Life is a Dream (a play)

Life is a Dream is one of the few surviving works from the Spanish Golden Age of theatre.  Pedro Calderon de la Barca, the playwright, was one of most well known Spanish dramatists.  He wrote religious dramas and secular plays as well.  However, Life is a Dream is his most famous. 

--When a woman named Rosaura (who is disguised as a man) and her servant Clarion come accross a prisoner chained to the walls of a tower, chaos ensues.  All of a sudden, men wearing masks come, trying to find Segismund (the prisoner).  Once they see Rosaura and Clarion, they abort their mission and go back to the royal palace, taking Rosaura and Clarion with them.  Once there, the king Basil tells everybody that his son is Segismund and he wants Segismund to take the throne.  However, the problem is that Segismund seems to be a tyrant.  Nevertheless, Basil orders his men to drug Segismund and bring him to the palace.  When Segismund wakes with the crown on his head, he is immediately taken with power.  He proves to be a tyrannical king when he throws one of the servants out the window.  Basil realizes that Segismund should not be king, so he tells his men to drug Segismund once again and take him back to the prison.  When Segismund wakes in the prison, he thinks being king was all a dream, even though it was all so real to him.  Segismund soon makes an important realization which leads everyone to believe he will take the throne after all.  As Segismund's story twists and turns, he finds the distinction between dreams and reality.--

Life is a Dream is an amazing play.  It has to do with themes such as love, honor, illusion vs. reality, and most importantly, nature vs. nurture.  Though it is written in verse, it is very easy to follow and understand.  Life is a Dream is a melodrama that deals with the supernatural, religion, and morality.  I'd reccomend it to anyone who wants a deeper understanding of the Spanish Golden Age.