The Devotion of the Cross by Pedro Calderón de la Barca
"The Devotion of the Cross" is a drama by the Spanish playwright Pedro Calderón de la Barca, written in 1634. The narrative revolves around themes of nobility, love, and redemption, set against the backdrop of a duel sparked by class tensions. It follows the story of Eusebio, who was abandoned as an infant and survived numerous life-threatening situations, attributed to his devotion to the cross. This belief in the protective power of the cross becomes a central motif, influencing the characters' fates throughout the play.
The plot thickens when Eusebio seeks to marry Julia, the sister of Lisardo, who challenges his worthiness due to their differing social standings. After a series of tragic events, including Lisardo's death and Eusebio's transformation into a bandit, the narrative reveals unexpected connections between the characters, culminating in a shocking family revelation. Julia, unaware of her kinship with Eusebio, pursues him, highlighting themes of misguided love and familial bonds. The play ultimately explores the intersection of faith, identity, and forgiveness, with Eusebio's final moments underscoring the significance of redemption through devotion.
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The Devotion of the Cross by Pedro Calderón de la Barca
First produced:La devoción de la cruz, 1643; first published, 1634 (English translation, 1832)
Type of work: Drama
Type of plot: Tragedy
Time of plot: Seventeenth century
Locale: Siena, Italy
Principal characters
Eusebio , a foundlingJulia , his sisterLisardo , his brotherCurcio , their fatherGil , a peasantMenga , a peasant womanAlberto , a priest
The Story:
Two rustics, Gil and Menga, are looking for a lost donkey when they spy two men preparing to fight a duel. Lisardo, one of the men, is angry that anyone as low-born as Eusebio, the other, should aspire to marry Julia, Lisardo’s sister.
Eusebio explains by telling a miraculous story. He was one of two infants abandoned beneath a wayside cross. Taken home by a shepherd, the famished baby bit the breast of his foster mother, who threw the child into a well, where his rescuers found him floating safely with arms crossed. Later the house in which he was living burned, but the fire broke out on the Day of the Cross, and once more he survived unharmed. More recently, in a shipwreck, he floated to safety on a raft of two crossed planks. He explains that since he obviously acquired nobility by devotion to the cross, he deserves Julia. Lisardo denies the claim and they fight. As happened before in Eusebio’s life, no harm comes to him in a dangerous situation. As Lisardo lies dying of his wound, he begs in the name of the cross for Eusebio to save him. The amazed peasants report that they saw Eusebio pick up his dying enemy and carry him to a convent.
Back in Siena, Julia is fearful of her father’s discovery of letters she received from Eusebio. When her lover appears, wanting to take her away with him before she learns about her brother’s death, her father’s arrival forces him to hide and to listen to Curcio as he voices his long-held suspicions of his wife’s infidelity. Curcio is interrupted by the arrival of four peasants carrying the body of Lisardo. Julia, grieving, orders the killer out of her life forever.
Eusebio, brokenhearted, turns bandit and through his cruelty rises to command a troop of outlaws. Only captives mentioning the cross escape death at his hands. One day a bullet-creased prisoner is brought in carrying a volume titled Miracles of the Cross. He is Father Alberto, and in gratitude for having his life spared the priest promises Eusebio that he will be on hand to hear the bandit’s last confession.
News arrives that Lisardo’s father, having put Julia into a convent, is pursuing Eusebio with soldiers. Scorning danger, Eusebio lets his passion for Julia take him to the convent, where he finds her in bed. Before he can take her, he sees on her breast the same sign of the cross that is on his own skin. The mark tells him that she was the other child left beside the cross, his sister, and so he runs away. Julia, who tried to fight him off in her cell, begins to pursue him in masculine attire. She does not know why he refused to love her.
When the soldiers overtake him, Curcio wounds Eusebio fatally. Then the cross on the young man’s body reveals to Curcio that he slew his own son, abandoned with his twin sister because of the father’s baseless suspicions of his wife’s unfaithfulness.
With his dying breath, Eusebio calls for Father Alberto. Four shepherds arrive to bury his body. The priest also appears as he promised. He explains that because of God’s pleasure in Eusebio’s devotion to the cross, his soul was left in his body long enough for him to make his confession and to be redeemed.
Bibliography
Benabu, Isaac. Reading for the Stage: Calderón and His Contemporaries. Rochester, N.Y.: Tamesis, 2003. Analyzes playtexts for works by Calderón and contemporary playwrights. A playtext is usually read by the theater company at the beginning of a play’s production and provides the playwright’s directions for staging his or her work. Benabu’s examination of playtexts discusses the religiosity of Spanish theater in the Golden Age, Calderón’s devotional comedies, and the character of Pedro Crespo in The Mayor of Zalamea.
Heigl, Michaela. Theorizing Gender, Sexuality, and the Body in Calderonian Theater. New Orleans, La.: University Press of the South, 2001. Focuses on the transvestites, scolds, sodomites, monsters, and other “deviant” characters in Calderón’s plays, demonstrating how they embody the idea of excess and subvert the boundaries between the sexes and between different social classes. Heigl maintains that these characters represent the inherent corruption and perversion in society.
Honig, Edwin. Calderón and the Seizures of Honor. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1972. Detailed analysis of the often debated theme of honor in Calderon’s plays. Selected quotes from the plays are in English, but the Spanish is provided in an appendix.
McKendrick, Melveena. “The Bandolera of Golden Age Drama: A Symbol of Feminist Revolt.” Bulletin of Hispanic Studies 46 (1969): 1-20. Discusses the bandolera, a popular figure of the age. Also discusses Calderón’s portrayal of Julia.
Parker, A. A. “The Father and Son Conflict in the Drama of Calderón.” Forum for Modern Language Studies 2 (1966): 99-133. Critically acclaimed study of one of the pivotal themes in Calderonian drama. An excellent starting point for further study.
‗‗‗‗‗‗‗. “Towards a Definition of Calderonian Tragedy.” Bulletin of Hispanic Studies 39 (1962): 223-237. One of the seminal essays of modern Calderonian criticism. Discusses Parker’s famous theory of shared responsibility. His analysis of The Devotion of the Cross is the most widely accepted.
Rodríguez Cuadros, Evangelina. “Pedro Calderón de la Barca.” In The Cambridge History of Spanish Literature, edited by David T. Gies. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2004. An overview of Calderón’s life and work, placing it within the broader context of Spanish literature.
Thacker, Jonathan. A Companion to Golden Age Theatre. Rochester, N.Y.: Tamesis, 2007. An introductory overview of Spanish Golden Age theater. In addition to a chapter on Calderón, the book examines the work of other playwrights, describes the different types of plays produced in this era, and traces the growth and maturation of Spanish theater.