''Doña Perfecta'' (1876) is a 19th-century realist novel by Benito Pérez Galdós from what is called the first of Galdós's three epochs in his novels of social analysis.

Plot summary

The action occurs in 19th century Spain, when a young liberal named Don José (Pepe) Rey, arrives in a cathedral city named Orbajosa, with the intention of marrying his cousin Rosario. This was a

marriage of convenience A marriage of convenience is a marriage contracted for reasons other than that of love and commitment. Instead, such a marriage is entered into for personal gain, or some other sort of strategic purpose, such as a political marriage. There are ...

arranged between Pepe's father Juan and Juan's sister, Perfecta. Upon getting to know each other, Pepe and Rosario declare their eternal love, but in steps Don Inocencio, the cathedral canon, who meddles and obstructs the marriage as well as the good intentions of Doña Perfecta and her brother Don Juan. Over the course of time, several events lead up to a confrontation between Pepe Rey and his aunt Perfecta (supposedly based on Galdós's difficult relationship with his mother), which is caused by her refusal to allow Pepe and Rosario to marry, because Pepe is a non-believer. The novel ends up with the death of Pepe Rey due to his aunt Perfecta. Rosario turns mad and ends up in a madhouse. The novel illustrates the great power that the church wielded. It also describes the differences between the traditional, provincial outlook, and the modern, liberal outlook of

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the Largest cities of the Europ ...

, the capital.

Film, TV or theatrical adaptations

The lost 1918 American silent film ''

Beauty in Chains ''Beauty in Chains'' is a 1918 American silent drama film directed by Elsie Jane Wilson based on the novel '' Doña Perfecta'' by Benito Pérez Galdós. The film stars Ella Hall and Emory Johnson. The photoplay was released on March 11, 1918, ...

'' was adopted from the novel. In 1951, Alejandro Galindo directed a film adaptation written by

Gunther Gerzso Gunther Gerzso (June 17, 1915 – April 21, 2000) was a Mexican painter, designer and director and screenwriter for film and theatre. Biography Gerzso was born in Mexico City, in the times of the Revolution. His parents were Oscar Gerzso ( hu, ...

set in Mexican sites and times with Dolores del Río as Doña Perfecta. In 1977, the film version was written and directed by César Fernández Ardavín. Julia Gutiérrez Caba played Doña Perfecta. The cast included other actors such as

José Luis López Vázquez José Luis López Vázquez de la Torre MML (11 March 1922, in Madrid – 2 November 2009, in Madrid) was a Spanish actor. Career José Luis López Vázquez was born in Madrid, Spain, on 11 March 1922. He originally worked in theater as a costume ...

, Manuel Sierra,

Victoria Abril Victoria Mérida Rojas (born 4 July 1959), better known as Victoria Abril, is a Spanish film actress and singer based in France. She is possibly best known to international audiences for her performance in the film ''Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!'' by ...

Emilio Gutiérrez Caba Emilio Gutiérrez Caba (born 26 September 1942) is a Spanish film and television actor. Personal Caba is the son of actors and Irene Caba Alba and brother of and Julia, both dedicated to acting too. From his mother side, he is the grandson of ...

Fernando Sancho Fernando Sancho Les (7 January 1916 – 31 July 1990) was a Spanish actor. Biography He was born in Zaragoza, in Aragon, Spain on 7 January 1916 and died at Hospital Militar Gómez Ulla in Madrid on 31 July 1990 from a liver failure during o ...

and

Mirta Miller Mirta Miller (born 16 August 1948) is an Argentine film actress. She has appeared in more than 65 films since 1961. She was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Selected filmography * ''No Exit'' (1962) * '' Una chica casi decente'' (1971) * '' Dr ...

. In 1985, there was a TV version made in

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

Venezolana de Televisión Corporación Venezolana de Televisión (Spanish for: ''Venezuelan Television Corporation'') or VTV is a state-run television station based in Caracas, Venezuela, which can be seen throughout the capital and surrounding areas on channel 8. Programs ...

with

Lupita Ferrer Lupita Ferrer (born December 6, 1947) is a Venezuelan theater, film and television actress. She is known as a "Queen" of telenovelas and one of the most famous Spanish speaking telenovela actresses of all time. Biography Ferrer was born as Yola ...

as Doña Perfecta.

References

External links

Doña Perfecta
(bilingual e-book with Spanish and English versions side-by-side). 1876 novels 19th-century Spanish novels Novels by Benito Pérez Galdós Novels set in Spain Spanish novels adapted into films {{1870s-novel-stub