Canary Islands PAU Dramatic Literature Exam study guide
Canary Islands PAU Dramatic Literature Exam · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
The Canary Islands PAU (EBAU) Literatura Dramática paper is a university-access examination option for students in the archipelago who choose dramatic literature as their specialised arts or humanities subject. It is aimed at candidates who have completed Bachillerato and need the exam result for admission to Spanish universities, and it rewards candidates who can combine textual close reading with a firm grasp of theatre history and dramatic theory. The Canary Islands PAU Dramatic Literature Exam study guide has 8 sections and about 3,352 words.
01Tragedy and Comedy in Greek and Roman Theatre
The Greek and Roman section of the PAU asks you to combine literary history with Aristotle's critical vocabulary. A passage from tragedy or comedy may be set for identification and commentary, so you need the structural units of the plays, the conventions of the theatre buildings, and the difference between Aristotle's descriptive analysis and later neoclassical prescription.
454 words, about 2 min02Medieval and Renaissance Dramatic Forms
The medieval and Renaissance section tests typology, staging and the transition from religious to professional theatre. You may be asked to classify a fragment, explain allegory, or relate a play to its performance conditions; precise genre labels matter more than plot summary.
425 words, about 2 min03Baroque Theatre: Lope de Vega, Calderón de la Barca and Tirso de Molina
The Baroque section is the core of the Spanish Golden Age paper. The exam tests the comedia nueva as a system: Lope's 1609 Arte nuevo de hacer comedias, Calderón's philosophical and sacramental theatre, and Tirso's Don Juan.
457 words, about 2 min04Neoclassical Theatre and the Enlightenment
Neoclassical theatre and the Enlightenment test whether you can distinguish Aristotle's Poetics from the seventeenth- and eighteenth-century rule system built on it, and whether you can read a reform comedy as social argument. Expect questions on the unities, bienséance, vraisemblance, and the rise of bourgeois drama.
385 words, about 2 min05Romantic and Realist Drama in the 19th Century
Romantic and realist drama are often examined together because the PAU asks you to contrast their conventions rather than merely date them. You need Hugo's manifesto, the Spanish Romantic stage, the well-made play, and the realist/naturalist revolution in staging and subject matter.
423 words, about 2 min0620th-Century Theatre: Avant-Garde Movements and Contemporary Drama
The twentieth-century section covers the historical avant-gardes, political theatre, the absurd and Spanish postwar drama. The exam rewards precise movement labels and an ability to explain how form carries meaning, not a list of '-isms'.
412 words, about 2 min07Analysis and Commentary of Dramatic Texts
The commentary section is practical: you are given a dramatic fragment and asked to analyse it. The exam tests close reading, not plot recall.
390 words, about 2 min08Theatrical Terminology and Dramatic Theory
Dramatic theory and terminology questions test precision. You are expected to use Aristotelian terms correctly, distinguish text from performance, and apply semiotic or genre concepts to a concrete example rather than recite definitions.
406 words, about 2 min