TIRSO DE MOLINA, the pseudonym of Gabriel Tellez (1571-1648), Spanish dramatist. Born at Madrid, he professed in the Order of Mercy on Jan. 21, 1601. Sent by his superiors on a mission to the West Indies in 1615, he returned to Europe in 1617, and resided at the Mercenarian monastery in Madrid. His first publication, the incomplete Cigarrales de Toledo (1621 ?), is a miscellany, containing short tales, novels, verses and three plays; one of the novels, Los Tres maridos burlados, probably derived from Il Cieco da Ferrara's Mambriano, and the play en titled El Vergonzoso en Palacio are admirable examples of witty contrivance. The preface to the Cigarrales de Toledo (the second part of which was never printed) states that Tirso de Molina had already written 30o plays, and at this period of his career he was second only to his friend Lope de Vega in popularity. He rose to important positions in his order, became superior of the monas tery at Trujillo in 1626, was elected later to the posts of reader in theology and definidor general, and in May 1632 was appointed chronicler of the Order of Mercy. His Deleitar aprovechando (1635) is a devout counterpart of the Cigarrales de Toledo, much inferior to its predecessor in interest ; a sequel was promised to this collection of pious tales, pious lyrics and autos, but, as in the case of the Cigarrales de Toledo, the continuation never ap peared. A first part of Tirso's plays was published in 1627, the third part (before the second) in 1634, the second and fourth in 1635, and the fifth in 1636. A sixth volume of dramatic pieces, consisting of light comedies, was announced; but the project was abandoned. As official chronicler of his order, Tirso compiled the elaborate Historia de la merced, which occupied him till Dec. 24, 1639, and still survives in manuscript, and on Sept. 29, 1645, he became superior of the monastery at Soria. He died there on March 12, 1648.
Only a fraction of his plays have been preserved. In 1624 he had written 30o plays, and in 1634 he stated that he had composed 400 within the previous 20 years; of this immense production not more than 8o plays are in existence. Tirso de Molina is uni versally known as the author of El Burlador de Sevilla y con vidado de Piedra, the piece in which Don Juan is first presented on the stage; but El Burlador de Sevilla represents only one aspect of his genius. No less remarkable than his representation of per verse depravity in El Burlador de Sevilla is his dramatic treat ment of a philosophical enigma in El Condenado por desconfiado.
Though manifestly attracted by exceptional cases, by every kind of moral aberration, by the infamous and the terrible, his range is virtually unlimited. He reveals himself as a master of historical interpretation in La Prudencia de la mujer, and of tragical pathos in La Venganza de Tamar; his sympathetic, mali cious wit finds dramatic expression in El Vergonzoso en Palacio and Don Gil de las calzas verdes, and the fine divination of femi nine character in Averigflelo Vargas and La Villana de Vallecas is incomparable. Tirso de Molina has neither Lope de Vega's in ventive resource, nor his infinite seduction; he has neither Cal deron's idealistic visions, nor his golden music ; but he exceeds Lope in massive intellectual power and in artistic self-restraint, and he exceeds Calderon in humour, in creative faculty, and in dramatic intuition. That his reputation extended beyond the Pyr enees in his own lifetime may be gathered from the fact that J. Shirley's Opportunity is derived from El Castigo del penseque; but he was neglected in Spain itself during the long period of Calderon's supremacy, and his name was almost forgotten till the end of the 18th century, when some of his pieces were timidly recast by Dionisio Solis and later by Juan Carretero. The renais sance of his fame, however, dates from 1839-42, when an incom plete but serviceable edition of his plays was published. He is now accepted as among the greatest dramatists of Spain.