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Continental Drama (26)
Author names not noted Jean Racine, Molière, Gotthold Ephraim Lessing, Friedrich von Schiller
Originally published between 1909 and 1917 under the name "Harvard Classics," this stupendous 51-volume set-a collection of the greatest writings from literature, philosophy, history, and mythology-was assembled by American academic CHARLES WILLIAM ELIOT (1834-1926), Harvard University's longest-serving president. Also known as "Dr. Eliot's Five Foot Shelf," it represented Eliot's belief that a basic liberal education could be gleaned by reading from an anthology of works that could fit on five feet of bookshelf.
Volume XXVI features the six 17th- and 18th-century plays that have most influenced Western European literature and
• Life Is a Dream, by Spanish dramatist PEDRO CALDERÓN DE LA BARCA (1600-1681), his 1635 allegory debating free will and fate
• Polyeucte, by French playwright and father of French tragedy PIERRE CORNEILLE (1606-1684), his 1642 drama based on the life of the martyr Saint Polyeuctus
• Phèdre, by French dramatist JEAN RACINE (1639-1699), his 1677 tragedy from Greek mythology
• Tartuffe, by the French comic master Jean-Baptiste Poquelin (1622-1673), aka MOLIÈRE, his 1664 masterpiece about hypocrisy
• Minna von Barnhelm, by German playwright GOTTHOLD EPHRAIM LESSING (1729-1781), a groundbreaking comedy
• Wilhelm Tell, by German author FRIEDRICH VON SCHILLER (1759-1805), a tragedy of the Swiss fight for independence in the 14th century.
Originally published between 1909 and 1917 under the name "Harvard Classics," this stupendous 51-volume set-a collection of the greatest writings from literature, philosophy, history, and mythology-was assembled by American academic CHARLES WILLIAM ELIOT (1834-1926), Harvard University's longest-serving president. Also known as "Dr. Eliot's Five Foot Shelf," it represented Eliot's belief that a basic liberal education could be gleaned by reading from an anthology of works that could fit on five feet of bookshelf.
Volume XXVI features the six 17th- and 18th-century plays that have most influenced Western European literature and
• Life Is a Dream, by Spanish dramatist PEDRO CALDERÓN DE LA BARCA (1600-1681), his 1635 allegory debating free will and fate
• Polyeucte, by French playwright and father of French tragedy PIERRE CORNEILLE (1606-1684), his 1642 drama based on the life of the martyr Saint Polyeuctus
• Phèdre, by French dramatist JEAN RACINE (1639-1699), his 1677 tragedy from Greek mythology
• Tartuffe, by the French comic master Jean-Baptiste Poquelin (1622-1673), aka MOLIÈRE, his 1664 masterpiece about hypocrisy
• Minna von Barnhelm, by German playwright GOTTHOLD EPHRAIM LESSING (1729-1781), a groundbreaking comedy
• Wilhelm Tell, by German author FRIEDRICH VON SCHILLER (1759-1805), a tragedy of the Swiss fight for independence in the 14th century.
480 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1909
About the author
Pedro Calderón de la Barca
1,835 books299 followersPedro Calderón de la Barca y Henao was a dramatist of the Spanish Golden Age.
Calderón initiated what has been called the second cycle of Spanish Golden Age theatre. Whereas his predecessor, Lope de Vega, pioneered the dramatic forms and genres of Spanish Golden Age theatre, Calderón polished and perfected them. Whereas Lope's strength lay in the sponteneity and naturalness of his work, Calderón's strength lay in his capacity for poetic beauty, dramatic structure and philosophical depth. Calderón was a perfectionist who often revisited and reworked his plays, even long after they debuted. This perfectionism was not just limited to his own work: many of his plays rework existing plays or scenes by other dramatists, improving their depth, complexity, and unity. (Many European playwrights of the time, such as Molière, Corneille and Shakespeare, reworked old plays in this way.) Calderón excelled above all others in the genre of the "auto sacramental", in which he showed a seemingly inexhaustible capacity to giving new dramatic forms to a given set of theological constructs. Calderón wrote 120 "comedias", 80 "autos sacramentales" and 20 short comedic works called "entremeses"
Calderón initiated what has been called the second cycle of Spanish Golden Age theatre. Whereas his predecessor, Lope de Vega, pioneered the dramatic forms and genres of Spanish Golden Age theatre, Calderón polished and perfected them. Whereas Lope's strength lay in the sponteneity and naturalness of his work, Calderón's strength lay in his capacity for poetic beauty, dramatic structure and philosophical depth. Calderón was a perfectionist who often revisited and reworked his plays, even long after they debuted. This perfectionism was not just limited to his own work: many of his plays rework existing plays or scenes by other dramatists, improving their depth, complexity, and unity. (Many European playwrights of the time, such as Molière, Corneille and Shakespeare, reworked old plays in this way.) Calderón excelled above all others in the genre of the "auto sacramental", in which he showed a seemingly inexhaustible capacity to giving new dramatic forms to a given set of theological constructs. Calderón wrote 120 "comedias", 80 "autos sacramentales" and 20 short comedic works called "entremeses"
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
December 25, 2022
The first couple of plays were difficult reads, but in retrospect there was some merit. "Life is a dream" had an unusual theme in differentiating reality from dream. "Polyeucts" was much too religious for me, although a tragedy for the believers. "Phaedra" was a reasonable facsimile of Classic Greek drama written two millennia beyond that age. "Tartuffe" introduced modern comedy and hypocrisy. "Minna ..." added sarcasm to the stage. And finally, "William Tell" described the fight of Swiss free men against a tyrant. The drama increased as the years intervened from the 16th to the end of the 18th centuries.
July 5, 2020
Harvard Classics, Vol. 26 This volume aims to represent, as far as the limits of space allow, the chief dramatists of Spain, France, and Germany. To the plays included here should be added the "Faust" and "Egmont" of Goethe , included in Volume XIX of this series. These eight works, along with the specimens of the Elizabethan drama contained in Volumes XLVI and XLVII ( forthcoming )and Modern English drama given in Volume XVIII , indicate the high-water mark of dramatic production in modern times, and afford a basis for comparison with the masterpieces of the drama of antiquity as represented in Volume VIII "Nine Greek Dramas."
Included in this volume:
Life Is a Dream by Pedro Calderon de la Barca
Polyeucte by Pierre Corneille
Phèdra by Jean Racine
Tartuffe by Moliere
Minna von Barnhelm by Gotthold Ephraim Lessing
Wilhelm Tell by Friedrich von Schiller
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews