"La Dama Boba," by Lope de Vega, edited by Charles Patterson
Lope wrote La dama boba in 1613, when he was very much at the zenith of his career. He had already written his Arte nuevo a few years before and was without dispute Spain’s most popular playwright. Having reached his early 50s, he combined his artistic maturity and his abundant experience with matters of the heart to create an impressive dramatization of love’s power to educate and transform a person. It is one of the earliest examples of the comedia palatina.
The story begins in the town of Illescas where the young nobleman Liseo is dismayed at the thought of marrying an ignorant woman. After many conversations, gossip, and some foolishness, the cast of characters eventually put down their swords—opting for the peaceful solution—and figure out who will end up married to whom in an entertaining climax appropriate to a 17th century comedia.
ISBN 978-1-58977-072-0 (PB) $20