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LVI. Un Joven De Provecho: An Unpublished Play by B. Pérez Galdós

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 December 2020

H. Chonon Berkowitz
H. Chonon Berkowitz*
Affiliation:
University of Wisconsin
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Extract

When, in 1892, Galdós startled Spanish literary circles by his decision to turn dramatist, few of either his supporters or his detractors were aware of the fact that as far back as his student days he had already carried on a serious flirtation with the drama. Certainly in the confused discussions which his dramatic appearance as playwright precipitated in the press of Madrid, no more than an occasional passing reference was made to his previous essays at the theater. It seems that only two newspapers gave adequate space to Galdós' early preparation for the career of a dramatist and these reproduced an article by Eusebio Blasco, originally published in France. Because they are pertinent to our discussion, the principal facts in Blasco's article merit repetition.

Type
Research Article
Information
PMLA , Volume 50 , Issue 3 , September 1935 , pp. 828 - 898
Copyright
Copyright © Modern Language Association of America, 1935

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References

1 Galdós' early experience with the drama has been adequately discussed by Professor Jacob Warshaw in his article on “Galdós' Apprenticeship in the Drama,” MLN, iv (1929), 459–463.

2 The Galdós family has preserved in San Quintin an apparently complete file, started by the author himself, of the principal reviews and articles written about his dramas. The article in question appeared in La Iberia (April 2, 1892) and in La Justicia (March 26, 1892). The dates may be slightly inaccurate; they were furnished by a clipping company.

3 The Teatro Principe, according to Galdós. Cf. L. A. del Olmet and A. Gracía Carraffa, Galdós (Madrid, 1912), p. 29.

4 Galdós apparently did not agree with Catalina. Speaking of this drama in 1912, he said: “A Catalina le gustó mucho y estuvo á punto de representarse, pero … no se representó. ¿Por qué? Por lo que no se representan las obras de los que empiezan.” (Cf. del Olmet, op. cit., pp. 29–30). It should be noted that the reason advanced by Galdós for the failure of La expulsión de los moriscos to reach the boards coincides with the second part of Catalina's reason for rejecting the comedy which Galdós submitted in 1867.

5 Cf. Leopoldo Alas, Galdós, in Obras completas, i (Madrid, 1912), pp. 20–21.

6 Cf. El primer drama de Galdós, in Nuestro tiempo, i, 13 (1902), 155–165.—Lustonó‘s suggestion that this is Galdós’ first play is obviously unfounded; it is not even his first attempt at dramatic writing in verse. Cf. Arunci, Quien mal hace, bien no espere. Ensayo dramático en un acto y en verso … Benito Perez Galdós, año 1861, in El Globo (Jan. 27, 1894).

7 I am gratefully indebted to Maria Pérez-Galdós de Verde for permission to examine in 1931 her father's miscellaneous and unclassified papers among which I had the good fortune to come upon this hitherto unknown play in Galdós' handwriting and bearing his signature.

8 Cf. B. Pérez Galdós, Memorias, in Obras inéditas, x (Madrid, 1930), p. 37.

9 Loc. cit.

10 Op. cit., p. 155.

11 P. 41.

11a The Marqués de Villa-Urrutia has died since the writing of this article in 1932.

12 Cf. lxviii, 1529.

13 See Act ii, Scene 5.

14 Cf. Eugenio Hartzenbusch, Periódicos de Madrid (Madrid, 1876), p. 293.

15 The article in the Espasa encyclopedia (xi, 1299) does not give the dates of Carrasco; it does, however, speak of two of his works on economics which appeared in 1867 and 1872 respectively. A few of the official titles held by Carrasco will perhaps show the appropriateness of the phrase coined by Galdós. He was: “Segundo Jefe de las Direcciones Generales de Propiedades y Derechos del Estado y de Contribuciones”; “Inspector General de Hacienda”; “Contador Central y Jefe de la Deuda Publica.”

16 See in Hispanic Review, i, 2 a facsimile page of the manuscript of 1861.

17 Galdós spells as follows: agazajo, martirize, pretencion, etc.