This article reconsiders the impact of the Spanish comedia on early-seventeenth-century French theatre, arguing that its influence extends well beyond direct translations to a deep reshaping of dramaturgical practice. It traces the diffusion of the so called « pentagonal schema » from Lope de Vega into French comedy and tragedy, especially in Corneille, where it powers action despite classicist demands for unity. By subordinating multiple love plots to a primary through-line, Corneille reframes Aristotelian theory into a two-thread model that heightens uncertainty and spectacle. The study situates these mechanisms within wider European narrative habits yet underscores the comedia’s distinctive role in formal consolidation and stage efficacy.
Université de Strasbourg, France - ORCID: 0009-0000-0448-3001
Chapter Title
L’impatto della comedia in Francia nel primo Seicento: nuovi personaggi, nuove storie, nuove pratiche drammatiche
Authors
Enrica Zanin
Language
Italian
DOI
10.36253/979-12-215-0857-4.20
Peer Reviewed
Publication Year
2026
Copyright Information
© 2026 Author(s)
Content License
Metadata License
Book Title
La recepción del teatro clásico español en Europa (siglos XVII-XVIII)
Editors
Fausta Antonucci, Salomé Vuelta García
Peer Reviewed
Number of Pages
300
Publication Year
2026
Copyright Information
© 2026 Author(s)
Content License
Metadata License
Publisher Name
Firenze University Press
DOI
10.36253/979-12-215-0857-4
ISBN Print
979-12-215-0856-7
eISBN (pdf)
979-12-215-0857-4
Series Title
Moderna/Comparata
Series ISSN
2704-5641
Series E-ISSN
2704-565X