The gaze and trompe-l’œil: The question of representation in Calderón

Abstract

This text analyzes the problem of the gaze and of representation in the theatrical work of Calderón. It takes his theories, systematized in his Horacian “Deposition in favor of the teachers of painting”, as a starting point. Through the examination of segments of his works, I configure the issue of the deceit of the senses or trompe-l’oeil, typical of this historical period. At the end of the article, I study specifically the implications of the baroque mise-en-abime, in which the king is both, the ideal spectator of the baroque spectacle, and a character represented inside the work.