The Adulteress on the Spanish Stage

As early as 1760 and as late as 1920, Romantic drama dominated Spanish peninsular theatre. The love affair with Romanticism influenced the formation of a modern national identity, an identity that depended heavily on re(defining) women's place in nineteenth-century society. Those women who defied traditional roles became a font of modern anxiety--both in society and on stage. The adulteress embodied the fear of rebellious women, modern growing pains, and the political instability of war and invasion. It is the conflicted portrayal of women that creates a compelling performance of Spanish national identity. By looking at the Romantic adulteress on display over many decades, we are able to gain insight into the uneasy dance between progress and tradition in nineteenth-century Spain.