Bernarda Alba, a stern widow, shuts her five unmarried daughters inside the family home for eight years of mourning after her second husband dies. Lorca's play unfolds entirely within the house, where the sisters, the maid La Poncia and the grandmother María Josefa watch each other through doors and whispers. Desire breaks the rules when the eldest, Angustias, is promised to the young suitor Pepe el Romano, who is also wanted by her sister Adela. Honor, gossip and repression drive a rural Andalusian family toward tragedy.
Students of Spanish theatre and anyone curious about Lorca's last play will find a short, sharply built drama with no male character ever appearing on stage. It leaves you thinking about how strict social codes about reputation and obedience can turn a home into a prison, and what happens to people who have nowhere to put their longing.
Deep, inward-looking and thought-provoking; a moderate read.
Best for readers like The Wisdom Collector. Which reader are you?
- Published
- 1930
- Language
- EN
