The Theatrum Mundi of Celebration

Rasmus Vangshardt, Linacre College/Oxford University, introduces his new book on the history of the metaphor of the theatrum mundi with special emphasis on early modern Spain and Pedro Calderón de la Barca.
 
The monograph offers a new interpretation of one of the most famous images of literary history, the theatrum mundi. By applying methods of comparative literature, hispanic studies, and theology, he reconsiders the world theatre’s historical peak in early modern Europe in general and the Spanish Golden Age in particular.
 
The talk will introduce a reading of Pedro Calderón’s El gran teatro del mundo (c. 1633–36) and outline the historical and systematic framework for a “theatrum mundi of celebration.” This concept entails using art to justify human existence in the face of changing conceptions of the cosmos: an early modern aesthetic theodicy and a justification of the world in that liminal space between metaphor, drama, and ritual.

Please register to attend at: https://eme-theatrum-mundi.eventbrite.co.uk

Pedro Calderón de la Barca and the World Theatre in Early Modern Europe: The Theatrum Mundi of Celebration. Early Drama, Art, and Music. De Gruyter/MiP. ISBN  978-1-50152-717-3 (hardcover), 978-1-50151-702-0 (EPUB) © 2023
 
More info on the book here: https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/9781501517006/html