Posted by Duke_of_Pimpton at a010-0070.elps.splitrock.net on March 28, 2001 at 18:30:54:
Hey Kevin and anyone else who wants to discuss,
What is your take on the similar themes covered by Kevin Smith and 17th century Spanish Playwright Don Pedro Calderon de la Barca. Mainly I am talking about the film Dogma and how it criticizes the church but in the end all is resolved and it shows the merits of the church and God. So in essence it is all just a reaffirmation of the faith. Calderon is considered one of the greatest playwrights in Spanish and he lived during the Siglo de Oro of Spanish writing in the 17th century. Many of his works dealed with this analysis of the Catholic Church and God. One example is his play "Devocion a la Cruz" (Devotion to the Cross), where one of the characters, the Gracioso (Comic Relief, the JAY of this play) after hearing about the sanctity of holy images and statues comes out in a suit covered in little tiny crosses so he can get protection. This was an obvious stab at the church and their use of saints and other artifacts showing how they were overdoing it. Even though Calderon later became a priest, he still wrote plays that criticized the church but in the end made it seem worthwhile. I just noticed this similarity with Kevin's movie Dogma.
Although Calderon is a hard read and in Spanish. There are some translations if anyone is interested in looking them up. It's written like Shakespeare so it's not a very easy read but it is worth the effort. Also try to look up other Siglo de Oro playwrights like Lope de Vega and Tirso de Molina. I think Kevin Smith is a great writer and he will go down in history like Calderon de la Barca as one of the greatest writers in history.
-El Pimp