Who is the author of the play Dog in the Manger? In which city does Lope de Vega's play "Dog in the Manger" take place? "Dog in the Manger" main characters

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Lope de Vega ( full name- Felix Lope de Vega and Carpio; November 25, 1562, Madrid - August 27, 1635, Madrid) - Spanish playwright, poet and prose writer, an outstanding representative of the Golden Age of Spain. Author of about 2,000 plays, of which 426 have survived to this day, and about 3,000 sonnets.

In which city does Lope de Vega's play "Dog in the Manger" take place?

A Dog in a Manger is a comedy in three acts by Spanish playwright Lope de Vega, written around 1618. First published in the 11th volume of the collected comedies of Lope de Vega, published in Madrid and Barcelona (1618).

The young Neapolitan widow Diana is in turmoil: her secretary Teodoro has captured her heart.

The play "Dog in the Manger" by Lope de Vega takes place in the Italian city of Naples. Our audience is familiar with this play from the film “Dog in the Manger” with the participation of Mikhail Boyarsky and Margarita Terekhova.

in Verona
in Milan
in Venice
in Naples

The correct answer to the game's question is: in Naples.

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When analyzing dramatic works, it is often quite difficult to retell them summary. “Dog in the Manger,” despite the apparent simplicity and simplicity of the plot, is nevertheless distinguished by a serious and deep subtext, which is not as clear-cut as it might seem at first reading. The fact is that in his famous and already cult play he showed readers not only an easy and uncomplicated love plot, but also reflected the most important social problems of its time.

Features of the author's creativity

The main principles of the playwright's skill can be traced by analyzing his main plays and their summary. "Dog in the manger" in this regard is best example for criticism and literary analysis.

The writer and playwright became famous for creating works in the classic “cloak and sword” genre, which was so popular in European countries early modern times. Many writers and poets wrote in this style, but it was Lope de Vega who became its recognized master. This ultimately brought him worldwide fame and glory. The light, elegant style, relaxed narration, dynamic and twisted plot made de Vega's works famous throughout the world.

Another reason for the playwright’s popularity is his light, elegant, but most importantly, witty dialogues, which add additional liveliness and dynamism to the development of the narrative. The above features were especially clearly manifested in the play in question, which became so popular that it was even filmed.

Plot

The compositional features of the work in question can be traced by analyzing its summary. “Dog in the Manger” begins with a seemingly very insignificant incident, which, however, according to the canon of the genre, turned out to be sufficient for a whole intrigue.

The main character, the secretary of the proud Countess Diana, Teodoro, together with his friend Tristan, enters the mansion on a date with her maid Marcela, but the hostess finds out about his visit and begins to be jealous of the handsome and intelligent young man. It turns out that she herself is in love with him, but class arrogance prevents her from overcoming class prejudices.

Development action is dedicated to revealing emotional experiences a heroine who literally rushes between her pride and the feeling of being in love. She either gives the young man hope for reciprocity, or rejects him.

An enraged Teodoro begins to court Marcela again, which further irritates Diana. Finally, main character decides to leave for foreign lands in order to seek happiness away from his cruel lover, but at this critical moment he is literally saved by Tristan, who found him a rich and noble “father.” The play ends with a happy ending, as befits works of this genre.

Main characters

It is necessary to continue its summary with a consistent description of the heroes of the work. “Dog in the Manger” is a typical example of a play of the “cloak and sword” genre, however, the originality of the portrayal of the characters, their humorous interpretation, and most importantly, the humanistic meaning of their images ensured immortal fame for de Vega’s work.

At first glance, the arrangement of characters is quite typical for comedies of this kind. The author traditionally contrasts serious personalities with comedic characters. The first category includes, first of all, Teodoro and Diana, although elements of comedy creep into the image of the latter. But the hero Tristan, the countess’s servant, a rogue and a cunning man, who, thanks to his dexterity and agility, helps the main character, is certainly comedic.

Minor characters

“Dog in the Manger,” a brief summary of which is the subject of this review, is built according to the classical rules of comedy of the 17th century. Thus, the image of the countess’s servant is quite traditional: the girl, according to the canon, seems to set off the main, main love line.

The author also brought out two admirers of the main character - Count Frederico and Marquis Ricardo, who do not disdain anything and are even ready to kill just to eliminate an unwanted rival. These characters, typical of Spanish comedy, are nevertheless depicted so vividly that they have outlived their time. The fact is that de Vega often used elements of folklore in his works, focusing on folk works, songs, morals and customs, which allowed him to overcome literary conventions and canonical narrative frameworks.

In this regard, the most successful is the image of Tristan - common man from the people who, possessing a sober and clear mind, often literally save the situation in favor of their master.

Image of the Countess

“Dog in the Manger,” the summary of which is interesting because in a condensed form it shows the writer’s skill in revealing intrigue and characterization, presents a whole gallery of colorful representatives of the author’s contemporary era.

First of all, the reader’s attention, of course, is drawn to the image of Countess Belflore, which translated means “ beautiful flower" And indeed, Diana is unusually beautiful, she has many fans, to whom she, however, leaves almost no hope of reciprocity. The young woman is extremely proud, arrogant, class prejudices and noble arrogance speak very loudly in her. And yet, she immediately, literally from the very first lines, evokes sincere sympathy among readers. What is the reason for this paradox?

Character

All this is thanks to the undoubted mastery of the psychological portrayal of characters for which Lope de Vega is famous. “Dog in the Manger,” a brief summary of which allows us to identify the main traits in the personalities of the characters, attracts the attention of readers, first of all, with its humanistic pathos. This can be seen in the evolution of Diana's image. Despite her pride and arrogance, the Countess is nevertheless honest with herself and her conscience.

From monologues we see how strong mental anguish the heroine due to the fact that, due to her nobility and birth, she cannot afford to unite her fate with the person she loves. For this, the reader is ready to forgive her a lot: daring antics, mocking attacks on Teodoro, Marcela and Tristan, and even her naive deception.

The writer created, perhaps, one of the most colorful images in world literature. His heroine is a woman passionate by nature, cruel in her love, but she has generosity and nobility of soul.

Teodoro

The play “Dog in the Manger” presents the reader with a whole galaxy of colorful characters. The summary of the chapters of this work should be continued with a description of the main character, the Countess's secretary - an intelligent, educated, but not a noble young man who made his way in life solely through his hard work, talent and diligence.

This character represents the traditional type of hero who, despite his simple origins, behaves honestly, nobly and straightforwardly. His inner world no less interesting than the experiences of the countess. He is just as proud as she is, he is just as afraid of his feelings, since he speaks, by his own admission, of the peculiar pride of a poor man who does not want to enjoy the mercy of a rich mistress.

Tristan

A summary of Vega’s comedy “Dog in the Manger” involves revealing another important actor- friend of the protagonist and servant of the Countess. Tristan is the true embodiment of folk humor, optimism and common sense. Romantic passages and sentimental reasoning are completely unusual for him, and with this character trait he opposes the main characters, introducing a significant amount of humor and irony into the plot. It is thanks to him that the play ends with a happy ending. Teodoro also owes his life to him: after all, no one else but Tristan saved him from the machinations of Diana’s admirers, who decided to kill the young and talented secretary as soon as they noticed the Countess’s favor towards him.

Marcela

This is exactly what Marcela is. She is jealous and quick-tempered, but despite these qualities in her character, she becomes the object of Teodoro's love interest. She is attractive to the reader with her mocking character, glibness and liveliness. However, such character traits are inherent, probably, in every maid in plays of this kind.

Count and Marquis

When talking about the play “Dog in the Manger” by De Vega Lope, a brief summary of the work cannot miss the images of the secondary characters, fans of Diana - Count Frederico and Marquis Ricardo. They are interesting because the author embodied in them the typical traits of representatives of the so-called blue blood of his time. These spoiled, arrogant, proud nobles who do not disdain anything to achieve their goal. Thus Lope de Vega ridiculed vices high society, boldly choosing a traditional love plot and light intrigue for its attacks.

The meaning of the play: reviews from critics

We hope that the retelling of the play “Dog in the Manger” (summary) will help you get an idea of the work. Reviews about it are enthusiastic and testify to the author’s skill in constructing composition and plot. The named work has rightfully entered the golden fund of world literature, thanks to its humanistic pathos, which was generally characteristic of the author’s works.

The playwright was also praised by his contemporary Cervantes, who noted great importance works of Lope de Vega for the development of the Spanish national theater. Leading literary scholars and critics (K. Derzhavin, Z. Plavskin, etc.) in their responses and reviews primarily point out that the humanistic meaning of the work lies in the ability of love to overcome class prejudices. They also draw attention to the fact that the ideal form of constructing a play has become important stage in the development of theater.

"Dog in the manger" is a comedy in three acts by Spanish playwright Lope de Vega, written around 1618.

"Dog in the Manger" main characters

Diana, Countess of Belleflore - young widow
Teodoro - Diana's secretary
Marcela - Diana's maid
Dorothea - Diana's maid
Anarda - Diana's maid
Fabio - Diana's servant
Count Federico - Diana's admirer
Marquis Ricardo - Diana's admirer
Count Ludovico is an inconsolable father whose son was captured by the Moors many years ago
Tristan - servant
Otavio - butler
Leonido, Antonelo, Sello - servants

Action 1

The young Neapolitan widow Diana is in turmoil: her secretary Teodoro has captured her heart. Trying to understand the surging feelings, Countess de Belleflore admits to herself that if this smart, handsome man was born noble, then she would allow him to get closer to her. The situation is aggravated by the fact that Teodoro sympathizes with the maid Marcela: things are clearly heading towards a wedding.

Diana’s attempts to cope with love fail: on behalf of a non-existent Roman friend, she writes a letter of recognition, asks Teodoro to evaluate the message and rewrite it “with her own hand.” The young man guesses the true reasons behind the letter, but at the same time realizes that there is an abyss between him and the countess. Marcela also gets it: exhausted from jealousy, Diana orders the maid to be locked in her bedchamber for several days.

Act 2

Hard days are coming for Teodoro: the Countess either gives him hope or harshly pushes him away. His relationship with Marcela is collapsing, and the girl, in revenge, tries to bring Fabio's servant closer to her. At some point, Teodoro cannot stand it and splashes out all the accumulated emotions on the hostess, reproaching her for the fact that the countess is behaving like a dog in the manger. The conversation in a raised voice ends with slaps in the face, which Diana “rewards” her secretary.

Observing this scene, Count Federico - one of the Countess's admirers - understands that passion is behind Diana's outburst of rage.

Act 3

Count Federico and Marquis Ricardo, who have long been trying in vain to melt the icy heart of the young widow, decide that Diana’s favorite needs to be removed from the road. Having chosen Tristan's servant to play the role of the "thug", they offer him three hundred escudos for the murder of Teodoro. Tristan readily takes the deposit and immediately informs his comrade about the insidious plan of the countess’s admirers.

Teodoro decides to leave Diana's palace; Having come to the lady, he asks permission to leave for Spain. The Countess, hoping that the separation will help her get rid of heartache, recognizes his intention as prudent. But the farewell drags on: Diana asks Teodoro to leave, then brings him back again.

Meanwhile, Tristan begins to implement a plan, which, according to his idea, should unite the countess and the secretary. He heads to the palace of the old Count Ludovico. Twenty years ago the count sent his only son, named Teodoro, to Malta; the boy was captured by the Moors, and since then the old man has not heard anything about him. Introducing Ludovico as a Greek merchant, Tristan reports that his son, who has experienced many adventures, is in the house of the Countess de Belleflore.

Ludovico immediately goes to Diana's palace. Seeing Teodoro, he recognizes in him himself in his youth and declares him the heir to all his possessions. The secretary is embarrassed and confused; Left alone with Diana, he admits that Tristan invented the story of his found son. However, for the countess this no longer matters: she is glad that there are no longer class barriers between them, and informs everyone around her that from now on Teodoro is the count and her husband.