The King, The Greatest Alcalde brings attention to the corruption that having too much power can cause. The author, Lope Felix De Vega Caprio, writes of how Don Tello uses and abuses his power for his own purposes. The author shows this by writing of how Don Tello’s servants trust in him, and how he misuses his power, and lets them down.
Don Tello abuses his power because he can. The position that he holds allows him to have far reaching power over the Spanish land that he rules. He has the power to decide the actions of his servants. He even has the final decision over whom they marry. This power becomes too great for him to handle, because he uses it for his own good, not the good of his people. When he decides that he will not let Sancho marry Elvira, he shows his selfishness. Sancho loves Elvira for the right reasons. Don Tello lusts after Elvira because he finds her remarkably attractive. The action that Don Tello takes to hold Elvira captive shows his ill-will, and lack of concern for his servants. This shows one way that he uses his power to create injustice between him and his servants.
Sancho expresses his undying love for Elvira throughout the play. He states, “My love is sprung, which from her favor draws its brightest glory” (97). He sweeps her off of her feet with his romantic compliments. He makes her feel special and loved. Elvira and Sancho make the perfect couple, each loving one another for the right reasons. This makes it even more horrible when Don Tello abuses his power and takes the two away from each other. He does this for his own gain, so that he can have her. He speaks to Sancho and says, “If I have taken your wife, you knave, know I am who I am, and I reign here and here I do my will as the King does his in his Castile” (117). Don Tello’s selfishness leads to his demise. This occurs when the King, who has reigns over Don Tello, decides that Don Tello shall be beheaded for the wrongs he has committed.
The King comes in and saves the day. He becomes extremely angered when he learns of Don Tello’s abuse of power for his own gain. The King states, “For he who wrongs the poor is never wise” (114). The King brings Elvira and Sancho back together. He uses his power for the good of his people. This shows his nobility, honor, and concern for those he rules over. He kills Don Tello to set an example. He shows that he will not tolerate the ruling of his people with injustice.
Don Tello shows his lack of dignity in this work. He abuses his power completely because he knows that he can. He tries to rule over his servants like a dictator. He makes decisions for them based on what will benefit him the most. The play shows what bad things can occur when someone in an authoritarian position rules corruptly. The King states this beautifully when he say, “When justice fails and wanders from the mark no mercy ever sets it right again” (128). This play shows the problems that occur when one person has complete power over others. It shows that people should have a few leaders that will check each other, making sure that no corrupt practices occur. Rulers that make decisions based on what will get them ahead will always end up falling behind.
In Lope de Vega’s The King the Greatest Alcade, the playwright borrows from Italian Commedia Dell’ Arte. Readers can clearly see how development of certain characters creates opportunities for incorporating slapstick humor. Pelayo, a worker for Nuno, plays the stock character typically used in Commedia Dell’ Arte, with an annoying personality and seemingly nonsensical lines:
“Nuno: What a blockhead you are! Sancho: What an ignorant clown! Pelayo: As my mother made me” (104)
He expands on Commedia Dell’ Arte by using his own sense of humor beyond slapstick. The playwright even seeks to jest at the idea of a young couple in love, which he mirrors after the “lovers” in typical Commedia Dell' Arte. The nervous lover, Sancho, even considers taking his own life for grief of his lover’s absence and fate. “I will take my life! I lose the very sense and touch of reason!”(107) Here, Lope de Vega ridicules the eagerness of young lovers and their hastiness to remain together.
In the same sense, Lope de Vega maintains the intensity of drama throughout the plot. He develops a conflict between good and evil and a battle between the social classes. At this point, he also exemplifies women’s weaker roles in the Spanish renaissance period and correlates it with lower socioeconomic status. The fact that both Sancho and Elvira come from poorer families contributes to the elemental theme of good versus evil. Lope de Vega also denotes Elvira as an indecisive and weak woman, which may also represent gender roles of the era. As a male playwright, he also satirizes the age old battle between Venus and Mars, women and men. “Since you are so cautious, Sancho, let me tell you that we women say most when we are silent. We give when we deny. Judge by this and by what you see and never believe us, whether we are cruel or kind. For everything we do is to be taken by opposites.” (98) Lope De Vega characterizes Don Tello as a manipulative feudal lord who looks down upon Sancho and seeks to use Elvira until he feel satisfied. By shifting Don Tello’s appearance from benevolent to malicious, Lope de Vega also makes a statement toward the upper classes of Spanish society. “It would have been infamous in my passion to have suffered a peasant to possess the beauty which I crave. After I am tired of her, this country fool can marry her..”(106)
The King the Greatest Alcade contributed to the Spanish renaissance by pulling in elements of Italian Commedia Dell’ Arte. Its use of characters and their development supplemented the otherwise simplistic theme based on the typical conflict of the “lovers” in Commedia Dell’ Arte.
The King, The Greatest Alcade by Lope de Vega stands out as a non-traditional commedia play due to its combination of comedy and tragedy. Humor lies prominent throughout the play, especially in scenes involving Don Tello, the tyrant ruler of Galicia. Lope de Vega also makes tragedy evident in several different scenes, most of which can be attributed to Don Tello and his dictator-like ways of ruling. As in most commedia pieces, the comedy in Lope de Vega’s play brings the audience’s attention to deeper, more tragic issues and teaches lessons in a light-hearted and entertaining way.
At the beginning of The King, The Greatest Alcade, the protagonist and servant Sancho faces a dilemma involving himself, his love Elvira, and Don Tello. When Sancho asks Don Tello’s permission to wed Elvira, the authoritative ruler agrees at first. This agreement by Don Tello soon turns to outright disagreement and prohibition when he sees Elvira and gets captivated by her rare beauty on the night of her and Sancho’s planned wedding. Tragedy rolls in when Don Tello forbids Sancho to marry Elvira so he can fulfill his own personal desires and lust for the peasant girl. Don Tello reveals to fellow royalty, Celio, his illogical and blasphemous power- and money-oriented motives, “It would have been infamous in my passion to have suffered a peasant to possess the beauty which I crave. After I am tired of her, this country fool can marry her, and I will grant him a flock and a grange, with money enough for him to live” (106). Sancho gets deprived of his true love, all because of Don Tello’s power over the people to make unreasonable and selfish rules. As if preventing the genuine and sincere love of Sancho and Elvira was not enough, Don Tello takes his unjust authority one step further by capturing Elvira from her home at night and holding her hostage in a tower of his castle. This causes despair and sorrow for everyone except Don Tello, but especially for Sancho and Nuno, Elvira’s father. So to free Elvira from Don Tello’s sick and unfair ownership, Sancho enlists the aid of the King who rules over Don Tello. The King feels initial disbelief upon listening to Sancho’s description of Don Tello, which he makes clear by asking, “Can such a tyrant breathe in all Galicia?” (115). After hearing the rest of Sancho’s sad and desperate story, the King writes a letter for Sancho to deliver to Don Tello, in which the King demands that Elvira be released and Don Tello hold true to his original agreement of the marriage. Upon reading the King’s letter, Don Tello laughs as if it was all a joke and ridicules the King and the King’s implied authority over him. This shows that Don Tello thinks very highly of himself and over-estimates his power and authority over the townspeople, as well as the King. As if the idea of a person not worshipping him was absolutely ridiculous, Don Tello even brags to Celio, “…Seeing myself despised, when I am he who is most powerful in all the land, richest in goods and most magnificent?” (113). Don Tello does not realize the degree of his mistakes and unjust ruling until it becomes too late, specifically when the King orders Don Tello to be beheaded for these wrongdoings and disobedience to the King.
Lope de Vega employs both comedy and tragedy in his Spanish play The King, The Greatest Alcade to make the audience realize that power in the hands of the wrong people can result in devastating consequences. Don Tello rules with confidence and boastfulness to get his way, regardless of the impact of his unreasonable decisions on others. But in the end, Don Tello gets punished for his bad deeds and unfair rule over people when the King, the true and just ruler of the land, orders his beheading.
Lope de Vega’s dramatic work The King, The Greatest Alcalde is to be lauded for its application of comedy to a fairytale-like plot line. Utilizing a sole character as the primary source of ridicule, the playwright succeeds in producing quaint humor; which proves most effective in capturing the audiences’ sense of interest. To illustrate the reoccurring theme of love versus lust, de Vega also manipulates characters so that they function as tools of representation; each advocating a lateral love’s contrast.
De Vega chose to present comedy in his dramatic work through the character Pelayo. The servant is introduced to the audience as a fellow wishing to wed Nuno’s daughter, Elvira; however, after being denied her hand, he becomes the play’s sole source of comedy. “Such favor!/ Favor such?/ Such great bounty!/ Such bounty? Great!/ Oh, rare virtue!/ Virtue-Oh rare!/ Lordly mien!/ Mien? Lordly!/ And pity, Saintly Lady!/ Saintly lady? Pity!” ( 102). This scene proves most humorous because it depicts two clashing emotions through a childlike scenario (Sancho’s remarks with happiness, Pelayo mimics with misery). Pelayo’s character in particular stresses the mood of immaturity; his presence is what instigates a sense of complete amusement. Further emphasis of the servant’s role can be witnessed in the scene where Don Tello addresses the women in Nuno’s house hold. “ And what is your name?/ Pelayo, sir./ I did not speak to you.” (104). Through this brief - though reoccurring- exchange, Pelayo is accurately defined as an idiot and source of ridicule. Does this make him any less appealing to the audience however? No; Pelayo’s presence is what drives the audience to sit up and focus on the scene; they anticipate humor. Thus, Pelayo plays a pivotal role in producing comic effect throughout the play.
One of the most striking elements of The King, the Greatest Alcalde is Lope de Vega’s contrasting view of love expressed through the characters of Sancho and Don Tello. After abducting Elvira, Don Tello brutally inquires why she is incapable of returning his passion. The maiden’s response is that his feelings for her derive from lust rather than love. “Never, my Lord; for love/ That is deficient in a true respect/ for honor is but vile desire, not love;/ And being evil, love never can be called./ For love is born of loving what on loves/ In mad desire;/ And love that is not chaste/ By no name of love is graced/ Nor ever can to love’s estate aspire…” (108). At Elvira’s first appearance, Don Tello uses words such as “worthy” (105), “rare” (105)and “perfection” (104) to depict her physical exterior. It is this which captures him and ignites his insatiable “fire” (105); hence, his lustful depiction. This love is well distinguished from that of Sancho, however. Back tracking to Sancho’s premier poetic verse, the audience notes his use of phrases such as “tender love or beasts or flowers” (97) and “No greater beauty and no greater love” (97). Here, a man in true love is observed because his affection for the maiden is incomparable. His words, in contrast to Don Tello, address not her physique, but how she makes him to feel. Sancho’s love is far from selfish. “What rare devotion!/ I verily believe there was never anything like it in the world.” (123). Thus, therein lies de Vega’s contrasting view of love. To the left, love is a purchasable item, used temporarily to be later discarded. To the right, love is a covenant, a bond which links two persons of similar sentiments eternally.
“[Don Tello’s] power over these lands, and is supreme / Through all Galicia, nor aught he fears / In foreign realms” (90), these words spoken by Nuño, the peasant father of Elvira, show insight into the battle between political rhetoric and political satire that goes on throughout the entirety of Lope Felix de Vega Carpio’s The King, The Greatest Alcalde. Vega Carpio uses the character of Don Tello to show the inherent evil and corruption of some in a position of power, providing a satirical view to the monarchial class system. On the other hand, the King is used as a distinct contrast to Don Tello and is seen as the liberator and savior, providing a sense of political rhetoric.
The way in which the peasants view Don Tello’s character changes throughout the course of the play. In the beginning of the work, Tello is revered by the other characters, some, as Sancho, Elvira’s lover, who go as far as to seek his approval for their marriages. However, Don Tello is not revered for his true character, but for his social position. The Don’s villainous characteristics, such as his capture of Elvira, provide a sense of satire towards the upper social classes. Nuño states “but in my heart it irks me that he came” (105). This is comment is ironic in the sense that it was Nuño that requested that Sancho get the approval of Don Tello for his marriage to Elvira. However, this comment also provides a sense of foreshadowing. Nuño is getting a gut feeling that the Don is no longer present in that house with noble intentions. Don Tello reveals his true intentions that “after I am tired of her, this country fool can marry her…” (106). The true villainous intentions of the Don show his corrupt nature. Don Tello feels that he can do anything he desires due to his elevated social class, and so feel that he can kidnap Elvira and use her as he pleases.
Contrastingly, the King is viewed as a just and righteous figure. Sancho seeks advice and justice from the King when Don Tello will not release Elvira. The King is humble and supportive and does what he feels is required to provide a sense of integrity to the situation. The King states, “I would have come in time to salve these wounds / And right the wrongs of Sancho and Nuño. / But yet I may do justice, and strike off / The head from Tello…” (128). The King feels that he has failed his people, and has not sufficiently fixed Elvira’s problem. The King fixes that situation to his content and the evil lord receives his due punishment. The King’s ability to fix all of the problems in the land, and his initial cooperation and understanding of Sancho is political rhetoric at its finest. This work gives the audience the impression that no matter their problem the King can fix it. Don Tello even notices that “[His] just death is near; / [He has] offended God—God and the King!” (127). Foreshadowing his own demise, Don Tello equates the King with God, exemplifying the theory of a divine monarchy, placed in power to help its people.
In essence, Vega Caprio uses the idea of social class to show both its ability to corrupt and its power to provide justice. Through the actions and lustful thoughts of Don Tello, the playwright shows that to some power gives them the belief that they are above the law and can do as they please. On the contrary, the character of the King, show a benevolent and helpful man willing to do what is needed to end strife in the lives of his people. The idea that the King can and is willing to solve all of the problems of his people is a form of political rhetoric used to create a stronger following with the King.
In Lope Felix de Vega Carpio’s The King, the Greatest Alcade or in it’s original title, El Mejor Alcalde, El Rey, the playwright borrows from the style of the Italian Comedia dell’Arte but strays from it as well. There are similarities in the characterization of those in the play, as well in the situations in which they find themselves. While there are similarities, between Comedia dell’Arte and this play, there are also differences that would show a distinct style of Felix de Varga Carpio that might have made the story more relatable to the Spanish people of that time, changing their professions or allegiances, but perhaps retaining character traits.
One major similarity is the love between this story’s “Oratio” and “Isabella”. Sancho can be said to be this work’s “Oratio,” constantly professing his love for the “Isabella” of the play, known here as Elvira. It is implied from the beginning of this story that their love might be forbidden, with Sancho dreading the confrontation that he is to have with Elvira’s father, asking for her hand in marriage after it seems as if the man has already arranged a marriage, with Sancho telling her that her “father says that he has pledged [her] hand” (Felix de Vega Carpio, 100), then in the last part of this line: “To a youth in service of Don Tello here” he reveals that he is the youth pledged to her.. It can be said that Don Tello, Sancho’s master, is this work’s “Pantalone” rather his control is over Sancho and his temporal destiny, yet rather than be Elvira’s lover, he is Sancho’s master.. Both roles display the feudal mentality in the societies, showing that those of higher class had control over the lower class’s lives, and decided to whom they would be married, and such. Also, the apparent “Harlequin” could be said to be Pelayo, but rather be the valet to the “Captain”, he valets to Sancho, repeating the words he says, and mimicking what Sancho does and says throughout the play. This is demonstrated in Act 1, after Don Tello, along with his sister, Feliciana, have blessed the union of Sancho and Elvira:
“Sancho: Such favor! Pelayo: Favor such? Sancho: Such great bounty! Pelayo: Such bounty? Great!” (102)
Et cetera.
The largest difference between Comedia dell’Arte and this play is that Felix de Varga Carpio had given all of his characters specific lines and actions. In the prior, the scenes are merely described in vague detail, and there is much license given to the actors, as to how they would like the play to follow through. In this work, there is very little artistic license given to the actors in this sense. There are also differences, as have been explained previously in characterization and in relationships between the characters.
It can be said that there might have been some definite influence on Felix de Varga Carpio by the Italian play style of Comedia dell’Arte in his play El Mejor Alcalde, El Rey. There are obvious similarities, yet in those similarities, there are striking differences. One would be very interested to know what sort of exposure this author had to that Italian style of writing, and how he felt towards it to have apparently integrated it into his style of authoring plays.
The social hierarchy is the main culprit in The King, the Greatest Alcade. Each man associated with Elvira is affected by the power given his station and his corresponding ability to follow his desires. Elvira refuses Pelayo’s offer of marriage as a result of his occupation, Nuño is obligated to receive Don Tello’s blessing before giving his daughter away, and Sancho is unable to protect his love due to his lowly station. All of the men in Lope Felix de Vega Carpio’s drama are vulnerable to the corrupt decisions of Don Tello.
Division of the social classes is first seen in the beginning of Act I. Pelaya tells Nuño of Elvira’s refusal of his hand in marriage. He later explains to Feliciana, “She [Elvira] knew, though, I kept pigs, and so she up and turned me down…” (103). Elvira’s excuse was based on Pelaya’s lowly occupation and therefore his social rank. Part of her decision may have resulted from her love for Sancho; however, even the act of marriage to him has problems with social class. Her father Nuño is obligated to receive Don Tello’s blessing before allowing marriage between his daughter and Sancho. In visiting Don Tello, Sancho obtains twenty cows and a hundred sheep from the master, but makes the mistake of making Elvira known to Don Tello. If Nuño had not felt the need to have Sancho visit the master to gain permission to marry Elvira or had Sancho not extolled the virtues of Elvira, Don Tello may have never been interested in Elvira.
Regardless, Don Tello took it upon himself to visit the home of Nuño, and saw the striking beauty of Elvira. He remarks, “In all my life I never thought to see such strange surpassing beauty” (104) Surrendering to his infatuation, he and his men spirit Elvira away in the night. This disregard for Elvira’s wishes or for her chastity is a display of Don Tello’s lack of respect for people of an inferior social class to himself. He thinks of the situation, “After I am tired of her, this country fool [Sancho] can marry her [Elvira]… It is a compensation which comes to many, as we have both of us [Don Tello and Celio] seen in the world. Finally, I have the power, and I will avail me of it…” (106). Don Tello justifies his decision to kidnap Elvira with the thought that she and Sancho can be together eventually, just not until he gets what he wants. He further excuses his behavior by pointing out it is a normal occurrence for a man to bestow his woman, once he has finished with her, to another man in marriage. This elite thinking is a primary example of how the characters in The King, the Greatest Alcade believe their actions are controlled by their social class. Don Tello, being of a higher social class, believes his actions are excused, because he is powerful. Sancho, when he first hears of Elvira’s kidnapping, believes himself to be helpless to save her, as he is of a lower social class. He cries in despair, “What justice shall I find this side of heaven, he being a powerful man and richest in the kingdom?” (106). This feeling of powerlessness is based solely on his inferior class.
All of the problems in Lope Felix de Vega Carpio’s The King, the Greatest Alcade originated from a social hierarchy. If the characters had not felt confined by their respective rankings, their actions would have been less inhibited, and more inhibited for Don Tello.
The King by Lope de Vega is a work of opposites. The contrasts between love and lust and comedy and tragedy are made unequivocally apparent throughout the work as means to show his theme that good does triumph over evil. The use of these contrasting ideas is as effective for today’s audiences as it would have been to the people of de Vega’s day.
Elvira is the daughter of Nuno and the nexus for the lust versus love conflict in the play. Don Tello, the dictator lusts after Elvira for she is, as he says “the beauty which I crave” (106.) It is made evident continuously that Don Tello has no real desire to love and honor this young maiden but to merely establish power over his subjects and win a beautiful young girl. Sancho, who at first s to wed the girl, truly loves her and everyone in the audience is left with no room to doubt. He speaks of the future with her in it saying “O God! But when shall come that day (on which I too must die), when at the last I say to her: “Elvira, you are mine!” What gifts and presents I shall shower on you!” (97); this obviously shows that this man, the servant, is truly in love with the beautiful Elvira. This foil between the two men sets up the greater struggle between good and evil.
Arguably, Don Tello is the character from which but the comedy and tragedy extend. The man is obviously a tyrant and from this tyrannical attitude that the tragedy in the play stems. Don Tello initially agrees to the marriage between Elvira and Sancho, but once he sees the woman captures her and locks in away in a castle causes grief for allmparties involved. When one looks at the motives behind this move by Don Tello one is forced to see that the man merely wants to establish his power over his people. However, there is a comedic quality about Don Tello as well. The same tyrannical hubris he exhibits is his downfall. The mere fact that this man has forgotten that he is subject to the king and laughs away his letter of admonishment is so shocking that it is funny. Then again, at the end of the play justice is doled out and Don Tello’s disregard for his people is brought to end when the King demands his head. However morbid this may be it is still funny to see how the mighty have fallen. The King in the play a truly good man, first wanting to believe that his chosen leaders are good and just but then recognizing that Don Tello behaved like a dictator and made an example of him accordingly.
After the battles of love and lust, comedy and tragedy and good versus evil have been waged and won the audience is left feeling satisfied by the outcomes. Audiences have come to recognize that Don Tello is an embodiment of evil, evil lust, evil desire, and an evil misuse of power. Sancho and the King of Galicia are embodiments of good, true love, and fair play. Ending with the triumph of the good characters the play does indeed suggest that good will always triumph over evil.
In Lope de Vega’s The King, The Greatest Alcalde, the playwright uses Commedia Dell’Arte to create a comedic approach to an otherwise tragic situation. The play was also written to portray the writer’s view of the social classes in Spain, which was a very set way of life in those times.
He contrasts his views of two social classes through Don Tello, the tyrannical duke of Galicia, and Sancho, a peasant worker. Both of these characters have fallen under Elvira’s spell of beauty, and both wish her hand in marriage. Sancho asks Elvira’s father for permission to wed, and it is granted to him. When he must go to Don Tello to ask for further permission, it is also granted to him. However, on their supposed wedding night, Don Tello kidnaps Elvira so that he can marry her himself. This selfish and tricky action gives readers insight into the disdainful way de Vega thinks of someone he feels has been given too much power.
Sancho’s love for Elvira is apparent through his poetic and loving words delivered dramatically to Elvira. For example, he declares “You birds that sing of love, you beasts that roam untrammeled of restraint, where have you seen more tender love in birds and bees? But since it is impossible to see aught else of all the sun looks down upon more beautiful than my Elvira is” (97). When Sancho is aware that Elvira is in the hands of such a character, he proclaims, “rather let me die than live, however cruel death may be!” (111). His love for her is an undying, passionate love, while Don Tello’s love for her is simply superficial and lustful. He speaks only of her beauty, proclaiming simple phrases such as “I never saw such loveliness” (104). He says, “It would have been infamous in my passion to have suffered a peasant to possess the beauty which I crave. After I am tired of her, this country fool can marry her, and I will grant him a flock and a grange, with money enough for him to live” (106). He is unethically using his power over Sancho to simply use this peasant girl for her body, and throw her aside as soon as he’s had his way with her. De Vega uses these two contrasting loves to depict his view of the crooked political system present in Spain.
In the end, justice prevails, and Don Tello is ordered to be beheaded. This depicts that De Vega believes that certain people can handle power, but it has to be given out carefully, not as carelessly as it was given to such a person as Don Tello. In the King’s hands, retribution is handled appropriately. Lope de Vega would probably agree with Peter Parker’s uncle when he says, “with great power comes great responsibility,” for it is the main idea the playwright depicts to readers throughout The King, The Greatest Alcalde.
Reading through the pages of Lope de Vega’s The King, the Greatest Alcalde, we understand that this work exemplifies a classic love story. However, this work exudes much more than just the classic components of a common romance. What, then, makes this adventure of two hearts different than the next? Intertwined with aspects derived from the Italian Commedia form, this drama engenders a more complex identity than just our average folktale of love. By mixing the slapstick humor brought to life by Pelayo and the tragic love affair between Elvira and Sancho, de Vega brings this grand piece of art to life by blending a tragic love story with episodes of comic relief.
From the very beginning of the work, de Vega hits us with lines from Sancho, the man in love with Elvira. Sancho so romantically states in his soliloquy that “it is impossible to see aught else of all the sun looks down upon more beautiful than my Elvira is” (de Vega 97). Immediately, we can catch the feeling of this work. As the work progresses, we find that Sancho comes from a mere peasant family, which explains his uneasiness toward his pending union with Elvira. Before Elvira’s father allows him to marry her, he thinks it best that Sancho should ask for Don Tello’s permission. Here comes the twist that makes this work interesting. After agreeing that the marriage should take place immediately, we see Don Tello try to postpone the marriage, as he now wants Elvira after coming into contact with her. Fraught with desire, he states that it “would have been infamous in my passion to have suffered a peasant to possess the beauty” that he desires so selfishly (106). Making his character even worse, de Vega has him state that “After I am tired of her, this country fool can marry her” (106). Delving deeper into the characters we know thus far, we can infer that perhaps de Vega criticizes the nobility a bit. By pointing out the way Don Tello abuses his power, de Vega relates to us how many in the nobility could abuse their power and think it perfectly acceptable. Saddened by the kidnapping of Elvira, we completely sympathize with Sancho.
However, after the horrible scene that takes place in Don Tello’s residence, in flies the comedic Pelayo, offering us some comic relief: “I want a reward!” (112). Thinking he has just made a brilliant discovery concerning the location of Elvira, he demands a reward for finding out that “Don Tello has had her with him in his house since twelve o’clock” (112). Of course, we can imagine his childishness throughout this scene, since we know that Sancho has already discovered this with Nuño. Through this instance, our mood changes to the polar opposite. We can imagine the audience crying at one point and laughing at the very next instant with the entrance of Pelayo. Throughout this play’s entirety, we witness de Vega’s brilliance as he wonderfully works in instances of comedy while focusing on the tragedy at hand. Though he continues to make the audience laugh, he never loses focus on the main idea of the work.
Thus we see how intricately de Vega intertwines tragedy with a twist of Commedia. By Mixing a tragic love affair with components of Commedia, de Vega masters pulling us from one emotion to its polar opposite. By adding in components of the Italian Commedia Dell’ Arte and maintaining the play’s own Spanish identity and flavor, The King, the Greatest Alcalde not only contributes to Spanish works of literature but also to world literature for years to come.
In the play, The King, the Greatest Alcalde by Lope Felix de Vega Carpio, the audience sees similar attributes in the stock characters of Commedia dell Arte and characters of our modern day. The stock characters in Commedia dell Arte were predictable, as are many of the characters in The King, the Greatest Alcalde. The personalities of Don Tello, Pelayo, and Sancho continue to reappear throughout time in a plethora of genres.
Sancho plays a role in The King, the Greatest Alcalde that we find often even in our modern day. He loves a woman, but is unable to be with her due to outstanding circumstances. Sancho also plays the role of a hopeless romantic. He is very intelligent, but he laments over his love for Elvira and speaks of the worthlessness of life without her. In the opening lines, the audience immediately sees how much Sancho pines after Elvira. Sancho says, “My love is sprung, which from her favor draws its brightest glory; no greater beauty is, no greater beauty and no greater love I bear” (de Vega Carpio page 97)! In the above quote the audience sees that Sancho loves Elvira, a beautiful woman. As Sancho’s lines about Elvira continue on for quite some time, the audience knows of Sancho’s love before the story begins. Later on in the play, Sancho refuses to live without Elvira and he will die without her. The audience views these feelings in the Sancho’s line where he states, “My wife, my life, my good, my all!...Yes, rather let me die than live, however cruel death be (page 111)! All the other characters in the play know that Sancho is well spoken and wise. The audience views this sentiment in the lines of his soon-to-be father-in-law when he speaks with Sancho before he leaves to meet with the King. Upon meeting with the King, Sancho impresses the King with his words. The King states, “The man meseems is wise; before he speaks he wins my sympathy” (page114).
Don Tello is the stereotypical ruthless king, drunk on his own power and concerned with only his own wants. Characters like Don Tello appear in every genre throughout time, from Shakespearean works, to modern day movies such as 300 with the Persian King Xerxes. Don Tello shows how he believes himself of utmost authority in his lines, “By God, I am astonished at my own forbearance! Do you think you hind, that by this insolence you shall teach me fear in my own despite? Do you know who I am” (page 117)? The above line shows that Don Tello has an attitude of superiority and lower class citizens should not challenge him. Don Tello shows how only his wants matter in the lines, “What? I shall not possess this woman’s beauty” (page 113)? Another example of this presents itself earlier in the lines, “After I am tired of [Elvira], this country fool can marry her” (page106). In the two said quotes, Don Tello views Elvira as an object of his desire. As a woman, Elvira has little worth and Don Tello does not see why he should give up something he wants to a lowly peasant. When Sancho challenges Don Tello, the immediate reaction out of the king is to kill them both, as peasants are a disposable resource. For the mentioned examples, characters like Don Tello make up the perspective of the stereotypical cruel king.
The character of Pelayo creates the comic relief. When the situations in the play speak of death and lost love, Pelayo will speak out of turn of tell about his hunger and love of food. Pelayo plays the role of the fool and his lines consist of nonsensical phrases or irrelevant stories. The humor of Pelayo is presented in his line, “They tell me that at court all the streets are laid with eggs and paved with rashers of bacon, and they greet strangers with a bounty so hearty that for all the world it is the same as if they had come out of Flanders or Italy or else Morocco” (pages 112-113). Also, Pelayo continually speaks about his hunger. For example in the lines where the King asks Pelayo if he has any problems to work out, he replies, “Yes, hunger; If the kitchen is hereabouts…” (page 116). Pelayo lightens the mood of the play when the situation between Elvira, Don Tello and Sancho becomes strained. Pelayo plays a fool even to other characters in the play. Such is shown in the lines of the King where he states, “How curious a pair that land has joined, one being so wise – the other such a fool” (page 116)! Similar roles to Pelayo have been appearing in numerous works throughout time. Similar characters to Pelayo have provided comic relief from the main conflict since the time of the Ancient Greeks up until our modern day theatre. Pelayo portrays a role most like a stock character from Commedia dell Arte since he performs the strange acts accompanied by nonsensical lines and stories.
Since the play, The King, the Greatest Alcalde was written in the seventeenth century, when Commedia dell Arte was in its prime, it is not so unusual that de Vega’s characters should model some of the stock characters presented in this genre. Even in today’s performances, we see these similar characters over and over in our movies: the lovers that cannot be together, the ruthless king, and that one strange person that always eats everyone’s food and never makes sense. These stock characters never go out of style and have always been present in Drama to entertain the audience.
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The King, The Greatest Alcalde brings attention to the corruption that having too much power can cause. The author, Lope Felix De Vega Caprio, writes of how Don Tello uses and abuses his power for his own purposes. The author shows this by writing of how Don Tello’s servants trust in him, and how he misuses his power, and lets them down.
Don Tello abuses his power because he can. The position that he holds allows him to have far reaching power over the Spanish land that he rules. He has the power to decide the actions of his servants. He even has the final decision over whom they marry. This power becomes too great for him to handle, because he uses it for his own good, not the good of his people. When he decides that he will not let Sancho marry Elvira, he shows his selfishness. Sancho loves Elvira for the right reasons. Don Tello lusts after Elvira because he finds her remarkably attractive. The action that Don Tello takes to hold Elvira captive shows his ill-will, and lack of concern for his servants. This shows one way that he uses his power to create injustice between him and his servants.
Sancho expresses his undying love for Elvira throughout the play. He states, “My love is sprung, which from her favor draws its brightest glory” (97). He sweeps her off of her feet with his romantic compliments. He makes her feel special and loved. Elvira and Sancho make the perfect couple, each loving one another for the right reasons. This makes it even more horrible when Don Tello abuses his power and takes the two away from each other. He does this for his own gain, so that he can have her. He speaks to Sancho and says, “If I have taken your wife, you knave, know I am who I am, and I reign here and here I do my will as the King does his in his Castile” (117). Don Tello’s selfishness leads to his demise. This occurs when the King, who has reigns over Don Tello, decides that Don Tello shall be beheaded for the wrongs he has committed.
The King comes in and saves the day. He becomes extremely angered when he learns of Don Tello’s abuse of power for his own gain. The King states, “For he who wrongs the poor is never wise” (114). The King brings Elvira and Sancho back together. He uses his power for the good of his people. This shows his nobility, honor, and concern for those he rules over. He kills Don Tello to set an example. He shows that he will not tolerate the ruling of his people with injustice.
Don Tello shows his lack of dignity in this work. He abuses his power completely because he knows that he can. He tries to rule over his servants like a dictator. He makes decisions for them based on what will benefit him the most. The play shows what bad things can occur when someone in an authoritarian position rules corruptly. The King states this beautifully when he say, “When justice fails and wanders from the mark no mercy ever sets it right again” (128). This play shows the problems that occur when one person has complete power over others. It shows that people should have a few leaders that will check each other, making sure that no corrupt practices occur. Rulers that make decisions based on what will get them ahead will always end up falling behind.
In Lope de Vega’s The King the Greatest Alcade, the playwright borrows from Italian Commedia Dell’ Arte. Readers can clearly see how development of certain characters creates opportunities for incorporating slapstick humor. Pelayo, a worker for Nuno, plays the stock character typically used in Commedia Dell’ Arte, with an annoying personality and seemingly nonsensical lines:
“Nuno: What a blockhead you are!
Sancho: What an ignorant clown!
Pelayo: As my mother made me” (104)
He expands on Commedia Dell’ Arte by using his own sense of humor beyond slapstick. The playwright even seeks to jest at the idea of a young couple in love, which he mirrors after the “lovers” in typical Commedia Dell' Arte. The nervous lover, Sancho, even considers taking his own life for grief of his lover’s absence and fate. “I will take my life! I lose the very sense and touch of reason!”(107) Here, Lope de Vega ridicules the eagerness of young lovers and their hastiness to remain together.
In the same sense, Lope de Vega maintains the intensity of drama throughout the plot. He develops a conflict between good and evil and a battle between the social classes. At this point, he also exemplifies women’s weaker roles in the Spanish renaissance period and correlates it with lower socioeconomic status. The fact that both Sancho and Elvira come from poorer families contributes to the elemental theme of good versus evil. Lope de Vega also denotes Elvira as an indecisive and weak woman, which may also represent gender roles of the era. As a male playwright, he also satirizes the age old battle between Venus and Mars, women and men. “Since you are so cautious, Sancho, let me tell you that we women say most when we are silent. We give when we deny. Judge by this and by what you see and never believe us, whether we are cruel or kind. For everything we do is to be taken by opposites.” (98) Lope De Vega characterizes Don Tello as a manipulative feudal lord who looks down upon Sancho and seeks to use Elvira until he feel satisfied. By shifting Don Tello’s appearance from benevolent to malicious, Lope de Vega also makes a statement toward the upper classes of Spanish society. “It would have been infamous in my passion to have suffered a peasant to possess the beauty which I crave. After I am tired of her, this country fool can marry her..”(106)
The King the Greatest Alcade contributed to the Spanish renaissance by pulling in elements of Italian Commedia Dell’ Arte. Its use of characters and their development supplemented the otherwise simplistic theme based on the typical conflict of the “lovers” in Commedia Dell’ Arte.
The King, The Greatest Alcade by Lope de Vega stands out as a non-traditional commedia play due to its combination of comedy and tragedy. Humor lies prominent throughout the play, especially in scenes involving Don Tello, the tyrant ruler of Galicia. Lope de Vega also makes tragedy evident in several different scenes, most of which can be attributed to Don Tello and his dictator-like ways of ruling. As in most commedia pieces, the comedy in Lope de Vega’s play brings the audience’s attention to deeper, more tragic issues and teaches lessons in a light-hearted and entertaining way.
At the beginning of The King, The Greatest Alcade, the protagonist and servant Sancho faces a dilemma involving himself, his love Elvira, and Don Tello. When Sancho asks Don Tello’s permission to wed Elvira, the authoritative ruler agrees at first. This agreement by Don Tello soon turns to outright disagreement and prohibition when he sees Elvira and gets captivated by her rare beauty on the night of her and Sancho’s planned wedding. Tragedy rolls in when Don Tello forbids Sancho to marry Elvira so he can fulfill his own personal desires and lust for the peasant girl. Don Tello reveals to fellow royalty, Celio, his illogical and blasphemous power- and money-oriented motives, “It would have been infamous in my passion to have suffered a peasant to possess the beauty which I crave. After I am tired of her, this country fool can marry her, and I will grant him a flock and a grange, with money enough for him to live” (106). Sancho gets deprived of his true love, all because of Don Tello’s power over the people to make unreasonable and selfish rules. As if preventing the genuine and sincere love of Sancho and Elvira was not enough, Don Tello takes his unjust authority one step further by capturing Elvira from her home at night and holding her hostage in a tower of his castle. This causes despair and sorrow for everyone except Don Tello, but especially for Sancho and Nuno, Elvira’s father. So to free Elvira from Don Tello’s sick and unfair ownership, Sancho enlists the aid of the King who rules over Don Tello. The King feels initial disbelief upon listening to Sancho’s description of Don Tello, which he makes clear by asking, “Can such a tyrant breathe in all Galicia?” (115). After hearing the rest of Sancho’s sad and desperate story, the King writes a letter for Sancho to deliver to Don Tello, in which the King demands that Elvira be released and Don Tello hold true to his original agreement of the marriage. Upon reading the King’s letter, Don Tello laughs as if it was all a joke and ridicules the King and the King’s implied authority over him. This shows that Don Tello thinks very highly of himself and over-estimates his power and authority over the townspeople, as well as the King. As if the idea of a person not worshipping him was absolutely ridiculous, Don Tello even brags to Celio, “…Seeing myself despised, when I am he who is most powerful in all the land, richest in goods and most magnificent?” (113). Don Tello does not realize the degree of his mistakes and unjust ruling until it becomes too late, specifically when the King orders Don Tello to be beheaded for these wrongdoings and disobedience to the King.
Lope de Vega employs both comedy and tragedy in his Spanish play The King, The Greatest Alcade to make the audience realize that power in the hands of the wrong people can result in devastating consequences. Don Tello rules with confidence and boastfulness to get his way, regardless of the impact of his unreasonable decisions on others. But in the end, Don Tello gets punished for his bad deeds and unfair rule over people when the King, the true and just ruler of the land, orders his beheading.
Lope de Vega’s dramatic work The King, The Greatest Alcalde is to be lauded for its application of comedy to a fairytale-like plot line. Utilizing a sole character as the primary source of ridicule, the playwright succeeds in producing quaint humor; which proves most effective in capturing the audiences’ sense of interest. To illustrate the reoccurring theme of love versus lust, de Vega also manipulates characters so that they function as tools of representation; each advocating a lateral love’s contrast.
De Vega chose to present comedy in his dramatic work through the character Pelayo. The servant is introduced to the audience as a fellow wishing to wed Nuno’s daughter, Elvira; however, after being denied her hand, he becomes the play’s sole source of comedy. “Such favor!/ Favor such?/ Such great bounty!/ Such bounty? Great!/ Oh, rare virtue!/ Virtue-Oh rare!/ Lordly mien!/ Mien? Lordly!/ And pity, Saintly Lady!/ Saintly lady? Pity!” ( 102). This scene proves most humorous because it depicts two clashing emotions through a childlike scenario (Sancho’s remarks with happiness, Pelayo mimics with misery). Pelayo’s character in particular stresses the mood of immaturity; his presence is what instigates a sense of complete amusement. Further emphasis of the servant’s role can be witnessed in the scene where Don Tello addresses the women in Nuno’s house hold. “ And what is your name?/ Pelayo, sir./ I did not speak to you.” (104). Through this brief - though reoccurring- exchange, Pelayo is accurately defined as an idiot and source of ridicule. Does this make him any less appealing to the audience however? No; Pelayo’s presence is what drives the audience to sit up and focus on the scene; they anticipate humor. Thus, Pelayo plays a pivotal role in producing comic effect throughout the play.
One of the most striking elements of The King, the Greatest Alcalde is Lope de Vega’s contrasting view of love expressed through the characters of Sancho and Don Tello. After abducting Elvira, Don Tello brutally inquires why she is incapable of returning his passion. The maiden’s response is that his feelings for her derive from lust rather than love. “Never, my Lord; for love/ That is deficient in a true respect/ for honor is but vile desire, not love;/ And being evil, love never can be called./ For love is born of loving what on loves/ In mad desire;/ And love that is not chaste/ By no name of love is graced/ Nor ever can to love’s estate aspire…” (108). At Elvira’s first appearance, Don Tello uses words such as “worthy” (105), “rare” (105)and “perfection” (104) to depict her physical exterior. It is this which captures him and ignites his insatiable “fire” (105); hence, his lustful depiction. This love is well distinguished from that of Sancho, however. Back tracking to Sancho’s premier poetic verse, the audience notes his use of phrases such as “tender love or beasts or flowers” (97) and “No greater beauty and no greater love” (97). Here, a man in true love is observed because his affection for the maiden is incomparable. His words, in contrast to Don Tello, address not her physique, but how she makes him to feel. Sancho’s love is far from selfish. “What rare devotion!/ I verily believe there was never anything like it in the world.” (123). Thus, therein lies de Vega’s contrasting view of love. To the left, love is a purchasable item, used temporarily to be later discarded. To the right, love is a covenant, a bond which links two persons of similar sentiments eternally.
“[Don Tello’s] power over these lands, and is supreme / Through all Galicia, nor aught he fears / In foreign realms” (90), these words spoken by Nuño, the peasant father of Elvira, show insight into the battle between political rhetoric and political satire that goes on throughout the entirety of Lope Felix de Vega Carpio’s The King, The Greatest Alcalde. Vega Carpio uses the character of Don Tello to show the inherent evil and corruption of some in a position of power, providing a satirical view to the monarchial class system. On the other hand, the King is used as a distinct contrast to Don Tello and is seen as the liberator and savior, providing a sense of political rhetoric.
The way in which the peasants view Don Tello’s character changes throughout the course of the play. In the beginning of the work, Tello is revered by the other characters, some, as Sancho, Elvira’s lover, who go as far as to seek his approval for their marriages. However, Don Tello is not revered for his true character, but for his social position. The Don’s villainous characteristics, such as his capture of Elvira, provide a sense of satire towards the upper social classes. Nuño states “but in my heart it irks me that he came” (105). This is comment is ironic in the sense that it was Nuño that requested that Sancho get the approval of Don Tello for his marriage to Elvira. However, this comment also provides a sense of foreshadowing. Nuño is getting a gut feeling that the Don is no longer present in that house with noble intentions. Don Tello reveals his true intentions that “after I am tired of her, this country fool can marry her…” (106). The true villainous intentions of the Don show his corrupt nature. Don Tello feels that he can do anything he desires due to his elevated social class, and so feel that he can kidnap Elvira and use her as he pleases.
Contrastingly, the King is viewed as a just and righteous figure. Sancho seeks advice and justice from the King when Don Tello will not release Elvira. The King is humble and supportive and does what he feels is required to provide a sense of integrity to the situation. The King states, “I would have come in time to salve these wounds / And right the wrongs of Sancho and Nuño. / But yet I may do justice, and strike off / The head from Tello…” (128). The King feels that he has failed his people, and has not sufficiently fixed Elvira’s problem. The King fixes that situation to his content and the evil lord receives his due punishment. The King’s ability to fix all of the problems in the land, and his initial cooperation and understanding of Sancho is political rhetoric at its finest. This work gives the audience the impression that no matter their problem the King can fix it. Don Tello even notices that “[His] just death is near; / [He has] offended God—God and the King!” (127). Foreshadowing his own demise, Don Tello equates the King with God, exemplifying the theory of a divine monarchy, placed in power to help its people.
In essence, Vega Caprio uses the idea of social class to show both its ability to corrupt and its power to provide justice. Through the actions and lustful thoughts of Don Tello, the playwright shows that to some power gives them the belief that they are above the law and can do as they please. On the contrary, the character of the King, show a benevolent and helpful man willing to do what is needed to end strife in the lives of his people. The idea that the King can and is willing to solve all of the problems of his people is a form of political rhetoric used to create a stronger following with the King.
In Lope Felix de Vega Carpio’s The King, the Greatest Alcade or in it’s original title, El Mejor Alcalde, El Rey, the playwright borrows from the style of the Italian Comedia dell’Arte but strays from it as well. There are similarities in the characterization of those in the play, as well in the situations in which they find themselves. While there are similarities, between Comedia dell’Arte and this play, there are also differences that would show a distinct style of Felix de Varga Carpio that might have made the story more relatable to the Spanish people of that time, changing their professions or allegiances, but perhaps retaining character traits.
One major similarity is the love between this story’s “Oratio” and “Isabella”. Sancho can be said to be this work’s “Oratio,” constantly professing his love for the “Isabella” of the play, known here as Elvira. It is implied from the beginning of this story that their love might be forbidden, with Sancho dreading the confrontation that he is to have with Elvira’s father, asking for her hand in marriage after it seems as if the man has already arranged a marriage, with Sancho telling her that her “father says that he has pledged [her] hand” (Felix de Vega Carpio, 100), then in the last part of this line: “To a youth in service of Don Tello here” he reveals that he is the youth pledged to her.. It can be said that Don Tello, Sancho’s master, is this work’s “Pantalone” rather his control is over Sancho and his temporal destiny, yet rather than be Elvira’s lover, he is Sancho’s master.. Both roles display the feudal mentality in the societies, showing that those of higher class had control over the lower class’s lives, and decided to whom they would be married, and such. Also, the apparent “Harlequin” could be said to be Pelayo, but rather be the valet to the “Captain”, he valets to Sancho, repeating the words he says, and mimicking what Sancho does and says throughout the play. This is demonstrated in Act 1, after Don Tello, along with his sister, Feliciana, have blessed the union of Sancho and Elvira:
“Sancho: Such favor!
Pelayo: Favor such?
Sancho: Such great bounty!
Pelayo: Such bounty? Great!”
(102)
Et cetera.
The largest difference between Comedia dell’Arte and this play is that Felix de Varga Carpio had given all of his characters specific lines and actions. In the prior, the scenes are merely described in vague detail, and there is much license given to the actors, as to how they would like the play to follow through. In this work, there is very little artistic license given to the actors in this sense. There are also differences, as have been explained previously in characterization and in relationships between the characters.
It can be said that there might have been some definite influence on Felix de Varga Carpio by the Italian play style of Comedia dell’Arte in his play El Mejor Alcalde, El Rey. There are obvious similarities, yet in those similarities, there are striking differences. One would be very interested to know what sort of exposure this author had to that Italian style of writing, and how he felt towards it to have apparently integrated it into his style of authoring plays.
The social hierarchy is the main culprit in The King, the Greatest Alcade. Each man associated with Elvira is affected by the power given his station and his corresponding ability to follow his desires. Elvira refuses Pelayo’s offer of marriage as a result of his occupation, Nuño is obligated to receive Don Tello’s blessing before giving his daughter away, and Sancho is unable to protect his love due to his lowly station. All of the men in Lope Felix de Vega Carpio’s drama are vulnerable to the corrupt decisions of Don Tello.
Division of the social classes is first seen in the beginning of Act I. Pelaya tells Nuño of Elvira’s refusal of his hand in marriage. He later explains to Feliciana, “She [Elvira] knew, though, I kept pigs, and so she up and turned me down…” (103). Elvira’s excuse was based on Pelaya’s lowly occupation and therefore his social rank. Part of her decision may have resulted from her love for Sancho; however, even the act of marriage to him has problems with social class. Her father Nuño is obligated to receive Don Tello’s blessing before allowing marriage between his daughter and Sancho. In visiting Don Tello, Sancho obtains twenty cows and a hundred sheep from the master, but makes the mistake of making Elvira known to Don Tello. If Nuño had not felt the need to have Sancho visit the master to gain permission to marry Elvira or had Sancho not extolled the virtues of Elvira, Don Tello may have never been interested in Elvira.
Regardless, Don Tello took it upon himself to visit the home of Nuño, and saw the striking beauty of Elvira. He remarks, “In all my life I never thought to see such strange surpassing beauty” (104) Surrendering to his infatuation, he and his men spirit Elvira away in the night. This disregard for Elvira’s wishes or for her chastity is a display of Don Tello’s lack of respect for people of an inferior social class to himself. He thinks of the situation, “After I am tired of her, this country fool [Sancho] can marry her [Elvira]… It is a compensation which comes to many, as we have both of us [Don Tello and Celio] seen in the world. Finally, I have the power, and I will avail me of it…” (106). Don Tello justifies his decision to kidnap Elvira with the thought that she and Sancho can be together eventually, just not until he gets what he wants. He further excuses his behavior by pointing out it is a normal occurrence for a man to bestow his woman, once he has finished with her, to another man in marriage. This elite thinking is a primary example of how the characters in The King, the Greatest Alcade believe their actions are controlled by their social class. Don Tello, being of a higher social class, believes his actions are excused, because he is powerful. Sancho, when he first hears of Elvira’s kidnapping, believes himself to be helpless to save her, as he is of a lower social class. He cries in despair, “What justice shall I find this side of heaven, he being a powerful man and richest in the kingdom?” (106). This feeling of powerlessness is based solely on his inferior class.
All of the problems in Lope Felix de Vega Carpio’s The King, the Greatest Alcade originated from a social hierarchy. If the characters had not felt confined by their respective rankings, their actions would have been less inhibited, and more inhibited for Don Tello.
The King by Lope de Vega is a work of opposites. The contrasts between love and lust and comedy and tragedy are made unequivocally apparent throughout the work as means to show his theme that good does triumph over evil. The use of these contrasting ideas is as effective for today’s audiences as it would have been to the people of de Vega’s day.
Elvira is the daughter of Nuno and the nexus for the lust versus love conflict in the play. Don Tello, the dictator lusts after Elvira for she is, as he says “the beauty which I crave” (106.) It is made evident continuously that Don Tello has no real desire to love and honor this young maiden but to merely establish power over his subjects and win a beautiful young girl. Sancho, who at first s to wed the girl, truly loves her and everyone in the audience is left with no room to doubt. He speaks of the future with her in it saying “O God! But when shall come that day (on which I too must die), when at the last I say to her: “Elvira, you are mine!” What gifts and presents I shall shower on you!” (97); this obviously shows that this man, the servant, is truly in love with the beautiful Elvira. This foil between the two men sets up the greater struggle between good and evil.
Arguably, Don Tello is the character from which but the comedy and tragedy extend. The man is obviously a tyrant and from this tyrannical attitude that the tragedy in the play stems. Don Tello initially agrees to the marriage between Elvira and Sancho, but once he sees the woman captures her and locks in away in a castle causes grief for allmparties involved. When one looks at the motives behind this move by Don Tello one is forced to see that the man merely wants to establish his power over his people. However, there is a comedic quality about Don Tello as well. The same tyrannical hubris he exhibits is his downfall. The mere fact that this man has forgotten that he is subject to the king and laughs away his letter of admonishment is so shocking that it is funny. Then again, at the end of the play justice is doled out and Don Tello’s disregard for his people is brought to end when the King demands his head. However morbid this may be it is still funny to see how the mighty have fallen. The King in the play a truly good man, first wanting to believe that his chosen leaders are good and just but then recognizing that Don Tello behaved like a dictator and made an example of him accordingly.
After the battles of love and lust, comedy and tragedy and good versus evil have been waged and won the audience is left feeling satisfied by the outcomes. Audiences have come to recognize that Don Tello is an embodiment of evil, evil lust, evil desire, and an evil misuse of power. Sancho and the King of Galicia are embodiments of good, true love, and fair play. Ending with the triumph of the good characters the play does indeed suggest that good will always triumph over evil.
In Lope de Vega’s The King, The Greatest Alcalde, the playwright uses Commedia Dell’Arte to create a comedic approach to an otherwise tragic situation. The play was also written to portray the writer’s view of the social classes in Spain, which was a very set way of life in those times.
He contrasts his views of two social classes through Don Tello, the tyrannical duke of Galicia, and Sancho, a peasant worker. Both of these characters have fallen under Elvira’s spell of beauty, and both wish her hand in marriage. Sancho asks Elvira’s father for permission to wed, and it is granted to him. When he must go to Don Tello to ask for further permission, it is also granted to him. However, on their supposed wedding night, Don Tello kidnaps Elvira so that he can marry her himself. This selfish and tricky action gives readers insight into the disdainful way de Vega thinks of someone he feels has been given too much power.
Sancho’s love for Elvira is apparent through his poetic and loving words delivered dramatically to Elvira. For example, he declares “You birds that sing of love, you beasts that roam untrammeled of restraint, where have you seen more tender love in birds and bees? But since it is impossible to see aught else of all the sun looks down upon more beautiful than my Elvira is” (97). When Sancho is aware that Elvira is in the hands of such a character, he proclaims, “rather let me die than live, however cruel death may be!” (111). His love for her is an undying, passionate love, while Don Tello’s love for her is simply superficial and lustful. He speaks only of her beauty, proclaiming simple phrases such as “I never saw such loveliness” (104). He says, “It would have been infamous in my passion to have suffered a peasant to possess the beauty which I crave. After I am tired of her, this country fool can marry her, and I will grant him a flock and a grange, with money enough for him to live” (106). He is unethically using his power over Sancho to simply use this peasant girl for her body, and throw her aside as soon as he’s had his way with her. De Vega uses these two contrasting loves to depict his view of the crooked political system present in Spain.
In the end, justice prevails, and Don Tello is ordered to be beheaded. This depicts that De Vega believes that certain people can handle power, but it has to be given out carefully, not as carelessly as it was given to such a person as Don Tello. In the King’s hands, retribution is handled appropriately. Lope de Vega would probably agree with Peter Parker’s uncle when he says, “with great power comes great responsibility,” for it is the main idea the playwright depicts to readers throughout The King, The Greatest Alcalde.
Reading through the pages of Lope de Vega’s The King, the Greatest Alcalde, we understand that this work exemplifies a classic love story. However, this work exudes much more than just the classic components of a common romance. What, then, makes this adventure of two hearts different than the next? Intertwined with aspects derived from the Italian Commedia form, this drama engenders a more complex identity than just our average folktale of love. By mixing the slapstick humor brought to life by Pelayo and the tragic love affair between Elvira and Sancho, de Vega brings this grand piece of art to life by blending a tragic love story with episodes of comic relief.
From the very beginning of the work, de Vega hits us with lines from Sancho, the man in love with Elvira. Sancho so romantically states in his soliloquy that “it is impossible to see aught else of all the sun looks down upon more beautiful than my Elvira is” (de Vega 97). Immediately, we can catch the feeling of this work. As the work progresses, we find that Sancho comes from a mere peasant family, which explains his uneasiness toward his pending union with Elvira. Before Elvira’s father allows him to marry her, he thinks it best that Sancho should ask for Don Tello’s permission. Here comes the twist that makes this work interesting. After agreeing that the marriage should take place immediately, we see Don Tello try to postpone the marriage, as he now wants Elvira after coming into contact with her. Fraught with desire, he states that it “would have been infamous in my passion to have suffered a peasant to possess the beauty” that he desires so selfishly (106). Making his character even worse, de Vega has him state that “After I am tired of her, this country fool can marry her” (106). Delving deeper into the characters we know thus far, we can infer that perhaps de Vega criticizes the nobility a bit. By pointing out the way Don Tello abuses his power, de Vega relates to us how many in the nobility could abuse their power and think it perfectly acceptable. Saddened by the kidnapping of Elvira, we completely sympathize with Sancho.
However, after the horrible scene that takes place in Don Tello’s residence, in flies the comedic Pelayo, offering us some comic relief: “I want a reward!” (112). Thinking he has just made a brilliant discovery concerning the location of Elvira, he demands a reward for finding out that “Don Tello has had her with him in his house since twelve o’clock” (112). Of course, we can imagine his childishness throughout this scene, since we know that Sancho has already discovered this with Nuño. Through this instance, our mood changes to the polar opposite. We can imagine the audience crying at one point and laughing at the very next instant with the entrance of Pelayo. Throughout this play’s entirety, we witness de Vega’s brilliance as he wonderfully works in instances of comedy while focusing on the tragedy at hand. Though he continues to make the audience laugh, he never loses focus on the main idea of the work.
Thus we see how intricately de Vega intertwines tragedy with a twist of Commedia. By Mixing a tragic love affair with components of Commedia, de Vega masters pulling us from one emotion to its polar opposite. By adding in components of the Italian Commedia Dell’ Arte and maintaining the play’s own Spanish identity and flavor, The King, the Greatest Alcalde not only contributes to Spanish works of literature but also to world literature for years to come.
In the play, The King, the Greatest Alcalde by Lope Felix de Vega Carpio, the audience sees similar attributes in the stock characters of Commedia dell Arte and characters of our modern day. The stock characters in Commedia dell Arte were predictable, as are many of the characters in The King, the Greatest Alcalde. The personalities of Don Tello, Pelayo, and Sancho continue to reappear throughout time in a plethora of genres.
Sancho plays a role in The King, the Greatest Alcalde that we find often even in our modern day. He loves a woman, but is unable to be with her due to outstanding circumstances. Sancho also plays the role of a hopeless romantic. He is very intelligent, but he laments over his love for Elvira and speaks of the worthlessness of life without her. In the opening lines, the audience immediately sees how much Sancho pines after Elvira. Sancho says, “My love is sprung, which from her favor draws its brightest glory; no greater beauty is, no greater beauty and no greater love I bear” (de Vega Carpio page 97)! In the above quote the audience sees that Sancho loves Elvira, a beautiful woman. As Sancho’s lines about Elvira continue on for quite some time, the audience knows of Sancho’s love before the story begins. Later on in the play, Sancho refuses to live without Elvira and he will die without her. The audience views these feelings in the Sancho’s line where he states, “My wife, my life, my good, my all!...Yes, rather let me die than live, however cruel death be (page 111)! All the other characters in the play know that Sancho is well spoken and wise. The audience views this sentiment in the lines of his soon-to-be father-in-law when he speaks with Sancho before he leaves to meet with the King. Upon meeting with the King, Sancho impresses the King with his words. The King states, “The man meseems is wise; before he speaks he wins my sympathy” (page114).
Don Tello is the stereotypical ruthless king, drunk on his own power and concerned with only his own wants. Characters like Don Tello appear in every genre throughout time, from Shakespearean works, to modern day movies such as 300 with the Persian King Xerxes. Don Tello shows how he believes himself of utmost authority in his lines, “By God, I am astonished at my own forbearance! Do you think you hind, that by this insolence you shall teach me fear in my own despite? Do you know who I am” (page 117)? The above line shows that Don Tello has an attitude of superiority and lower class citizens should not challenge him. Don Tello shows how only his wants matter in the lines, “What? I shall not possess this woman’s beauty” (page 113)? Another example of this presents itself earlier in the lines, “After I am tired of [Elvira], this country fool can marry her” (page106). In the two said quotes, Don Tello views Elvira as an object of his desire. As a woman, Elvira has little worth and Don Tello does not see why he should give up something he wants to a lowly peasant. When Sancho challenges Don Tello, the immediate reaction out of the king is to kill them both, as peasants are a disposable resource. For the mentioned examples, characters like Don Tello make up the perspective of the stereotypical cruel king.
The character of Pelayo creates the comic relief. When the situations in the play speak of death and lost love, Pelayo will speak out of turn of tell about his hunger and love of food. Pelayo plays the role of the fool and his lines consist of nonsensical phrases or irrelevant stories. The humor of Pelayo is presented in his line, “They tell me that at court all the streets are laid with eggs and paved with rashers of bacon, and they greet strangers with a bounty so hearty that for all the world it is the same as if they had come out of Flanders or Italy or else Morocco” (pages 112-113). Also, Pelayo continually speaks about his hunger. For example in the lines where the King asks Pelayo if he has any problems to work out, he replies, “Yes, hunger; If the kitchen is hereabouts…” (page 116). Pelayo lightens the mood of the play when the situation between Elvira, Don Tello and Sancho becomes strained. Pelayo plays a fool even to other characters in the play. Such is shown in the lines of the King where he states, “How curious a pair that land has joined, one being so wise – the other such a fool” (page 116)! Similar roles to Pelayo have been appearing in numerous works throughout time. Similar characters to Pelayo have provided comic relief from the main conflict since the time of the Ancient Greeks up until our modern day theatre. Pelayo portrays a role most like a stock character from Commedia dell Arte since he performs the strange acts accompanied by nonsensical lines and stories.
Since the play, The King, the Greatest Alcalde was written in the seventeenth century, when Commedia dell Arte was in its prime, it is not so unusual that de Vega’s characters should model some of the stock characters presented in this genre. Even in today’s performances, we see these similar characters over and over in our movies: the lovers that cannot be together, the ruthless king, and that one strange person that always eats everyone’s food and never makes sense. These stock characters never go out of style and have always been present in Drama to entertain the audience.
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