La identidad nacional y Calderón en la polémica teatral de 1762-1764

Abstract

Drawing on contemporary theories about national identity, legitimacy and intellectual authority this article explores identitarian issues at stake during the 1762-1764 controversy on Spanish theater. Re-reading texts by Clavijo y Fajardo (El Pensador), Nicolás Fernández de Moratín (Desengaños al teatro español and other writings), Mariano José Nipho (Diario Estrangero and La nación española defendida) and José Romea y Tapia (El escritor sin título) we contend that what these authors are debating indeed is not theater but the legitimacy and authority they are claiming for, and ultimately opposing conceptions of national identity. Calderón becoming a cultural icon of such identity. Particularly significant is the role of autos sacramentales in this context. In effect, acrimony and irritation are part of this polemics because orthodox Catholicism is, from a conservative point of view, an essential component of what they consider Spanish national identity. The prohibition of the autos is just a sign of a temporary change in the relationship of forces.