Life Is a Dream
by Pedro Calderón de la Barca · La vida es sueño
Assigned by 1 of the 9 reading lists, catalogue entry only
- Written
- 1635
- Form
- Drama
- Language
- Spanish
- Length
- Short · 110 ppunder 120 pages
- Difficulty
- Moderate2 of 5 for a first-year reader
We recommendLife Is a Dream, translated by Gregary RaczPenguin Classics, 2006A verse translation that keeps the varied metres; the Harvard Classics uses Edward FitzGerald's free version.
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Basilio, king of Poland, has kept his son Segismundo chained in a tower since birth because the stars foretold he would be a tyrant. He now has the prince drugged and brought to court for a day to test the prophecy. Segismundo wakes to power, throws a servant out of a window and threatens everyone, and is returned to the tower and told it was a dream. Freed by rebel soldiers he acts differently, reasoning that if life is a dream one should still do good, and he defeats and forgives his father. A parallel plot follows Rosaura's pursuit of the man who wronged her.
No reading guide yet
The catalogue entry above is complete: the dates, the form, the themes and every program that assigns Life Is a Dream are verified against each program's published list.
What is missing is the part that takes real work: the summary, the key passages, and a recommended translation. The edition named below is the one most programs assign, so the buy links are useful already.
