Biography of Spanish Writer Lope de Vega
Playwright, Author and Poet, Famous for Fuente Ovejuna and Arcadia
Lope de Vega, a Spanish playwright and poet, is regarded as the father of Spanish national theatre or "comedia." He popularized this dramatic form, the three-act plays in verse, which appealed to the public despite the fact that they broke all the classical rules.
Life of Lope de Vega in a Nutshell
Born in Madrid, Spain on November 25, 1562, Lope Felix de Vega attended a Jesuit school. He studied at the University of Alcala and after studying there, he took part in the Spanish campaign against Portugal in 1580, and later, the Spanish Armada against England in 1588.
Before his recognized work, Dragoneta, he had already written many poems, stories and plays. Dragoneta was published when he was 36-years-old. It is an epic that attacked Sir Francis Drake, the English hero who defeated the Spanish Armada.
In 1634, Lope was grief-stricken when his daughter disappeared. He repented for his sins and left his great wealth to charity. His state funeral lasted for nine days. He died on August 27, 1635 at the age of 72.
Lope de Vega the Writer
He began to write for the stage in his 30s. His plays were very popular to the public because they were realistic and full of excitement. Such realism was based on occurrences in his own life. For example, La Dorothy drew heavily on his own chaotic love life.
Lope de Vega had many affairs. He was married twice, and fathered at least six children; only three of the children were said to be birthed by his wives. He continued to have affairs, even when he became a priest in 1614.
His plays were based on historical events. One of his most famous works, Fuente Ovejuna — a play that was dramatized to great acclaim in the 1990s — depicts a peasant uprising.
He was a prolific writer with a vast output. Although his plays are counted as comedies, he deliberately mixed genres, refusing to distinguish his work between comedy and tragedy. Like his younger contemporary, Pedro Calderon de la Barca, the theme of love dominates, and his poetry has the influence of Petrarch. His classic prose La Arcadia and the romantic La Dorotea, stand on their own.
Works by Lope de Vega
- Arcadia, 1598
- Dragoneta, 1598
- La Hermosura de Angelica, 1602
- Rimas, 1604
- The Pilgrim of Casteel, 1604
- Ester the Hermit Girl, 1610, play
- Rimas sacras, 1614, poems
- Fuente Ovejuna, 1611-1618, play
- Filomena, 1621
- El jardin de Lope de Vega, 1621-1624
- Circe, 1624
- Tragic Crown, 1627
- The Laurels of Apollo, 1630
- Punishment without Vengeance, 1631, play
- La Dorothy, 1632
- The Battle of the Cats, 1634, play
Sources:
- Goring, Rosemary, Ed. Larousse Dictionary of Writers. New York: Larousse, 1994.
- McGovern, Una, Ed. Chambers Biographical Dictionary. Edinburgh: Chambers / Harrap Publishers, 2002.
- Payne, Tom. The A-Z of Great Writers. London: Carlton, 1997.
Lope de Vega, Spanish Author, Playwright and Poet
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