San Nicolás de Tolentino by Lope de Vega (review)

roy norton has developed his university of oxford doctoral dissertation (2014) into an exemplary critical edition of Lope de Vega's San Nicolás de Tolentino, first published in 1641 in the Veinticuatro parte perfecta de las comedias del Fénix de España. Norton's text of the play, which is based on the princeps edition, is accompanied by a profuse number of footnotes in Spanish. These footnotes discuss Lope's references and allusions to biblical and theological subjects, early modern theatrical conventions, and sociocultural as well as historical contexts. They provide translations of Latin terms and phrases and explanations of early modern words and expressions that present-day readers might have difficulty understanding. For more seasoned scholars, Norton also includes in the footnotes the variants found between the princeps and the modern editions of 1894 (Marcelino Menéndez Pelayo), 1955 (Federico Carlos Sainz de Robles), 1965 (Marcelino Menéndez Pelayo, updated), and 1984 (Jorge Puente Peña). Overall, Norton's edition makes the play accessible to less experienced readers of comedias who might appreciate a more guided introduction to the subgenre of the comedia de santos and compelling to more advanced scholars who might have not been aware of the merits of this lesser-known work.

The volume is composed of two major sections: a lengthy and sustained examination of the play and the edited text. The main text is then followed by two appendices, a comprehensive list of variants (with some variants not indicated in the footnotes), and an "Índice de notas" of characters, sites, words, and works mentioned in the play and referenced in the footnotes. The study of the play is divided in six parts: a survey of the legends of Saint Nicholas of Tolentino (ca. 1246–1305), especiallyfromthe sixteenth century; an exploration of possible sources; an analysis of the protagonist, Nicolás, and his sidekick, Ruperto; a study of Lope's allegorical characters; a meticulous examination of the versification; and, finally, a carefully compiled bibliography.

Saint Nicholas of Tolentino was the first Augustinian friar to be canonized. Born in Tolentino, Italy, he is still a favored saint for advocating on behalf of the souls in purgatory. It is also believed that he established the Augustinian tradition of distributing bread rolls to the sick and the poor, known as Saint Nicholas's bread. The devotion to Saint Nicholas in Spain began in the fifteenth century in areas in which the Augustinian order had a strong presence. The saint has been long credited for the end of the plague that struck Cordoba between 1601 and 1602 and for extinguishing a fire in the town of Pontedeume in Galicia. Norton suggests that the play was most likely commissioned by Augustinian friars interested in honoring and promoting the devotion to their saint. Furthermore, Norton reminds us that the year of the play's composition (1614) coincides with Lope's spiritual awakening and his ordination as a priest.

In terms of written sources, Norton agrees with José Aragüés Aldaz that if Lope relied on one hagiographic source, it was most likely Juan González de Critana's Vida y milagros del glorioso confesor San Nicolás de Tolentino (1612) ("Lope de Vega y la tradición hagiográfica sobre San Nicolás de Tolentino," Anuario Lope de Vega, vol. 17, 2011, pp. 1–43). Norton, however, did not take Aragüés Aldaz's conclusion as a given. Rather, he painstakingly examined each of the twenty-one possible sources before forming his own assessment. His findings are summarized in two tables. The first lists the sources in order of production (from 1325 to 1625) by author, title, and language (i.e., Latin, Castilian, Italian). The second presents the basic structural details also present in the hagiographies of Pietro da Monterubbiano (1326), Antoninus of Florence (1491), Alonso de Orozco (1551), the Augustinian friars of Burgos (1554), Gonzalo Millán (1572), Alonso de Villegas (1578), Jerónimo Román (1590), González de Critana (1612), Tom...