Antonio Enriquez Gómez

209 Pages·2015·14.39 MB·English

by  Glen F. Dille

G L E N F. D IL L E
Antonio Enriquez Gómez
Boston: Twayne Publishers, 1988.
ANTONIO ENRÍQUEZ GÓMEZ
1600 1663
( - )
Courtesy of Special Collections,
Van Pelt Library, University of Pennsylvania
Antonio Enriquez Gómez
By Glen F. Dille
Bradley University
Twayne Publishers
A Division of G. K. Hail & Co. · Boston
Antonio Enriquez Gómez
Glcn F. Dille
Copyright 1988 by G. K. Hall & Co.
AU rights reserved.
Published by Twayne Publishers
A Division of G. K. Hall & Co.
70 Lincoln Street
Boston, Massachusetts 02111
Copyediting supervised by Barbara Sutton.
Book produaion by Janet Zietowskl.
Book design by Barbara Anderson.
Typeset in 11 pi. Garamond
by Williams Press, Inc., Albany, New York.
Printed on permanent/d urable acid-free paper
and bound in the United States of America.
Library of Congress Data
Cataioging-in-Publication
Dille, Glen F., 1940—
Antonio Enriquez Gómez / by Glen F. Dille.
p. cm.—(Twayne's world authors series ; TWÀS 803)
Bibliography: p. 184
Includes index.
ISBN 0-8057-8234-6 (aik. paper)
1. Enriquez Gómez, Antonio, 1600-1663—Criticism and
interpretation. I. Title. II. Series.
PQ6388.E5Z64 1988
862'.3—dc!9 87-35097
CIP
To Dean W. McPheeters,
Emeritus of Newcomb College, Tulane University:
teacher, scholar, and good friend.

Contents
About the Author
Preface
Chronology
Chapter One
Historical Background: Jews and
New Christians in Iberia 1
Chapter Two
The Life of Enriquez Gómez 9
Chapter Three
The Twenty-two Plays of the First Epoch
Chapter Pour
The Moral Academies of the Muses 44
Chapter Five
The Pythagorean Century 63
Chapter Six
The Tower of Babylon 85
Chap ter Se ven
Samson the Nazarene 104
Chapter Eight
Various Works 122
Chapter Nine
The Zarate Plays 142
Notes and References 167
Selected Bibliography 184
index 192
About the Author
Glen F. Dille received his B.A. and M.A. from the University of
Colorado. After a period of service with the U.S. Air Force he returned
to graduate studies at Tulane University where he received his doctorate
in 1973. His doctoral dissertation, A CHtical Edition of the "Comedia
Serafina” (1521), was later published by Southern Illinois University
Press. Dille is the author of several articles and papers concerning
sixteenth- and seventeenth-century Hispanic literature on topics ranging
from Celestinesque literature to Sor Juana Inés de la Cm . For the past
2
few years his investigations have concentrated on the Golden Age drama
and, in particular, on the works of Antonio Enriquez Gómez. Dille has
been awarded fellowships to attend two summer seminars sponsored by
the National Endowment for the Humanities as well as a Fellowship
for Independent Study. He is currently associate professor of Spanish
at Bradley University, Peoria, Illinois.
Preface
A study of so prolific a writer as Antonio Enriquez Gómez in so
small a volume as this cannot pretend to be more than a general and
rapid look at one of the most representative New Christian writers of
the seventeenth century, a man whose life seems to be die distillation
of all the trials that society reserved for the Jew or, in this case, a
person of Jewish descant.
While the following nine chapters are not exhaustive or definitive,
they will give an introduction to the breadth and depth of Enriquez
Gomez’s works through descriptions of the various compositions, con­
sideration of the salient themes, and identification of the continuity of
thought that unites his work. It is hoped that this volume will stimulate
further investigation in all aspects of the author’s life and work, for,
although Enriquez Gomez was relatively popular in his day, the nine
teenth and early twentieth centuries have not been very kind to his
memory. Now, however, his work is fast gaining critical attention. The
past few years have seen the appearance of several of his compositions
with excellent introductory studies, and there is the promise of more
in the near future.
Enriquez Gómez was an exceptionally personal writer who viewed
his compositions as vehicles to address his own vital concerns. Because
the repressive atmosphere of his day dictated the often obscure manner
in which he wrote, the author’s feeling are quite difficult to interpret.
The opinions expressed in this work concerning the troublesome question
of Enriquez Gomez’s religious beliefs are, as I see them, the best
approximations to the truth that available evidence allows. Others will
disagree, and I welcome that as constructive consideration long overdue
this author.
Enriquez Gomez's major works are presented in separate chapters in
a roughly chronological order by publication data except for several less
extensive compositions that are considered together in chapter 8. For
die sake of convenience, in spire of its oversimplifications, I have
considered Enriquez Gomez’s work as divisible into three epochs: the
Madrid period, the period of the French exile, and the Seville period.
In chapters 3 and 9, dealing with his dramatic compositions, I felt it
more valuable to discuss in relative detail representative titles of each
ANTONIO ENRIQUEZ GOMEZ
period rather than to try to squeeze into the book a very short summary
of each of his fifty-odd plays. In these two chapters general comments
do supply at least some information on the plays not selected for more
detailed discussion.
Except for Professor Oelman’s translation of the poem on Lope de
Vera used in chapter 8, all translations from primary and secondary
sources are my own. My translations concentrate on intention and meaning
and certainly neither do justice to Enriquez Gomez’s poetic ability nor
convey the eloquent nature of his prose. I also recognize that the
translations of titles of his works are often especially stilted. They are
not artistic renderings, but instead are intended to be as dose as possible
to the original tide. At first I had thought not to indude many citations
and their translations, but I later dedded that since the majority of his
works are not readily available, it would be well to let the author speak
for himself as much as possible, even if only in translation.
Many people and agendes have aided in this project, more than such
a short work would seem to indicate. The National Endowment for
the Humanities and the Bradley University Board for Research have
been vety generous in their support. Above all, I must give credit to
my esteemed professor and good friend, D. W. McPheeters, for suggesting
the topic and thank him for his continuous support over the years.
Additionally, professors B. W. Wardropper, S. A. Armistead, Michael
McGaha, and John Wooldridge have all been supportive and most
helpful in this project. Technical assistance was vital to dus effort, and
for that I gratefully acknowledge the skill and patience of the staff of
the Bradley University library— Marina Savoie, Elisabeth von Glasenapp,
Laura Corpuz, and especially Barbara Tunks who cheerfully and carefully
copied hundreds of pages of microfilm for me. My friends and colleagues
Helen D. Goode, Warren Dwyer, and Margaret Carter kindly read the
manuscript and tried to correa its worst passages. The infelicities that
remain are my own. Finally, the preparation of die numerous revisions
of the manuscript was undertaken by my wife, Lee, and by Kathie
Strum, ro both of whom I owe a vety special acknowledgment of
thanks.
Glen F. Dille
Bradley University