Secret Portraits of Serafina: Portraiture in the Golden Age Comedia of Spain

Abstract

My article explores the multiple ways in which portraits and portraiture function in two comedias, El vergonzoso en palacio by Tirso de Molina and El pintor de su deshonra by Calderón. After briefly discussing the parameters of Spain's Golden Age and offering a detailed definition of the comedia, I begin the dramatic and artistic analysis. In each comedia, one of the female protagonists is named Serqfina, and through both a textual and character analysis, I explain how each Serafina manifests her distinctive attributes throughout the drama, in addition to discussing how art is directly related to each Serqfina. In El vergonzoso, Serqfina is a strong, stubborn female who creates multiple subject positions for herself; she even cross dresses. The Serafina in El pintor, on the other hand, is a shy, subjugated female who becomes a victim of mistaken identities and of extremely unfortunate misunderstandings. I then analyse the specific instances of the use of portraits and the metatheatrical situations created by portraiture in both comedias. Portraits are secretly made of each Serafina and have a direct impact on the conclusions. Art constructs the framework of El pintor, and in El vergonzoso, art is the underpinning for the outcome of the situation. After examining the conclusions of the plays, we learn that art is the essential component that forces the action of the comedias to evolve and reach an unanticipated, shocking finale.