“A mi padre he de dejar:” Filial Discord and the Rejection of the Secular World in Lope’s Teresian Plays
Subject Area
Spanish Peninsular Studies
Abstract
As a mouthpiece for Counter-Reformation ideals, the woman saint on the Golden Age stage embraced what could be considered a loss of freedom (enclosure) through an act of disobedience that separated her from her father. In turn, the latter’s demands that she marry rather than enter the convent made him a symbol of the secular world from which the future saint disengaged in preparation for a life in the cloister. This paper analyzes the treatment of the father-daughter relationship in the context of female monasticism in two Teresian plays by Lope de Vega. The first, La bienaventurada madre Santa Teresa de Jesús (c. 1614), was written at the time of Teresa’s beatification and follows the conventions of the comedia de capa y espada, complete with a love triangle fueled by jealousy and a father who tries to force his daughter into an unwanted marriage. The second, Vida y muerte de Santa Teresa de Jesús (1622), was written to commemorate Teresa’s canonization and only superficially addresses the saint’s battle of wills with her father. I argue that shifts in the public’s perception of Teresa account for Lope’s differing treatment of filial discord in these two plays, which underscore how family conflict in religious drama reified the woman ascetic’s inner struggle to reject the secular patriarchy’s control over her sexuality. I also propose that the Teresian plays provide insight into Lope’s journey to come to terms with the religious vocation of his own daughter, Marcela.
Brief Bio Note
Bryan Betancur has a PhD in Hispanic Studies and specializes in Early Modern Spanish theater. He is currently an Assistant Professor of Spanish at Furman University.
Location
Room 218
Presentation Year
2017
Start Date
3-24-2017 2:15 PM
Embargo
11-4-2016
Recommended Citation
Betancur, Bryan, "“A mi padre he de dejar:” Filial Discord and the Rejection of the Secular World in Lope’s Teresian Plays" (2017). South East Coastal Conference on Languages & Literatures (SECCLL). 59.
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/seccll/2017/2017/59
“A mi padre he de dejar:” Filial Discord and the Rejection of the Secular World in Lope’s Teresian Plays
Room 218
As a mouthpiece for Counter-Reformation ideals, the woman saint on the Golden Age stage embraced what could be considered a loss of freedom (enclosure) through an act of disobedience that separated her from her father. In turn, the latter’s demands that she marry rather than enter the convent made him a symbol of the secular world from which the future saint disengaged in preparation for a life in the cloister. This paper analyzes the treatment of the father-daughter relationship in the context of female monasticism in two Teresian plays by Lope de Vega. The first, La bienaventurada madre Santa Teresa de Jesús (c. 1614), was written at the time of Teresa’s beatification and follows the conventions of the comedia de capa y espada, complete with a love triangle fueled by jealousy and a father who tries to force his daughter into an unwanted marriage. The second, Vida y muerte de Santa Teresa de Jesús (1622), was written to commemorate Teresa’s canonization and only superficially addresses the saint’s battle of wills with her father. I argue that shifts in the public’s perception of Teresa account for Lope’s differing treatment of filial discord in these two plays, which underscore how family conflict in religious drama reified the woman ascetic’s inner struggle to reject the secular patriarchy’s control over her sexuality. I also propose that the Teresian plays provide insight into Lope’s journey to come to terms with the religious vocation of his own daughter, Marcela.
