Towards the burlesque novella: Salas Barbadillo, Castillo Solórzano, and Tirso’s Los tres maridos burlados

Abstract

This article draws attention to a type of XVIIth century novella that has been neglected or simply studied as a derivation of other literary manifestations. My objective is to define the main characteristics of a short narrative that we can name «burlesque novella». I define it as a short story (the regular extension of the baroque novella) containing in the heart of its plot an elaborate trick with an exemplary purpose. From this perspective, the burlesque novella is a show organized by noblemen for noblemen, composed by educated writers, that incorporated ridiculous characters on stage. The burlesque novella —founded by Salas Barbadillo, and continued by Castillo Solórzano and Tirso de Molina— is a narrative genre still misunderstood and in need of further exploration. Tirso’s Los tres maridos burlados is a paradigmatic literary piece from this genre.