El caballero de Olmedo (Spanish Edition) [Paperback]

Lope de Vega (Author), Edward H. Friedman (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 2004

El Caballero de Olmedo is a history play, a retelling of a folk tale, a celebrated piece of Golden Age drama, and also an intense mediation upon the power of desire, the deceits of eroticism and literary convention, the injustice of a world obsessed with appearance, and the tragic potential inherent in the courting of beautiful women. The introduction sets this play within the context of Baroque eroticism and sexual mores as well as dramatic practice. The text is presented with glosses to words unfamiliar to undergraduate students; the notes comprise summaries of acts and scenes from a dramatic point of view, and in-depth notes to problematic passages in the text, written with an undergraduate readership in mind.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Sobre un cantar de gran difusion e intrigante origen que sirve de lugar de encuentro del autor y su publico, amor, muerte y destino son los pilares de la ironia tragica en El Caballero de Olmedo. Pocas tramas de Lope son mas limpidas y sencillas y, sin embargo, mas ricas. En la presente edicion el profesor Francisco Rico hace un estudio muy documentado del nucleo literario de la comedia y aporta conclusiones nuevas sobre la genesis e historia de la leyenda del Caballero, situando en esas coordenadas la que muchos consideran la obra maestra del teatro de Lope. --Los editores --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Language Notes

Text: Spanish --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 176 pages
• Publisher: European Masterpieces; 1st. edition (June 1, 2004)
• Language: Spanish
• ISBN-10: 158977020X
• ISBN-13: 978-1589770201
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 6 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.9 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #727,159 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #100 in Books > Libros en español > Arte, arquitectura y fotografía > Artes de Actuación

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars in response to the last guy's review..., April 9, 2002

By 

J K (Tucson, AZ, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: El caballero de Olmedo (Paperback)

This play is not called a comedy because it is funny. Nor are any plays from Golden Age Spanish literature. They are called comedies simply because they are not allowed the name of Tragedies, which is reserved for plays written in Greek language and style. Spanish is a "vulgar" offshoot from Latin, and "tragedies" were not works for the vulgar (common) language. If you are looking for comedy in a Golden Age Spanish play it will be difficult. Most involve moral and religious issues. But you should still read this play because it is pretty [darn] good :)

4 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Humor is not suitable for time travel, July 31, 2000

By 

Juan Carlos Uribe (Bogota, Colombia) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: El caballero de Olmedo / The Gentleman of Olmedo (Biblioteca Didactica Anaya) (Spanish Edition) (Paperback)

This is one of those books that any contemporary reader shall not face alone. Even if your first language is Spanish, the archaic nature of some words and phrases, force you to read the relevant line more that three times to get a notion of the idea behind them. Afterwards, you must figure out why the work was considered as a comedy in the XVI Century. The infatuation between Don Alonso and Ines is not a joyful event on the contrary, both character are consumed by anguish and the rejected lover is only thinking about revenge. Only Fabia presents an element which lights up the gloomy nature of the play and that somehow is not predictable. Consider to read this book if you are interested in the evolution of Spanish Literature but do not expect much pleasure of laughter out of it.