«Saint Parthenope»: Naples in Lope de Vega's Drama, an Approach Based on Genres

Abstract

This paper explores how the representation of Naples in Lope de Vega’s drama varies significantlydepending on the genre of the play. In the historic works, the appearance of the city is linked to campaigns of war and Spanish presence. It causes frequent exaltation of political and military figures, which should be understood as an effort by the Fenix to establish or enhance patronage relationships. This component can also be observed in Amor con vista, an urban comedy, or in Los esclavos libres, a comedy of captivity with byzantine characteristics. Naples turns out to be the optimal place for the picaro to carry out his deceit of pretending to be a knight in El caballero de Illescas, as a distant city in the universe of unreality of palatine comedies, and as a mythical city in El ganso de oro.