LA MALQUERIDA / THE UNLOVED
“>
Autor:
Jacinto Benavente y Martínez
Country:
Spain (ES)
Book Theme:
The books of the Nobel prizes
Publisher:
Biblioteca Nueva
Publishing Year:
2002
Jacinto Benavente (1866–1954) was a Spanish playwright and Nobel Prize winner in Literature (1922). Known for revitalizing Spanish theater, he blended realism, psychological depth, and social critique in his over 170 plays. His most famous works include Los intereses creados and La malquerida. A member of the Royal Spanish Academy, he modernized the stage with irony and subtle dialogue, moving away from melodrama.
National Award for Children’s and Young People’s
Abstract
La malquerida (1913) is a rural tragedy centered on Doña Raimunda and her daughter Acacia, who return to live on a family estate after Raimunda remarries a man named Esteban. Tension and violence erupt when Esteban develops a forbidden, obsessive love for Acacia, who becomes the target of fear and suspicion. As suitors die mysteriously, rumors swirl that Acacia is cursed—the “malquerida” or “unloved woman.” The play explores dark family secrets, jealousy, repression, and the oppressive weight of honor in rural Spain.
