captain’s comments on deviation from the script, Ginés/León disappears behind a curtain and reappears surrounded by angels having apparently been baptised. The remainder of the inset play is marked by a series of improvised speeches by Ginés/León in which he confesses his devotion to God, describes his conversion in theatrical terms and requests martyrdom. In addition, the drama becomes increasingly complex as a concerned soldier and captain call upon the prompter to assist the main protagonist and a confused Fabio is reminded by both the inner audience and by the captain that he has already played his part. Finally, the play ends with Ginés’ explicit reference to his conversion to Christianity and Diocleciano’s subsequent bewilderment regarding the truthfulness of Ginés’ statement. Before the performance of the inset drama commences, the interplay between illusion and reality is highlighted as a result of Ginés’ inability to determine the source of the voz which addresses him during rehearsals. The voz advises Ginés on the portrayal of the baptised Christian: ‘no le imitarás en vano, / Ginés, que te has de salvar’ (III, fol. 280r). In spite of the fact that Ginés debates whether the announcement is a heavenly authorised one, or, erroneously, a fictitious statement made by a member of his troupe, he finally accepts that ‘Fabio debió de ser / que en lo del ángel me habló’ (III, fol. 280v).57 Indeed, the impact of the voz on Ginés, which, he admits ‘todo mi oído me ha penetrado el sentido,’ (III, fol. 280r), is undermined by Fabio. 56 In La buena guarda, Clara also endangers her image as a reputable nun by abandoning her duties and fleeing with her lover. See chapter 5. 57 On the use of the voz to establish the first form of contact between the saint and the divine, see Dassbach’s affirmation cited in chapter 2, p. 57. Ginés’ inability to accept the authenticity of the voz echoes the reaction of Pedro, father of Isidro, to the prediction of the voz concerning his son’s future role in La niñez de San Isidro. See chapter 2, p. 58.

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The latter reduces Ginés’ supernatural experience with the divine to a confrontation with human love through the association of the cielo, from which the voz has emanated, and the ángel, who has spoken to Ginés, with Marcela. He states: Como Marcela es tu cielo, y el ángel había de hacer, pensando en ella recelo que piensas que ha de poder glorificarte en el suelo, pues advierte que no sabe el ángel, y que me manda que le estudie. (III, fol. 280v)

Fabio’s unintentional degradation of Ginés’ heavenly encounter is made all the more poignant for members of the corral audience, given their awareness of the influence of the supernatural. The incorporation of a painting of the Virgin and Christ in his father’s arms into the play highlights the impact of divine intervention upon the action.58 Consequently, this complicity between playwright and audience impresses upon the latter’s horizon of expectation, for whom Ginés’ eventual change of role is reinforced. Naturally, the degree of audience estrangement achieved is also determined by the outer audience’s familiarity with the hagiographical account of the saint’s life. For certain members of the audience, there can be no surprises in the dénouement. Those who are acquainted with the account of Ginés’ life are confident from the outset that his conversion will take place at the end of the play. However, the audience in general does not know at what exact moment Ginés’ transformation will be enacted. Dixon stresses this point in his reference to the audience’s inability to differentiate between Ginés’ lines: ‘Iniciada la representación, tampoco saben siempre cuáles son los versos improvisados por Ginés.’59 The audience is forced to question what constitutes the illusion of the inset play, and what is evidence of Ginés’ true conversion. In other words, it experiences difficulty in distinguishing between Ginés, the feigned

58 For Orozco Díaz’s analysis of the dramatic effectiveness of the presentation of the king or the Virgin by means of ‘la pintura’ or ‘la imagen’, see chapter 2, p. 76, n. 85. Dassbach emphasises the significance of divine intervention in Lo fingido verdadero by stating that Ginés’ conversion is not prompted by the role which he plays, but rather by the influence of supernatural forces: ‘Aunque críticos [. . .] afirman que la conversión de Ginés es resultado del papel teatral que éste representa sobre un cristiano, pienso que esto debe considerarse como circunstancial ya que no se convierte, reflexiva o emocionalmente, instigado por su papel, sino a causa de las fuerzas sobrenaturales que operan sobre él mientras representa este papel’ (La comedia hagiográfica, p. 48, n. 8). 59 ‘Lo fingido verdadero y sus espectadores’, pp. 112–13.

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Christian, and Ginés, the new convert. In fact, Ginés’ final assertion which precedes his performance is ambiguous. Just prior to appearing before his royal audience, the actor exclaims: ¡Cristo mío, pues sois Dios, vos me llevaréis a vos, que yo desde ahora os sigo! (III, fol. 280v)

This speech may have caused the corral audience to suspect that Ginés’ transformation had already occurred, or may simply have been interpreted as a form of preparation or an extended rehearsal on the part of the actor for the role which he is about to assume. Dixon interprets the impact of this speech in a similar fashion. According to him, ‘no pueden saber si sólo está ensayando otra vez o si se ha convertido ya’.60 Consequently, the outer audience does not receive what Palomo describes as a ‘mensaje inequívoco’, even while watching this play, the plot of which is known. The captain’s and soldier’s references to Ginés’ abandonment of the script may have generated increasing suspicion regarding his assimilation of the role of the Christian. However, it is possible that the inner audience’s repeated comments on the proximity of Ginés’ presentation of the feigned Christian to the true, self-confessed Christian may have engendered confusion among members of the corral audience. Maximiano, for example, comments: Represéntale Ginés, que parece que lo es, y verdadero el suceso (III, fol. 281r)

Undoubtedly, however, the most significant part of the second inset play in terms of audience reception is the interpretation of the baptismal scene. Essentially, this scene comprises two main parts, the first of which is introduced with the stage direction: ‘Un ángel en lo alto’ (III, fol. 281v). The angel provides the actor with an invitation for baptism, addressing him as Ginés (his real name), rather than as León (his fictional name within the inset play). The angel states: ‘sube, sube, llega a verme, / que te quiero bautizar’ (III, fol. 281v).61 Subsequently, Ginés/León, having withdrawn behind a curtain, emerges in the

‘Lo fingido verdadero y sus espectadores’, p. 112. Ginés responds ‘Señor, aunque no sé hablar / Tú sabes bien entenderme, / pues este lenguaje mudo / de mi pensamiento entiendes; / llévame donde pretendes’ (III, fol. 281v). His inability to speak to the angel mirrors the concerns of both Pedro in La niñez de San Isidro and Isidro himself in La juventud de San Isidro regarding the inappropriateness of their speech when addressing God. See chapter 2 for further details. 60 61

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company of four angels. The stage directions read: ‘Descúbrase con música hincado de rodillas; un ángel tenga una fuente, otro un aguamanil levantado, como que ya le echó el agua, y otro una vela blanca encendida, y otro un capillo’ (III, fol. 281v). The inner audience’s interpretation of this scene is unquestionable. Following the appearance of the first angel, Diocleciano declares: Ginés finge ahora que después que a Jesucristo adoró, que es el Dios de los cristianos, aquel ángel viene a verle, a enseñarle, y defenderle. (III, fol. 281v)

Similarly, the staging of the baptism itself is interpreted as fictional, and evokes comments on Ginés’ persuasive acting skills. While Léntulo claims ‘no hay diferencia / desto al verdadero caso’, Diocleciano is convinced that ‘parece que lo es él mismo’ (III, fol. 282r). However, in terms of its impact on the outer audience, the baptismal scene has produced oppositional responses from two of the play’s main critics. Palomo argues that the outer audience knows that the baptism is not part of the play, but rather that ‘pertenece, convencionalmente, al plano de la vida’.62 Dixon, on the other hand, claims: ‘Los espectadores externos, por tanto, no pueden haber sabido al presenciar el bautismo de Ginés por este actor y otros, que no fuera sólo, como suponían los demás, un paso no ensayado pero añadido en el último momento a la representación interna.’63 Crucial to the analyses of these critics is the identification of the character who plays the part of the ángel. According to Palomo, the ángel is not impersonated by the actor Fabio, in spite of the fact that, prior to the performance, Ginés has instructed Fabio to play this role. Ginés informs him: ‘como pudieres le harás, / ven, repásale conmigo’ (III, fol. 280v). Palomo presents the following argument: ‘Porque el hecho de salir ‘en lo alto’ y además, no ser el actor Fabio, identifica para el espectador [. . .] a ese Ángel como auténtico mensajero celestial’.64 In contrast, Dixon maintains that the inner audience’s and the capitán’s subsequent association of Fabio with this angel when the young actor unwittingly appears to play his part is only justified if the actor playing Fabio also plays the role of the first angel presented: ‘sí tiene que ser el mismo actor, llevando naturalmente el mismo atuendo. Sólo así se justifica la total seguridad con la cual le reconocen los demás’.65

‘Proceso’, p. 93. ‘Lo fingido verdadero y sus espectadores’, p. 113. 64 ‘Proceso’, p. 93. 65 ‘Lo fingido verdadero y sus espectadores’, p. 113. The capitán advises Fabio ‘¡sí habéis salido!’, while Diocleciano and Camila both comment on the fact that they have already 62 63

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Although I support Dixon’s contention that the inner audience’s inability to distinguish between the angel and Fabio suggests that the same actor played both parts (by using one actor for both roles, Lope would have created deliberate ambiguity within his play, and thereby intensified the relationship between lo fingido and lo verdadero), one crucial factor in terms of the outer audience’s interpretation has been overlooked by Palomo and Dixon.66 Neither has considered the manner in which the angel addresses the autor/actor. The angel refers to him as Ginés and not as León, the name of the Christian which he plays in the inset drama. Consequently, the audience may well have registered the form of address used and automatically identified the character of Ginés and therefore accepted the baptismal scene as part of the illusion of the main, rather than inset play. On the other hand, the character’s name (León) is presented on one occasion only in the play within the play and may not have provided a sufficient opportunity for the outer audience to associate the character with his name. This occurs when the capitán reprimands him with ‘mucho, León, replicáis’ (III, fol. 281r). This single reference must surely be overshadowed by the various references to the Christian as Ginés by Diocleciano, in his discussion of the actor’s performance, and indeed by the capitán, who calls on the prompter to provide assistance. In addition, Fabio states: ‘Ginés, de parte de Dios / te vengo a hablar’ (III, fol. 282v) when he enters onstage to impersonate the angel which the inner and outer audiences have already seen and heard. Therefore, it would seem more likely that the outer audience would have identified the character ‘León’ as Ginés and would have been unable to further suspend disbelief with regard to the play within the play.67

seen Fabio. Diocleciano states: ‘¿pues no te he visto yo mismo?’ and Camila declares: ‘hombre, ¿qué dices?, que yo / y todos te habemos visto!’ (III, fol. 282v). 66 On the appearance of angels as human beings, Dassbach states: ‘Ocasionalmente, sin embargo, los ángeles asumen la apariencia o persona de otros seres humanos, como ocurre a los ángeles convertidos en trabajadores de la construcción en Santa Teresa de Jesús [. . .], o al ángel que suplanta a Fabio, un actor, en Lo fingido verdadero’ (La comedia hagiográfica, p. 111). As will be seen in chapter 5, angels also assume the images of Clara and Carrizo in La buena guarda. In addition, the characters in La buena guarda are unable to distinguish between Clara and Carrizo and the angels which play their roles while they are absent. This would suggest that the same actress and actor played both parts. However, as will be discussed in chapter 5, the encounter between ‘Clara’ the angel and Clara the nun, and Carrizo with Carrizo fingido, makes the impersonation of both characters by one actor an impossibility in each case. 67 If we accept Case’s claim on the use of special effects in the form of the different levels on the stage, then the emergence of the angel ‘en lo alto’ and the use of the ‘discovery’ endow the action with a type of supernatural authority. The outer audience’s recognition of Lope’s subtle use of stage techniques would have conditioned its sensibility to divine intervention at this point in the drama. See chapter 2, p. 70, n. 71 and p. 71 for further details on Case’s comments on the three levels of staging in the comedia de santos.

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While the complexity of reception cannot be denied, there is no doubt that both the outer and inner audiences ultimately are persuaded to accept the superiority of divine love to human love in both the inset and main plays.68 As Bryans indicates, ‘Human love must give way to that more perfect love, the divine love for which it is a preparation’.69 Essentially, Ginés exchanges his love for Marcela for love of God and contentedly prepares for martyrdom.70 His rapid conversion from pagan to Christian is further evidence of the inconstant nature of reality and the unruly essence of destino. Ginés describes his transformation into the ‘mejor representante’ (III, 282v) to the inner and outer audiences and to his compañía in theatrical terms: Césares, yo soy cristiano, ya tengo el santo bautismo, esto represento yo, porque es mi autor Jesucristo; en la segunda jornada está vuestro enojo escrito, que en llegando la tercera representaré el martirio. (III, fol. 282v)

However, in spite of Ginés’ deliberate destruction of mimetic reality, Diocleciano repeats his inability to distinguish between fiction and reality which he demonstrated at the end of the first play within the play. Following Ginés’ speech, he questions him: ‘¿hablas de veras, Ginés?’ (III, fol. 282v). His uncertainty serves to underline the pagan’s inability to identify ‘real’ life which is divinely inspired. Ginés is indeed speaking the truth; in fact, his movement towards a divinely-inspired love is emphasised through the use of theatrical language. Ginés himself explains: Puso Dios en mi papel estos pies, que no pudiera 68 For a comparison between human and divine love in both La hermosa Ester and La buena guarda, see chapters 1 and 5 respectively. On the relationship between human and divine love in Lo fingido verdadero, Trueblood states: ‘We now see the full irony in Genisus’ [sic] earlier assertion that role and reality coincide for the lover: the words are true of divine love, not of human.’ See Alan S. Trueblood, ‘Role-Playing and the Sense’, p. 314. Trueblood devotes pp. 312–15 of this article to a study of Lo fingido verdadero. 69 See ‘Fortune’, p. 141. 70 El Amor Divino appears as an allegorical character in Act III of Santa Teresa de Jesús. A clear identification between this character and Christ is established as Amor Divino emerges with a crown of thorns in his hands and is aided by Teresa to carry his cross. The saving grace of divine love is underlined by Teresa’s reaction to the presentation of the crown of thorns to her. She comments that the thorns ‘Hoy, en mí, / no son sino clavellinas’. See Obras, Biblioteca de Autores Españoles, 186–87, XI–XII (Madrid: Atlas, 1965), XII, 247–305 (p. 302).

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seguirle si no pusiera todos estos pies en él. Con éstos le voy siguiendo en la comedia y comida de su mesa, y de la vida y gloria que en Dios pretendo (III, fol. 282r)71

In essence, the double meaning implicit in pies suggests not only that God is the autor of Ginés’ role, but that a definitive transition from pagan to Christian occurs. Effectively, Ginés becomes involved in a new paso created by God. His shift to that particular ‘scene’ is underlined by the angel who instructs him ‘camina, Ginés, camina, / Ginés’ (III, fol. 282r). Indeed, Ginés now enjoys control, which he did not have in his first inset play, when he hands himself over to God. In contrast to Ginés who is engaged in a forward journey, Fabio expresses a desire to retreat when he appears to play the part of the angel.72 The capitán informs Diocleciano ‘quería / volver al paso’ (III, fol. 282v). Carino, in opposition to Ginés, lacks direction, as he tells Celio and Rosarda ‘estoy / desocupado de pies’ (I, fol. 266r). Moreover, Carino stresses the fictitious, unstable nature of his existence in his reference to the relationship between his ‘pies’ and poetry: ‘que en tratando con poetas, / pienso que están en sus rimas’ (I, fol. 266r). Fundamentally, both Fabio and Carino represent the antithesis of Ginés. In other words, paganism is debased while Christianity is extolled in the play. Ginés alludes to the redeeming power of divine love in a comparison between the heavenly and demonic troupes of players. According to him, Nicodemus, a member of God’s company, buries individuals who later rise from the dead: ‘Nicodemus mete muertos, / pero luego resucitan.’ On the other hand, the pecador is responsible for the burial of the dead in Lucifer’s compañía, ‘mas no vuelven a vivir’ (III, fol. 284r).73

On the importance of dining in a religious context, see chapter 2, p. 71, n. 72. In La buena guarda, Félix is involved in a forward movement towards the consummation of human love. He declares: ‘pasos, no volváis atrás’ (I. 344). 73 It should be noted that Roman emperors, representatives of paganism, are debased by Ginés since they are assigned to Lucifer’s company of players. According to Ginés, ‘en esotra compañía / Judas hacía traidores, / romanos Emperadores, / la crueldad y tiranía’ (III, fol. 284r). According to Dassbach, when the demonio is absent from the comedia de santos, ‘Hay una tendencia en los actores a asociar, o encarnar, las fuerzas del mal en otros personajes, claramente identificados con grupos de creencias religiosas no cristianas: judíos, moros, o paganos’. ‘En El niño inocente de La Guardia, las fuerzas diabólicas aparecen encarnadas en los judíos; [. . .] en Lo fingido verdadero, en los paganos’ (La comedia hagiográfica, pp. 112–13; p. 122, n. 37). By extension, other characters in Lope’s comedias de tema religioso are also embodiments of such fuerzas diabólicas. See, for example, Amán in La hermosa Ester and the gentlemen who attempt to lure Clara in La buena guarda (III. 375–78). 71 72

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While Ginés’ comparison of both compañías serves to define the predominance of amor divino, it is precisely his description of diabolical, Biblical and saintly characters as roleplayers which is particularly striking. Ginés’ second inset play makes explicit reference to the theatre of the world metaphor and reinforces the contemporary theocentric view of real life after death. Accepting his sentence resolutely and rejecting the worldly for the divine, Ginés abandons the company of the devil and moves to that of Jesús. With God as his scriptwriter, Ginés announces: ‘mañana temprano espero / para la segunda parte’ (III, fol. 284v). Following his baptism, Ginés addresses God: ‘representad conmigo desde hoy más’ (III, fol. 282r). His request not only anticipates his participation in the comedia divina at the end of the play, but also emphasises the theatrical nature of human existence which has prepared him to assume his true role. Ginés underscores the image of the individual as a roleplayer in a speech in which he reveals God’s involvement in his role. As far as he is concerned, everyone is a ‘representante’.74 Interestingly, Diocleciano is also responsible for the reinforcement of the theatrum mundi concept. He recognises that he must perform the part of restorer of justice following Ginés’ confession.75 Hence, he orders the convert ‘morirás en comedia, / pues en comedia has vivido’ (III, fol. 282v), and assigns roles to Léntulo and Sulpicio: y acabaré mi papel con que Léntulo y Sulpicio prendan y examinen luego a cuantos vienen contigo. (III, fol. 282v)

In the final analysis, the rejection of paganism is presented alongside the abandonment of lo fingido of existence for lo verdadero of the afterlife. Ultimately, despite the fact that self-referential devices generate varying levels of audience estrangement throughout the play, Lo fingido verdadero is undoubtedly an example of a well-crafted metadrama. In fact, the ‘seeing double’ which is fundamental to metatheatre is not only presented through the incorporation of two inset plays within the main drama, but also as a result of the double images of characters within the inset plays themselves. Moreover, the unexpected role-changes of both Diocleciano and Ginés prove that destino cannot be controlled, and at the same time debase the concept of a restrictive existence. The illusory nature of life is highlighted through the characters’ inability to detect the roles which they must assume, while the reality of the See his speech in III, fol. 282r. The final restoration of order was one of the conventions of the comedia. As McKendrick highlights: ‘Often there are representatives of law and order – dukes, princes, kings – who contribute in some way to the solution at the end’ (Theatre, p. 73). 74 75

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afterlife is underscored in Ginés’ reference to the comedia divina. The establishment of identity is presented as a complicated process for the individual concerned (such as Ginés) and for those who witness his behaviour. Ultimately, Lope’s play expresses a sense of disillusion with life. While the relationship between amor divino and amor humano is not the principal focus of Lo fingido verdadero, the play does discredit negative attitudes and forms of behaviour associated with human love, while divine love triggers Ginés’ martyrdom and assumption of his true role. As the following study of La buena guarda will demonstrate, Clara, like Ginés, is also prompted to assume a number of roles as a result of a preoccupation with love, both human and divine.

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5 DOÑA CLARA – SAINT OR SINNER? ROLE-PLAYING WITHIN THE ROLE IN LA BUENA GUARDA Written in 1610 and first published in 1621, La buena guarda presents the plight of Clara, abadesa, who is forced to confront the effects of both human and divine love.1 Based on the legend of the monja sacristana, a devoted nun who abandons the monastery with her lover and who is replaced by the Virgin or an angel in her absence, La buena guarda focuses on the flight of Clara with Félix, the mayordomo.2 The play opens with a diatribe against female vanity as Carrizo, the sacristán of the monasterio, criticises the female preoccupation

1 An autographed manuscript of this play, dated 16th April 1610 and entitled La encomienda bien guardada, is currently held at the Biblioteca Nacional, Madrid. The play was first published with the title La buena guarda in Decimaquinta parte de las comedias (Madrid: Fernando Correa de Montenegro, 1621). For full bibliographical details of the edition of the play used for the purposes of this study, see chapter 2, p. 77, n. 88. This play has attracted little critical attention, although there have been some interesting analyses in recent times. See especially Fernando Lázaro Carreter, ‘Cristo, pastor robado (Las escenas sacras de La buena guarda)’, in Homenaje a William L. Fichter: Estudios sobre el teatro antiguo hispánico y otros ensayos, eds David A. Kossoff and José Amor y Vázquez (Madrid: Castalia, 1971), pp. 413–27; María del Carmen Artigas, ‘Edición crítica y anotada de La buena guarda de Lope de Vega’ (unpublished doctoral thesis, University of Virginia, 1990), ‘El mito del paraíso en La buena guarda (1610) de Lope de Vega’, Explicación de textos literarios, 19 (1990–91), 29–36 and ‘ “La mancha en la sangre versus la mancha en el alma” en La buena guarda de Lope de Vega’, RN, 32 (1991), 127–32. 2 The legend of the monja sacristana was extremely popular in Europe between the twelfth and sixteenth centuries. According to both Giménez Castellanos and Menéndez y Pelayo, the text written by Cesáreo de Heisterbach, a Cistercian monk, constitutes the oldest known version of the legend. (See La buena guarda, p. 10, and Estudios, II, 86.) In ‘Edición crítica’, however, Artigas states on the origin of the legend: ‘Añadiremos que es nuestra opinión que el primer autor de la leyenda no es Heisterbach, sino que probablemente fue compuesta unos años antes por un monje inglés, cuyo nombre desconocemos,’ (p. 8). Artigas’ work is an invaluable study which not only presents an annotated edition of La buena guarda, but also includes an examination of Marian literature in the West, in Spain and in Lope’s work, with specific reference to the legend of the sacristana in Spain and in Lope. It should be noted that, while La buena guarda is not a comedia de santos, it is included in an analysis of Lope’s hagiographic plays by both Menéndez y Pelayo (Estudios, II, 85–95) and Garasa (Santos, pp. 76–78). Dassbach categorises this play as a comedia piadosa (La comedia hagiográfica, p. 5, n. 3), while Aragone Terni includes it in a list of commedie apologetiche e devozionali (Studio sulle, p. 84).

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with physical appearance.3 Subsequently, the action concentrates on Félix’s declaration of love for Clara, the efforts of both to overcome human passion, and Clara’s ultimate decision to become his lover. In Act II, the extent of Clara’s devotion to the Virgin is illustrated through the lengthy monologue which she offers to her patron and in which she calls upon the Mother of God to protect her flock. Outside the monastery, Clara and Félix consummate their love while an angel plays the role of Clara, abadesa, under orders from the Virgin. At the end of Act II, Clara resolves to win divine favour, having been abandoned by Félix. Thus, in Act III, Clara, disguised as Juana, the labradora, returns to the monastery after three years of penance, confronts the angel who has been playing her part and regains her authority as abadesa. Unlike Lo fingido verdadero, La buena guarda is not a fully-developed metaplay, but it does concern itself with the metatheatrical device of roleplaying within the role. Through the exploitation of this technique, the play emphasises the problematic nature of identity in terms of both physical appearance and the inherent characteristics of the individual. Audience dissociation is not only generated as a result of the enactment of various roles by Clara, abadesa / adúltera / labradora, but most significantly, through the presentation of the complex double image of Clara, protagonist, and Clara, the angel who takes her place in the abbey.4 Indeed, the replacement of Carrizo during his absence from the monasterio with Carrizo fingido, another angel, also contributes to the estrangement of the audience.5 Essentially, angels perform Clara’s and Carrizo’s original roles as they assume new ones. As will become evident in the course of this chapter, Clara’s engagement in roleplaying is defined by her shifting concern with human and divine love. In fact, Clara plays three discrete parts within the drama as ‘esposa de Cristo’ (I. 334), ‘adúltera’ (II. 138) and ‘labradora’ (III. 692), which are conditioned by divine love, human love, or a combination of both. As a result of her movement away from the status of saint to sinner and her return to that of saint, Clara, like Ginés, ultimately recognises the pre-eminence of divine love to human love. 3 The topos of female preoccupation with physical appearance has its roots in classical elegiac poetry and was often a standard criticism in anti-feminist discourse of Spanish medieval literature. In La Celestina, Sempronio even alludes to the elegant appearance of women in his condemnation of intrinsic female characteristics. He warns Calisto: ‘considera qué sesito está debaxo de aquellas grandes y delgadas tocas, qué pensamientos so aquellas gorgueras, so aquel fausto, so aquellas largas y autorizantes ropas, qué imperfición, qué alvañares debaxo de templos pintados.’ See Fernando de Rojas, La Celestina, ed. Dorothy S. Severin, 6th edn (Madrid: Cátedra, 1992), p. 97. 4 In the 1621 edition of La buena guarda, several amendments were made. The monasterio of the manuscript became a casa de señoritas and the names of Spanish towns and cities were omitted. Clara herself was reduced from the status of abadesa to a nun who had not yet taken her vows. It would seem that this last change was made in order to avoid any criticism of religious orders. 5 While I will concentrate on the various roles played by Clara in the play, reference will also be made to the double image of Carrizo and Carrizo fingido where appropriate.

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Unlike Ginés, who is only inspired by divine love towards the end of Lo fingido verdadero, Clara is introduced to the audience as a devout, Godfearing, saintly abadesa, endowed with ‘honestidad’, ‘paciencia’ and ‘inocencia’.6 Nevertheless, the abadesa abandons her role in order to pursue human passion. This ‘ángel en velo humano’ (I. 625), according to Carrizo, is prompted to adopt an alternative role within the play by Félix, the enamoured mayordomo.7 In spite of the fact that she manages to resist Félix’s advances on two occasions, Clara finally surrenders to her lover when he professes his love for a third time. She insists: y así, vengo a suplicarte con lágrimas en los ojos, que me lleves o me mates. (I. 955–57)

By doing so, she runs the risk of losing her ‘gran santidad’ which, in Félix’s opinion, is common knowledge.8 Essentially, Félix is the intratextual dramatist who is responsible for redirecting the course of Clara’s existence.9 He introduces her to the concept of human passion by declaring his personal love for her.10 Clara makes this point explicit: el día que me dijiste amores o disparates, no pude dormir, pensando los efectos que amor hace; y de pensar los efectos, me nació el determinarme a quererte; [. . .] (I. 918–24)

See Félix’s speech, I. 649–713 (678–85). Ironically, Clara perfectly fits Carrizo’s description when an angel impersonates her in Acts II and III. As far as Félix is concerned, he embodies the typical characteristics of the courtly lover. In the belief that he is pursuing an impossible love for an unattainable woman, he states: ‘que no hay mal que tenga igual / a amar imposiblemente’ (I. 329–30). Additionally, he describes his state in terms of Petrarchan conceits: ‘Ponme esa nieve / sobre aquestos labios presto; / ponla presto, que me abraso’ (I. 746–48). Likewise, Cosme, who subsequently falls in love with Clara, describes his condition in a similar fashion: ‘A mí me incita y me mueve / tan vivo desasosiego, / que es nieve, y me abrasa el fuego, / y es fuego, y me hiela en nieve’ (III. 224–27). See chapter 1, p. 23, n. 38 for a brief discussion of courtly love poetry and Petrarchism. 8 Félix tells Clara: ‘Dicen mil cosas aquí / de vuestra gran santidad’ (I. 407–08). 9 See chapter 4, p. 102 for Larson’s definition of the intratextual dramatist. 10 This is a clear example of the force of eloquence which can be found in other plays by Lope. For instance, in La dama boba, Finea is awakened to love through the power of rhetoric, that is, through what Laurencio tells her. 6 7

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Although it is Clara who ultimately chooses to become, in Félix’s words, his ‘esposa y eterno dueño’ (II. 100), the mayordomo represents the external factor which influences her decision. In addition, Clara specifically refers to a particular inner factor which shapes her course of action. In a lengthy monologue in which she regretfully redefines herself as ‘adúltera’, Clara pinpoints passion as the uncontrollable force which determines her change of role. She addresses the Virgin in the following manner: Con lágrimas lo digo, Virgen bella: adúltera soy ya; yo voy perdida; que un ciego amor me arroja y atropella, y una pasión en vano resistida. (II. 137–40)

Through the rejection of legitimate love/God, Clara unwillingly becomes the embodiment of Eve, the sinner. Consequently, the establishment of the saint/sinner or Virgin/Eve dichotomy means that the Virgin functions almost as the alter ego of Clara on a divine plane. Clearly, then, while Clara’s engagement in role-playing within the role cannot be defined as involuntary, the impact of the factors outlined above upon her transformation would have affected the degree of audience estrangement generated.11 Moreover, since her involvement in role-playing, like that of Ginés and Diocleciano in Lo fingido verdadero, is fundamental to the development of the plot, the intensity of the metadramatic experience for the outer audience might have been limited, depending on familiarity with the legend of the sacristana. Nevertheless, there can be no doubt that some level of dissociation would have been produced as a result of Clara’s various transformations. What is particularly thought-provoking about Clara’s assumption of the role of adúltera, or lover of Félix, is the fact that the former abadesa is endowed almost with a reluctance to embrace the part. As already stressed, she agrees to adopt this specific role, but at the same time recognises that she is consciously about to undertake a negative form of role-playing. In opposition to Carino and Apro, who also play negative parts in Lo fingido verdadero, but are free from any form of guilt, Clara describes her behaviour to the Virgin as ‘tan gran maldad’ (II. 154) and takes flight with Félix in spite of her sense of ‘vergüenza’ (II. 141).12 Thus, while it cannot be denied that Clara becomes a sinner as she abandons her flock, ‘de seglar’ (II, 63), in order to consummate her love with Félix, the outer audience might have been forced to sympathise with this character. Clara is not solely responsible for her actions, but 11 See chapter 4, p. 98, n. 12 for Hornby’s definition of involuntary role-playing within the role. 12 For an analysis of Carino and Apro in terms of role-playing within the role, see chapter 4, pp. 98–105.

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apologises regardless before leaving the monasterio. Indeed, the explicit reference within the play to the Virgin’s protection of Clara’s reputation during her absence might have conditioned the audience’s judgement of the abadesa’s actions. The Virgin, in the form of an offstage voz, which, as we have seen throughout the course of this study, constitutes an important link with the supernatural in Lope’s comedias de tema religioso, instructs an angel: Al punto te transforma en esta miserable, que, perdida, a su esposo desprecia desta forma. De su rostro y sus hábitos vestida, sirve su oficio, y las demás informa de divinos consejos. (II. 187–90)13

Therefore, rather than interpreting Clara’s departure from the convent as a selfish, despicable act, it is more likely that the audience would have regarded it as the actions of a confused, manipulated individual. The change in Clara’s status from saint to sinner is accompanied by a significant alteration in Félix’s discourse. The earlier eulogy of her inner virtue is now replaced with a detailed description of her physical beauty. In Act II, Félix compares his beloved’s beauty both to nature and to several mythological characters and concludes that Clara is more beautiful: aquí, donde las flores parece que se esfuerzan diligentes a vencer tus colores, aunque las desengañan las corrientes, espejo de sus hojas, contigo menos blancas, menos rojas, puedes, hermosa Clara, pasar aquesta siesta calurosa, si no es que el sol se para a verte entre las flores, y más hermosa que Daphne y que Jacinto, (II. 383–93)

The association of human love with physical attractiveness and divine love with inner beauty which is established by Félix is a concept which is underlined

13 Clearly, the Virgin/Voz safeguards Clara’s role as abadesa by putting an angel in her place. In Acts II and III, the pastor/Christ who appears to Clara and urges her to return to the convent also has an impact on Clara’s course of action. Clara remarks: ‘Quizá este pastor es ángel, / y me anima a dar la vuelta’ (III. 524–25). It could therefore be argued that both the voz and the pastor function as divine intratextual dramatists within the play.

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throughout the play. It is illustrated particularly through Clara as she undertakes her quest to regain divine favour (which she believes she has lost) in the guise of Juana.14 After Félix’s reluctant abandonment of his beloved following his discovery that she is still secretly wearing the scapular of her order, Clara simultaneously assumes the roles of Juana, the labradora, and of repentant sinner.15 Clara’s change of role is significant because it is provoked for a second time by the behaviour of Félix. In spite of her obvious, constant religious devotion, Clara is unable to detach herself from Félix. The separation of the couple is imposed upon her. Hence, it is only when she is abandoned that Clara fearfully seeks out her ‘first husband’: ¿Qué haré? Toda estoy turbada. Ya tiemblo mi airado Esposo, y no sé por dónde vaya a buscarle, aunque jamás cerró sus puertas al alma que le llamase contrita. (II. 959–64)

In effect, the audience might have regarded Clara’s repeated failure ‘to act’ without the influence of external factors as a sign of the protagonist’s weakness. Clara is in fact a ‘reactive’, rather than a ‘proactive’ role-player. However, it is also possible that Clara’s ability to manipulate unforeseen and uncontrollable events would have generated audience commendation. This is possible because Clara maintains a constant, identifiable relationship with the divine in spite of the imposition of roles upon her. As adúltera and sinner, Clara’s scapular represents a visual sign of her dedication to her previous role. Subsequently, as she impersonates Juana, the labradora and pastora (an appropriate role for an abadesa, which foreshadows her return to positive role-playing), her explicit task of looking after her flock is overshadowed by her personal mission to indulge in prayer, fasting and penance in an attempt to receive divine forgiveness for her past actions.

14 Carrizo also emphasises the relationship between human love and physical beauty by stating the reasons why he would like to travel to Toledo. He informs Félix and Clara of the attractions which Toledo offers: ‘gente noble, entendimientos / raros, damas siempre hermosas’ (II. 619–20). The italics are mine. At the beginning of Act I, in the role of the hypocritical sacristán, Carrizo criticises women who spend an excessive amount of time on beauty treatments because, in his opinion, their physical appearance will attract the attention of potential suitors at Mass. Carrizo laments: ‘y si ellas vienen ansí, / esos, ¿miráranme a mí?’ (I. 175–76). 15 Félix highlights his grief to Carrizo before abandoning his beloved: ‘a Clara he escrito esta carta, / aunque breve de razones / de pesadumbre bien larga’ (II. 883–85). In addition, he explains that his course of action is determined by his fear of God’s reprisal – ‘el temor de la justicia, / de su presencia me aparta’ (II. 894–95).

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Cosme, the labrador who seeks Clara’s hand in marriage, informs his father regarding her pious lifestyle: Vive como una santa, recogida en oración perpetua y en ayunos; métese en esas peñas que coronan las márgenes del Tajo, y dase en ellas tantos azotes, que sus carnes bellas las hacen jaspe con la sangre viva; (III. 194–99)

Essentially, her love for the divine is not explicitly substituted with human love, but in fact constitutes a latent preoccupation for the protagonist. As she relinquishes the role of adúltera for that of Juana, Clara/Juana becomes increasingly described in terms of her inherent, saintly characteristics, rather than her physical beauty. For both Cosme and Gentilhombre 2o, she is an ‘ángel’;16 she is subsequently described as a ‘virtuosa’ who is invested with ‘honestidad’.17 The redefinition of Clara as Juana, both in terms of her pious nature and in terms of Juana’s occupation as pastora serves as a preparation for the play’s dénouement, when the saint/sinner will embrace the position of abadesa once again. It is evident, then, that while it is difficult to ascertain the level of audience dissociation created as a result of the performance of several roles by the principal character, the metadramatic strategy of role-play focuses the audience’s attention on the question of identity. Clara demonstrates that the individual is a composite of oppositional, intrinsic characteristics – strength/weakness, perfection/imperfection – and is driven by both rational and irrational forces. The complexity of individuality is highlighted further through the introduction of an angel, in the guise of Clara, into the play.18 As the following analysis will demonstrate, the incorporation of Clara fingida into the action causes the destruction of mimetic reality for the outer audience, who witnesses the acceptance of Clara fingida as the absent Clara by a range of characters. The complicity between the outer audience and the playwright functions on various levels and ultimately produces what Palomo describes as a ‘mensaje inequívoco’.19 In the first instance, the corral audience not only witnesses the presentation of both Clara and Clara fingida onstage in Acts II and III, but is also privy to the Virgin’s instructions to the angel to assume the role of the

See III. 241 and III. 374, respectively. See the remarks of Gentilhombre 1o, III. 384 and Gentilhombre 2o, III. 381, respectively. 18 For the purposes of this study, and in an attempt to underline the relationship between the angel and Clara, I will refer to the angel as Clara fingida. 19 See chapter 4, p. 110, n. 41 for further details on Palomo’s analysis of the complicity between Lope and the corral audience in Lo fingido verdadero. 16 17

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absent nun. Consequently, the outer audience is explicitly informed by the dramatist that Clara fingida is indeed a fictitious representation of Clara. On the other hand, the characters in the play who remain within or in contact with the monasterio following Clara’s disappearance are unaware of the fate of their former abadesa, and, therefore, are ignorant of the true identity of Clara fingida. Their inability to differentiate between this new leading female and the previous one is hardly surprising since the Virgin has instructed the angel to assume both the ‘rostro’ and ‘hábitos’ of her predecessor.20 Carrizo, Félix and indeed Clara herself remain ignorant of the state of affairs at the monasterio. Clara may have beseeched the Virgin to protect her flock from the ‘hambriento león’ (II. 167), but she has not witnessed the outcome of her request. This means, therefore, that only the corral audience ‘sees double’ where Clara is concerned.21 Secondly, the cast list provided by Lope at the beginning of his play highlights the fact that Clara and Clara fingida, and indeed Carrizo and Carrizo fingido, were not played by the same actress/actor.22 As a result, the use of two actors in each case would not only have been necessary, given the fact that the characters ultimately confront one another, but also might have served to underline the distinction between the real and fictional self for the corral audience, despite Lope’s attempts to approximate the physical appearance of both. When Clara fingida first appears, the stage directions read: ‘Entren el Angel en figura de Doña Clara, y don Carlos’ (II, 83). Similarly, Carrizo fingido ‘entre con el traje que traía el que se fue con Félix y con Clara’ (II, 71). It is highly probable that the deliberate presentation of the fictitious characters in the garb of their true counterparts might have made the characters’ acceptance of them as the real Clara and Carrizo more convincing to the outer audience.23 Fundamentally, the impact of the double image of Clara upon the outer audience is twofold. Firstly, the inability of the characters to uncover the true identity of Clara/Clara fingida stresses the individual’s susceptibility to delusion by

See p. 132 of this chapter for the Virgin’s complete instructions to the angel. It should be noted that, while Carrizo and Clara eventually come face to face with their respective fictional selves when they return to the monasterio, neither has the opportunity to conduct a thorough comparison between himself/herself and his/her namesake. 22 In the 1621 edition of this play, the cast list is omitted. Below the list of ‘figuras de la comedia’, the text simply reads: ‘Representóla Riquelme’. See Decimaquinta parte, fol. 204v. It should be noted that Carrizo, who deludes other characters with his false saintliness, is replaced with Carrizo fingido, the angel who warns Ginés against ‘mujeres’ and ‘juego’, the ‘terribles enemigos’ (II. 375–76). The play subsequently shifts between the presentation of Carrizo fingido, the devout sacristán, who is accepted as Carrizo, and Carrizo, the gracioso, whose primary concerns include food and women. See chapter 2, p. 60 for Case’s definition of the conventional gracioso. 23 While this play negates the relationship between costume and identity, costume is an outward sign of role and status for Diocleciano in Lo fingido verdadero. 20 21

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outer appearances.24 Not even Clara’s father, Don Pedro, suspects that he is conversing with a supernatural being, rather than his daughter, when he informs her of the behaviour of his philandering son-in-law, Carlos.25 On the other hand, Clara is unable to detect any similarity between herself and the so-called doña Clara de Lara with whom she comes face to face. Following Carlos’ revelation to her of the abadesa’s name (III. 700), Clara questions the unrecognisable stranger: ‘¿sois, señora, la Abadesa?’ (III. 724). Most significantly, however, Clara’s reassumption of the role of abadesa presents no problems in terms of acceptance by the other characters. Hence, in spite of her father’s inability to distinguish between his daughter and the angel, Clara’s own inability to recognise any similarity between herself and the character in question, and the distinction drawn by Carlos between the abadesa and the visiting labradora, Clara’s transition from Juana to abadesa is a fairly smooth, uncomplicated one. Nevertheless, Clara finds herself having to improvise when she resumes her role. The role is that of abadesa which she had carried out previously, but the role is now prescribed by the angel’s playing of it. In several asides, Clara emphasises that she is out of touch. In one of these, she states: ‘A todos tiemblo de hablarlos, / porque no sé la ocasión’ (III. 828–29). The outer audience is aware of Clara’s need to improvise, while the characters surrounding her, a type of inner audience, mistakenly believe that she is out of touch because she is elevada. Essentially, in the wider context of seventeenthcentury Spain, the case of doña Clara stresses to the corral audience the difficulty of discovering the legitimate identity or personality of the individual in a society which has abandoned itself to illusionism. In other words, the illusory nature of life, which lies at the heart of the seventeenth-century concept of theatrum mundi, is highlighted through doña Clara.

24 While the portera notices some recent change in the abadesa, claiming ‘de unos días a esta parte / está en ángel convertida’ (II. 814–15), she is completely unaware of the truthfulness of her statement. Likewise, Ginés’ observation of slight changes in the character of the sacristán does not prompt him to dispute the identity of the latter whom he simply accepts as Carrizo. He tells Carlos: ‘no tiene aquellas señales / que en el hermano se ven. / Es el mismo y no es el mismo; / más modesto y más compuesto / trae el hábito y el gesto’ (II. 335–39). At the beginning of Act I, Carrizo emphasises the artificiality of physical appearance in his discussion of female beauty treatments. He refers to their use of ‘fingido color’ and their ‘canas mal disimuladas’ (I. 125; 133). A play which deals with the concept of susceptibility to delusion by outer appearances is very much in keeping with an obsession of the literature and art of the period, often called the theme of Ser/Parecer. At the heart of the literature and art of seventeenth-century Spain was the notion of the individual’s susceptibility to engaño, a concept which was encapsulated in Velázquez’s Las Meninas. On this theme, Jeremy Robbins states: ‘So obsessive are the questions of appearance and reality, of deceit and disillusionment, in Spanish baroque fiction that such fiction can justifiably be viewed as Spain’s major and distinctive contribution to the early-modern preoccupation with knowledge.’ See his The Challenges of Uncertainty: An Introduction to Seventeenth-Century Spanish Literature (London: Duckworth, 1998), p. 41. 25 See the conversation between Pedro and the angel, III. 529–54.

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The second effect of the double image of Clara upon the audience relates to how the characters evaluate Clara fingida, and how they relate to the various miraculous occurrences attributed to the angel. In basic terms, the outer audience is confronted with the parallel images of Clara, the sinner, and Clara, the saint, as the words and deeds of the angel are associated with the real Clara by individuals within the play. As a result, the main protagonist becomes more saintly, at the same time that she violates Holy Orders. Indeed, she is not only a santa, but a unique being with supernatural powers. Miraculously, she discovers Carlos’ intentions to punish Don Juan, a gentleman who has won the favour of Elena, Clara’s sister, and also Carlos’ subsequent, illicit affair with Ana following his marriage to Elena.26 However, even more striking is the explicit presentation of Clara fingida (Clara, of course, to the other characters) as a miracle worker, who saves Magdalena. The miracle, which is presented offstage, is related to Carlos and Ginés by the hortelana: Para que no te vayas sin que sepas un milagro tan raro, y seas testigo, así como llegó Clara al estanque, entró por él, y sin mojarse el hábito, asió de un brazo a soror Magdalena, y la sacó a la orilla viva y sana: dilo a su padre y a su amada hermana. (III. 659–65)

In addition, the implicit references to the relationship between Clara and the Virgin within the play serve to exaggerate the holiness of the imperfect abadesa. Ultimately, Clara becomes the buena guarda of the play, a role which she attributed originally to the Virgin prior to her departure with her lover. Before her exit from the monasterio, Clara declares: ‘¡Virgen, en vos les dejo Buena Guarda!’ (II. 185). Consequently, the exaltation of the repentant sinner, particularly through the incorporation of Clara fingida into the drama, stresses the redeeming power of divine love. Clara is elevated to a saintlike status, which she of course must assume and develop at the end of the play when she replaces the angel. Ultimately, she will devote herself wholeheartedly to amor divino. Naturally, Clara highlights that human frailty is not only permissible, but in fact is also found in even the most pious of individuals.27 The association of divine love with forgiveness is underlined by See II. 671–78, and III. 621–27. The idea that there is scope for human error is one which also presents itself through the development of the character Tirso in La juventud de San Isidro. See chapter 2, p. 83 for further details. It is not surprising that Lope would have dealt with these issues in his plays. Lope’s own behaviour was motivated by very human and divine impulses. He was torn throughout his life between amor humano and amor divino. This has been well documented by critics. 26 27

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Félix in a statement which can be categorised as one of the most patent morals of the play: Errar es de hombre mortal, y más en esto que ves; pero de demonios es perseverar en el mal. (III. 81–84)

It is only unrepentant persistence in sin that earns damnation. Indeed, the determination of the pastor, Christ himself, who appears twice in the play in his search for ‘la oveja / de más hermosa y cándida pelleja’ (II. 447–48), which ‘en la frente sola / una mancha tenía’ (II. 480–81), stresses the relationship between compassion and amor divino.28 While Félix’s decision to desert Clara serves to associate human love with rejection and abandonment, the pastor’s constant quest for his lost sheep, in spite of physical suffering, symbolises the very opposite.29 In fact, for Christ, pain becomes almost pleasurable when it is endured for a worthy cause. In his description of his search to Clara, he states: ‘que aun por ella entre espinas / andar juzgan mis pies por calvellinas (sic)’ (II. 489–90).30 Thus, while La buena guarda cannot be defined as a well-developed metadrama like Lo fingido verdadero, there is no doubt that Lope’s exploitation of role-playing within the role within the play causes the outer audience to question the essence of identity. The illusory nature of existence, a predominant theme in Lo fingido verdadero, is reinforced in this play primarily through the deceptive nature of physical appearance. In addition, Lope’s exploitation of the double image of the main protagonist serves to define amor divino as a forgiving, ennobling love, in contrast to amor humano, conveyed as a degrading and destructive force. Ultimately, Clara, like Ginés, abandons human love for divine love and allows divine love to redefine her role. Ironically, this is the same role which the audience saw threatened at the outset. By finally ‘proactively’ assuming this role, Clara too discovers the saving grace of God.

28 For an analysis of the appearance of Christ to Isidro in both La niñez de San Isidro and La juventud de San Isidro, see chapter 2. 29 See the pastor’s speech, III. 427–49 for details on his various forms of suffering. 30 The pastor’s reaction to the thorns is analogous to that of Teresa to the crown of thorns in Santa Teresa de Jesús. See chapter 4, p. 124, n. 70. This image would have caused the audience to recall Christ’s own crown of thorns, and to contemplate the themes of sacrifice, suffering and redemption.

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CONCLUSION While this study consists of two discrete parts, together they offer a coherent analysis of the origins and key features of Lope’s comedias de tema religioso. In part I, it is evident that through the re-creation of his models, Lope is able to generate a variety of forms of audience reception, as well as to re-create identifiable and instructive images of the biblical Esther and Isidro. In La hermosa Ester, the reconstruction of episodes taken from the Book of Esther enables Lope to problematise socio-literary themes such as love, honour and the role of woman. In addition, susceptibility to a more subversive form of audience reception serves to elevate the Jew above the dramatic representation of the Spaniard. The pre-eminence of divine love over human love which is presented in La hermosa Ester is also a principal theme in Lope’s plays which deal with the life of Madrid’s patrón. Through the re-creation of the source material, Lope establishes a link between the child Isidro and his adult equivalent in La niñez de San Isidro. Lope’s innovative manipulation of the written source material in La juventud serves to present Isidro as a Christ-like and humble figure, who is willing to sacrifice human love for divine love. Moreover, the fact that Lope’s dramatic re-creations of the saint were presented to the seventeenth-century public when Isidro’s actual canonisation was being celebrated stresses the interplay between illusion and reality which prevails in these plays. The connection between role-playing, language and costume which characterises Lo fingido verdadero and La buena guarda in part II serves to highlight the complexity of identity and the relationship between role and destino. Above all, Lope’s engagement with self-referential devices underlines the illusory nature of life and the link between lo verdadero and lo divino, which constitute the very essence of the theocentric world view of seventeenthcentury Spain. While varying degrees of audience estrangement are a possibility, particularly in Lo fingido verdadero, Lope also draws attention to the relationship between divine love and human love in both plays. It is evident that in his comedias religiosas, Lope deals with a variety of contemporary issues which he also treats in his secular plays. In La hermosa Ester, for example, there is an explicit preoccupation with anti-Semitism and honor/honra, while in Lo fingido verdadero, some members of the corral audience may have interpreted Diocleciano’s elevation to the status of emperor as criticism of class division. The conflicting imperatives of human and divine

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love are treated in all of the plays studied in this book, and as is to be expected in a comedia de tema religioso, role is ultimately defined in terms of its relationship with the divine. Lope’s shifting concern with the positive and negative effects of human love throughout this study is perhaps evidence of his personal ambivalence to amor humano. Although I have addressed several characteristic features of Lope’s comedias religiosas, there are many issues still to be explored. The themes examined – the reworking of biblical and hagiographical texts and the relationship between the comedia religiosa and metatheatre – can naturally be applied to other religious plays. A detailed study of the use of comedy, as well as an examination of allegorical characters in Lope’s religious plays, also merit attention. Of course, there are a wealth of investigative opportunities for the scholar interested in comparative analysis with Lope’s secular drama. The representation of the female in both types of comedia, together with the similarities between Lope’s exploitation and re-creation of source material in historical/legendary plays and the comedia religiosa, are just two areas which lend themselves to potential research. Additionally, and perhaps more importantly, the scant availability of modern editions of Lope’s religious plays needs to be addressed. In a fairly recent article, Robert Morrison made the following comment about religious drama in general: ‘Among the multitude of dramas written during the seventeenth century were several hundred religious ones. [. . .] The autos have been repeatedly studied. The comedias devotas – comedias bíblicas and comedias de santos, for the most part – may be still awaiting full appreciation.’1 It is hoped that this study has gone some way towards redressing the balance.

1

‘Graciosos’, p. 33.

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APPENDIX: LOPE’S COMEDIAS DE TEMA RELIGIOSO1 1590–1604 1594 1596–1603 1598–1603 1598–1608 (prob. 1603) 1598–1608 (prob. 1604–06) 1598–1610 (1604?–10) 1605 1606–1615 (prob. 1609) Before 1607 1608 (approx.) 1610 (approx.) 1610 1610 1610 1610–1615 (prob. 1610–12) 1610–1615 (prob. 1610–12) 1611 1613 1613–1615 1613–1615 (prob. 1614) 1613–1616 (prob. 1615) 1618 1615–1622 1622 1622 1625 1629 1620–1630

Santa Teresa de Jesús Comedia de San Segundo La gran columna fogosa Los locos por el cielo El niño inocente de la Guardia San Isidro, labrador de Madrid Juan de Dios y Antón Martín El rústico del cielo Historia de Tobías El santo negro Rosambuco Lo fingido verdadero El divino africano La hermosa Ester La buena guarda El cardenal de Belén El serafín humano La madre de la mejor Barlaán y Josafat San Diego de Alcalá El nacimiento de Cristo San Nicolás de Tolentino El Capellán de la Virgen La limpieza no manchada El robo de Dina La juventud de San Isidro La niñez de San Isidro La niñez del Padre Rojas La vida de San Pedro Nolasco Los trabajos de Jacob

1 All dates for Lope’s comedias de tema religioso are taken from Morley and Bruerton, Cronología de las comedias de Lope de Vega (Madrid: Editorial Gredos, 1968).

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BIBLIOGRAPHY PRIMARY REFERENCES Holy Bible: New International Version (London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1979) Martínez de Toledo, Alfonso, Arcipreste de Talavera o Corbacho, ed. J. González Muela, 4th edn (Madrid: Castalia, 1985) Moreno, Francisco, San Isidro labrador (Madrid: Editorial El Avapiés, 1992) Rojas, Fernando de, La Celestina, ed. Dorothy S. Severin, 6th edn (Madrid: Cátedra, 1992) Vega Carpio, Lope de, Barlaán y Josafat, ed. José F. Montesinos (Madrid: Centro de Estudios Históricos, 1935) ——, Comedia de San Segundo, in Obras de Lope de Vega, ed. Don Marcelino Menéndez y Pelayo, Biblioteca de Autores Españoles, 177–78, IX–X (Madrid: Atlas, 1964; 1965), X, 225–70 ——, El arte nuevo de hacer comedias, ed. Juana de José Prades (Madrid: Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, 1971) ——, El Capellán de la Virgen, in Obras selectas, estudio preliminar, biografía, bibliografía, notas y apéndices de Federico Carlos Sáinz de Robles, 2nd edn, 3 vols (México: Aguilar, 1991), III (Teatro 2), 275–309 ——, El cardenal de Belén, ed. Elisa Aragone, 3rd edn (Zaragoza: Editorial Ebro, 1970) ——, El divino africano, in Obras selectas, III (Teatro 2), 205–37 ——, ‘El Isidro’, in Obras selectas, II (Poesía y Prosa), 413–534 ——, El nacimiento de Cristo, in Obras, Biblioteca de Autores Españoles, 157–59, VI–VIII (Madrid: Atlas, 1963), VIII, 225–51 ——, El niño inocente de La Guardia, ed. Anthony J. Farrell (London: Tamesis, 1985) ——, El perro del hortelano, El castigo sin venganza, ed. A. David Kossoff (Madrid: Castalia, 1970) ——, El perro del hortelano, ed. Victor Dixon (London: Grant & Cutler, 1981) ——, El robo de Dina, in Obras, VIII, 7–50 ——, El rústico del cielo, in Obras, Biblioteca de Autores Españoles, 186–87, XI–XII (Madrid: Atlas, 1965), XI, 397–462 ——, El santo negro Rosambuco, in Obras, X, 131–77 ——, El serafín humano, in Obras, X, 7–68 ——, Fuente Ovejuna, ed. Juan María Marín (Madrid: Cátedra, 1997) ——, Historia de Tobías, in Obras, VIII, 87–136 ——, Juan de Dios y Antón Martín, in Obras selectas, III (Teatro 2), 421–59

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——, Role-play and the World as Stage in the Comedia (Liverpool: Liverpool UP, 2002) Ticknor, George, History of Spanish Literature, 3 vols (London: John Murray, 1849), II Trueblood, Alan S., ‘Role-Playing and the Sense of Illusion in Lope de Vega’, HR, 32 (1964), 305–18 Turnell, Martin, Jean Racine – Dramatist (London: Hamilton, 1972), pp. 279–95 Valencia, Juan O., Pathos y tabú en el teatro bíblico del siglo de oro (Madrid: Ediciones y Distribuciones Isla, 1977), pp. 63–73 Vallejo González, Irene, ‘La comedia de santos en Antonio de Zamora’, DHA, 8 (1989), 333–41 Van Dyke, Paul, Ignatius Loyola, the Founder of the Jesuits (New York: C. Scribner’s Sons, 1926) Vega García-Luengos, Germán, ‘El libro de Ester en las versiones dramáticas de Lope de Vega y Felipe Godínez’, Castilla, 2–3 (1981), 209–45 Vélez Quiñones, Harry, ‘ “Entre verdad y mentira”: Woman and Metatheater in Lope de Vega’s Los amantes sin amor’, BCom, 47 (1995), 43–53 Vossler, Karl, Introducción a la literatura española del siglo de oro (Madrid: Cruz y Raya, 1934) Weiner, Jack, ‘La reina Ester en el teatro del Siglo de Oro español: dos puntos de vista’, in Estudios sobre el siglo de oro en homenaje a Raymond R. MacCurdy, eds Ángel González et al. (Madrid: Cátedra, 1983), pp. 37–49 ——, ‘Lope de Vega, un puesto de cronista y La hermosa Ester (1610–1621)’, in Actas del VIII Congreso de la Asociación Internacional de Hispanistas, eds A. David Kossoff et al., 2 vols (Madrid: Istmo, 1986), II, 723–30 Weir, Lucy Elizabeth, The Ideas Embodied in the Religious Drama of Calderón (Lincoln, Nebraska: University of Nebraska Press, 1940) Weisinger, Herbert, ‘Theatrum Mundi: Illusion as Reality’, in The Agony and the Triumph: Papers on the Use and Abuse of Myth (East Lansing: Michigan State UP, 1964), pp. 58–70 Wilson, Edward M., and Duncan Moir, A Literary History of Spain: The Golden Age Drama 1492–1700 (London: Ernest Benn, 1971) Wilson, Stephen, ed., Saints and Their Cults. Studies in Religious Sociology, Folklore and History (Cambridge: CUP, 1983) Yarrow, Philip John, ‘Esther and Athalie’, in Racine (Oxford: Blackwell, 1978), pp. 82–90 Zavala, Iris M., ‘Burlas al amor’, NRFH, 29 (1980), 367–403

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INDEX Abel, Lionel, 5, 87, 88, 90 Ahasuerus, see Xerxes I Apocrypha, 15 n.19, 18–20, 39 n.73 Aragone Terni, Elisa, 2 Artigas, María del Carmen, 128 n.1, n.2 Azar, Inés, 103 n.25 Bentley, Eric, 90 n.14 Bleda, Jaime, Vida y milagros del glorioso San Isidro el labrador, 52 n.30 Book of Esther, 13–20 Book of Tobit, 12 n.9 Brockington, L. H., 18 n.27, 23 n.39, 43 n.85 Browning, W. R. F., 43 n.85 Bryans, J. V., 96 n.3, 124 Burkort, Haydee Macera, 2 Butler, Alban, 46 n.9, 47 n.11, 48 n.15 Calderón de la Barca, Pedro, 10 n.5 El gran teatro del mundo, 93 n.20 La vida es sueño, 59 n.43, 63 n.55, 93 n.20 Cancionero general, 114 n.47 Casa, Frank P., 88 Case, Thomas, 45 n.5, 60, 70 n.71, 71, 89, 92, 123 n.67 Catechism, 10 n.6 Cervantes, Miguel de, 27 n.47 Cesáreo, Mario, 54 n.36 Clines, David J. A., 18 n.27, 19 n.31 Códice de autos viejos, 13 n.14 Cofradía de San Isidro, 44 n.3 Concejo, Pilar, 3, 14 n.16, 42 n.82 Connor (Swietlicki), Catherine, 11 n.8 Corbacho, 80 n.100 Council of Trent, 9, 10 n.6, 11, 19 n.30 Courtly love, 23 n.38, 26 n.44, n.45, 27 n.49

Dassbach, Elma, 2, 57, 60 n.48, 71 n.72, n.74, 75, 98 n.9, 120 n.58, 123 n.66, 125 n.73 De Armas, Frederick A., 38 n.72 Deuterocanonical additions, see Apocrypha Diocletian, emperor, 95 Dixon, Victor, 3, 28 n.51, 31 n.56, 44 n.1, 61 n.50, 89, 93 n.21, 96 n.3, 97, 98 n.10, 100 n.16, 110 n.41, 111 n.43, 120, 121, 122, 123 Dunn, Peter N., 88 n.6 Edwards, Gwynne, 28 n.51 Farrell, Anthony J., 3 Fischer, Susan, 89, 90, 96 n.3, 104, 106, 110 n.40 Fishlock, A. D. H., 14 n.16 Fita, Fidel, 47 n.11, 52 Flasche, Hans, 10 n.5 Forster, Leonard, 23 n.40 Friedman, Edward H., 11 n.8 Gallego Roca, Miguel, 3, 45 n.7, 54 n.36, 63 n.52, 64, 70 n.71, 71 n.74, 74, 76 n.83 Garasa, Delfín Leocadio, 1, 51 n.27, 54 n.36, 71 n.73, 76 n.84, 97, 111 n.42 García Lorenzo, Luciano, 26 n.45 Genesis, 12 n.9, 33 n.59, 64 Genesius, St, 95; see also Lo fingido verdadero Gilson, Catharine, 46 n.10, 60 n.47 Glaser, Edward, 14 n.16, 15 n.20, 19, 23 n.39, 29 n.52, 41 n.77 Glenn, Richard F., 99 n.14 Godínez, Felipe Amán y Mardoqueo, 13 n.15 La Reyna Ester, 13 n.15 Goldberg, Alice, 13 n.15 Gracioso, 60–1

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INDEX

Grant, Helen F., 63 n.56 Green, Otis H., 23 n.38, 26 n.44, 45 n.4 Guerrero, José Ramón, 10 n.6 Heiple, Daniel L., 42 n.83 Hornby, Richard, 4, 65 n.61, 93, 94 n.24, 98, 106, 110, 115 Inquisition, 9, 10 n.6 Isaac, Old Testament, 33 n.59 Isidore of Seville, St, 65–6, 70 Isidro, patron saint of Madrid, 44–8; see also under Vega Carpio, Lope de; El Isidro; La juventud de San Isidro; La niñez de San Isidro; San Isidro, labrador de Madrid Javier, Francisco, 48 n.15, 73 Josephus, Flavius, Jewish Antiquities, 15–20, 24 n.41, n.42, 27 n.48, 30 n.54, 31 n.55, 34–5, 39 n.73 Juan Diácono/Juan the Deacon, Leyenda de San Isidro, 44 n.2, 47 n.11, 51–4 Kidd, Michael, 89 n.11 Kirby, Carol Bingham, 89, 91 Kirschner, Teresa, 63 n.54 Knight, Alan E., 12 n.9, 43 Lama, Víctor de, 23 n.38 Larson, Catherine, 4, 87, 88, 89, 91–2, 93, 94 n.25, 102, 103 n.25, 105, 107 n.34 Larson, Donald, 28 Lavine, Roberta Zimmerman, 14 n.16, 42 n.83 Lázaro Carreter, Fernando, 128 n.1 Lipmann, Stephen, 88–9 Lowes, John Livingston, 26 n.45 Loyola, Ignacio de, 48 n.14, 73 Madrigal, José A., 89, 90–1 María de la Cabeza, 46 n.10, 49 Mayberry, Nancy, 14 n.16 McCrary, William, 89 n.9 McGaha, Michael, 97, 99 n.13, 105 n.29 McKendrick, Melveena, 38 n.72, 99 n.14, 108 n.36, 126 n.75 Menéndez Onrubia, Carmen, 14 n.16 Menéndez y Pelayo, Don Marcelino, 1, 12, 20 n.36, 48–9, 54 n.36, 95, 97 Metatheatre, 87, 90, 93, 94 n.25, 98 n.12 ceremony within the play, 65 n.61

intratextual dramatist, 102 play within the play, 94 n.24, 110, 115 role-playing within the role, 98, 106 Metzger, Bruce, 18, 19 n.31 Mexía, Pero, Historia imperial y cesárea, 95 n.2 Mira de Amescua, 10 n.3 Moir, Duncan, 31 Monja sacristana, 128 Montesinos, José, 1 Moore, Roger, 89, 91 Moreno, Francisco, 44, 46 n.10, 47 n.11, n.12, 49, 51 n.27, 52, 54 n.35, 55 n.38, 57, 65 n.59 Moreno, Joseph, 90 Morley and Bruerton, Cronología de las comedias de Lope de Vega, 1 n.4 Morreale, Margherita, 10 n.6 Morrison, Robert, 2, 60 n.48, 73 n.78, 83–4, 140 Mroczkowska-Brand, Katarzyna, 92 n.19 Mundo al revés, 63 Nalle, Sara T., 10 n.6, 11 n.7 Navarrete, Ignacio, 23 n.38 Nebuchadnezzar II, 14 n.17 Nelson, Robert J., 87 n.3 Neri, Philip, 48 n.17 O’Connor, Thomas Austin, 87, 88, 93 n.20 Orozco Díaz, Emilio, 76 n.85 Ortiz Lucio, Fray Juan, Flos Sanctorum, 52 n.30 Palomo, María del Pilar, 93 n.21, 96 n.3, 101 n.19, 106 n.32, 110 n.41, 121, 122, 123, 134 Paredes L., Alejandro, 89 n.10 Parker A. A., 23 n.38 Petrarchism, 23 n.38, n.40, 26 n.45, 27 n.49, 111 n.43 Philip II, 44 n.3, 48, 56 Philip III, 47–8, 51 n.28, 99 n.13 Philip IV, 48, 51 n.28, 56, 73 Prince, Albert, 103 n.25 Purim, feast of, 15 n.18, 18 Racine, Jean, Esther, 13 n.13, 30 n.54, 31 n.57 Reichenberger, Arnold G., 88, 90 n.14 Rivadeneira, Pedro de, Flos Sanctorum, 95 n.2

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Robbins, Jeremy, 136 n.24 Rojas, Fernando de, La Celestina, 129 n.3 Ross, Cecilia, 2 Sacks, Diane, 14 n.16 Sáinz de Robles, Federico Carlos, 20 n.36, 50, 54 Seneca, De Clementia, 25 n.43 Ser/Parecer, 136 n.24 Shervill, Robert, 2 Sicroff, A. A., 14 n.16, 40, 42 Simerka, Barbara, 11 n.8, 42 Sito Alba, Manuel, 93 n.20 Sloane, Robert, 88 n.6, 90 Smith, Dawn L., 38 n.72 Soufas, Teresa Scott, 26 n.45 Stoll, Anita K., 38 n.72, 89, 92, 93 n.21 St Thérèse of Lisieux, 48 n.15 Teresa de Ávila/Teresa de Jesús, 48 n.16, 73 Thacker, Jonathan, 89, 93 n.21 Theatrum mundi, 92, 97, 100–2 Ticknor, George, 74 n.81 Tirso de Molina, 10 n.4 El burlador de Sevilla, 11 n.8, 71 n.72 Torres, Isabel, 31 n.56 Trueblood, Alan S., 88 n.6, 124 n.68 Valencia, Juan O., 32, 37 Vallejo González, Irene, 54 n.36 Vega Carpio, Lope de, 1, 5, 137 n.27, 140 El alcaide de Madrid, 65 n.61 El arte nuevo de hacer comedias en este tiempo, 23 n.37, 25 n.43, 83, 99 n.14, 108 n.36, 112 n.44 El castigo sin venganza, 25 n.43, 28 n.51, 99 n.14 El divino africano, 70 n.71 El Isidro, 41 n.77, 50, 54, 56, 63 n.53, 65–8, 70 n.70, 72, 73–9 El niño inocente de La Guardia, 37 n.68, 55 n.39, 110 n.40 El perro del hortelano, 28 n.51 El robo de Dina, 12 n.9, 83 n.107 Fuento Ovejuna, 29 n.53, 38 n.72, 46 n.9 Historia de Tobías, 12 n.9, 35 n.64, 36 n.67, 69 n.69

153

Justa poética y alabanzas justas, 49 n.21, 50, 51 n.29 La buena guarda, 77 n.88, 113 n.45, 119 n.56, 123 n.66, 125 n.72, 128–38 La dama boba, 130 n.10 La hermosa Ester, 12–13, 14 n.16, 20–43 La juventud de San Isidro, 45–6, 55, 56 59–61, 66–9, 72, 73–84 La limpieza no manchada, 41 n.78, 45 n.5, 110 n.40 La madre de la mejor, 55 n.39 La niñez de San Isidro, 45–6, 55–73, 74, 77, 79, 81, 82, 83, 84 La niñez del Padre Rojas, 55 n.39 La vida de San Pedro Nolasco, 45 n.5 Las mujeres sin hombres, 38 n.72 Lo fingido verdadero, 95–127 Los locos de Valencia, 26 n.45 Los locos por el cielo, 46 n.10, 99 n.14, 110 n.40 Los trabajos de Jacob, 12 n.9, 64 n.57, 83 n.107 Relación de las fiestas en la canonización de San Isidro, 45 n.6, n.7, 46 n.8, 49–50 San Diego de Alcalá, 46 n.9, 66 n.64 San Isidro, labrador de Madrid, 12 n.10, 41 n.77, 50–1, 54–5, 59–61, 66–9, 72, 73–83 Santa Teresa de Jesús, 123 n.66, 124 n.70 Vega García-Luengos, Germán, 14 n.16, 20 n.36, 41 n.77 Velázquez, Las Meninas, 136 n.24 Vélez Quiñones, Harry, 89 n.11 Villegas, Alonso de, Vida de San Isidro labrador, 52 n.30 Vulgate, 19 Wardropper, Bruce W., 88 n.6 Weiner, Jack, 2, 13 n.12, 14 n.16, 15 n.20, 24 n.41, 37, 40–1, 42 Weisinger, Herbert, 92 Wilson, Stephen, 47 n.12, n.13 Xerxes I, 14 n.17 Zavala, Iris M., 23 n.38

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