Chapter L’impatto della comedia in Francia nel primo Seicento: nuovi personaggi, nuove storie, nuove pratiche drammatiche

Overview & Synopsis

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.