A Theology of Angels: The Representation of Spiritual Beings in Ten Dramatic Works of Tirso de Molina, OdeM

Abstract

As a Mercedarian Friar in seventeenth-century Spain, Tirso de Molina composed many dramatic works in which religious themes and images are prevalent. While critics have investigated various aspects of theology and religious imagery in his works, to date no comprehensive study has explored the roles that supernatural beings fulfill in his drama. Consequently, the purpose of this thesis is to analyze the way in which Tirso represents spiritual beings in his dramatic works. The study will focus on the plays in which angels and/or demons appear in the cast of characters.

All of the works for analysis in this study portray the spiritual struggle that the human characters experience in different circumstances of their lives and the role that the angels and demons play in that struggle. The plays represent four different subgenres, including an auto, a theological drama, seven hagiographic works, and a biblical play. The narratives include stories of redemption and conversion, suffering and martyrdom, and persecution and service.

The textual analysis will be contextualized within the framework of St. Thomas Aquinas's Summa Theologiae as well as the biblical evidence that forms the basis for angelology. Special attention will be given to the functions that the spiritual beings perform in the works, the way in which the dramatist chooses to represent them, the similarities and differences between the different subgenres, and the way in which his works would help shape the popular belief of the audiences that watched his plays in the corrales.