Secrecy, the Essence of Lope’s and Calderón’s Plays, and its Intensification by Sor Juana

Abstract

Secrets, the essence of drama as a genre since its classical origins, characterize Medieval popular theatre and tipify Lope's comedia which Calderón perfects. Reworking their theatrical heritage, Sor Juana carries this genre beyond the horizon of expectation, as she intensifies the techniques that generate the complication of secrets from the first act of both of her comedies, Los empeños de una casa («Pawns of a House») and Amor es más laberinto («Love is a Greater Labyrinth»).

Keywords

• secreto
• género teatral
• horizonte de expectativa
• apartes
• «al paño»
• soliloquio