Lope
de Vega (1562-1635) might be as famous as Shakespeare
had the Spanish Armada defeated the English. Born in modest
circumstances, Félix Lope de Vega Carpio progressed
from child
prodigy to celebrated
adventurer, courtier, poet and playwright.
His life would make a Hollywood swashbuckler several times
over. Innumerable affairs, elopements and scandals; military
expeditions to the Azores and against Portugal and England;
successful courtier and theatre man; retirement to the priesthood,
probably genuine, though no hindrance to continuing with
the stage and love affairs. The literary
achievement is staggering. Lyrics,
sonnets,
pastorals, verse epics, and some 2,200 plays, of which 500
still survive. And, for all the prodigious output —
he could write a play a day — Lope de Vega remains
Spain's greatest playwright: many of the plays are still
performed and the poetry is part of every Spaniard's education.
Golden Age of Spanish Literature
What was the secret of such output? Belief in an
age that was already passing. Just as the Elizabethan renaissance
blossomed after England's entry onto the world stage, the
golden
age of Spanish literature basked in the afterglow of
the country's great wealth and prestige. Lope de Vega's plays generally
fall into two categories: the 'cloak and sword' depictions
of contemporary intrigues and manners, and the historical
plays based on Spanish stories and legends. Many of the
themes have become familiar in Spanish literature, notably
those of family honour
and revenge. Essentially, however, Lope de Vega was
a master of comedy, and in this way different from his great
contemporary,
Caldéron
de la Barca.
Good bibliographies for Lope de Vega are found at
kirjasto,
and following the Spanish Poetry section of The New Princeton
Encyclopedia of Poetry and Poetics (1993). These may be
particularly useful: E. Pierce's The Heroic Poem of the
Spanish Golden Age (1947), P.D. Tettenborn's Spanish
Lyrics of the Golden Age (1952), Rennert and Castro's
Vida de Lope de Vega (1919), F. Rico's Historia
y Critica de la Literatura Española (1980) and
F.J. Oinas's Heroic Epic and Saga (1978). For a history
of Spain in its golden age try: country
reports, spanish
history index, or
fact monster.
