The play "Life is a dream" (Calderon): a summary

One of the most famous works of Spanish drama is the play "Life is a dream" (Calderon). The summary of this work has become the main topic of our article.

About the play

Perhaps the most famous Spanish playwright of the 17th century is Pedro Calderon. "Life is a dream" (for a more brief discussion of the play, see below) is the peak of his writing skills. The drama was first presented to the public in 1635 and immediately became a landmark work of its era.

The basis of the play was the conflict between man and nature, personality and power, duty and destiny. The aim of the whole work was to reveal the essence of human nature and being. Hence the specific genre of the work is a religious-philosophical drama.

"Life is a dream" (Calderon): a summary

A noble lady Rosaur, disguised as a man, accompanied by Clarinet's servant, lost its way in the mountains, not far from the castle of the Polish king. The night is approaching, around it is deserted, but suddenly the satellites distinguish a tower in the distance from which the captivity of captive Sekhimundo comes from.

A hero who never saw freedom, creates Calderon ("Life is a dream"). The summary tells how Rosaura enters the tower and starts a conversation with the prisoner. The sound of the voices comes from the prison clerk Clotaldo and calls the guards. Sehismundo is taken away, and strangers are taken away their weapons. Clotaldo takes Rosaura's sword and is amazed. On his question the girl responds that she got a sword from a certain person who told her to come here and show weapons to the people of this kingdom. Then she will receive any help.

Mysterious Sword

The plot line of the drama "Life is a dream" continues to unfold. Calderon (a summary of this testifies) does not depart from the then accepted magic techniques of creating works related to mysticism, accidental coincidences, mysteries and riddles.

Clotaldo remains alone and remembers that long ago he gave this sword to Violette, promising that he would help anyone who would return the weapon back. The jailer suspects that a strange stranger (he took Rosaur for a boy) is his son. For help in solving a difficult situation, he turns to the Polish king Basilio.

Basilio has no children, and two nephews claim to his throne: Estrella, the daughter of the elder sister, and Astolfo, the son of the younger sister. At the same time, young people are in love with each other. Astrel is embarrassed in the offer of Astolfo to marry only that he wears on his chest a portrait of an unfamiliar woman. Young people come to the king and ask him to appoint an heir.

Heir

At the requests of young people Basilio responds that he has a legitimate heir - Sekhimzundo. But when the boy was not born yet, the astrologer predicted that he would bring his mother death, all his life he would wreak havoc around himself and even dare to raise his father's hand. The first prediction came true right away - the queen died during childbirth. Therefore, the king decided to lock the dangerous child in the tower. Now Basilio decided to put him on the throne. If the prince justifies the assigned hopes, he will become a legitimate heir.

The history of Rosaura and the accession of Sehismundo

The plot of the play "Life is a dream" (Calderon) continues to be twisted. A summary of the actions describes the appearance of Rosaura in the royal castle. The girl confesses Basilio, who she is, and tells her what brought her here. She loves Astolfo, it is his portrait that he keeps on his chest. Rosaura remains in the castle under the name Astrea as a lady-in-waiting.

Sehismundo in a dream is transported to the palace. In the morning he wakes up, and he is told that he is a lord. The prince begins to create excesses, resembling a wild beast. Basilio can not stand it and tells him to put him to sleep and take him back to the dungeon.

Having woken up, Sechismundo is in turmoil. Clotaldo says that he just had a strange dream. And in general, is life different from dreaming?

Decoupling

The action of the play "Life is a dream" (Calderon) comes to an end. The summary tells of Basilio's decision to appoint an heir to Astolfo, who still wants to marry Estrella. In the meantime, Estrella instructs Rosaura to steal the pottery that the prince wears on his chest. The girl does it, but Astolfo finds her out. Between young people there is an explanation. Rosaura blames the lover for treason.

The people of Poland, having learned about Basilio's decision to put Astolfo on the throne, rise up and free Sekhimundo. He leads a riot and defeats the defenders of Basilio. The king is preparing for death, remembering the unbridled disposition of his son. But Sechismundo has changed a lot, he leans before his father as his faithful vassal.

Astolfo refuses to marry Rosaura because of the difference in origin, but Clotaldo confesses that she is his daughter. Now there are no obstacles to marriage. Estrella also goes to Sekhimundo's wife, who is now just, generous and affable. The heir explains such changes by fearing to wake up again in prison.