La cuarterona

Overview

Love is denied for differences of race in this three-act play written by the father of Puerto Rican literature. In Havana, Julia, the protagonist, is a quadroon who falls in love with a wealthy white man, Carlos, who is set to marry a noble daughter. The arranged marriage has financial motivations and is not based on love, and Carlos's mother sees Julia as a threat to her aristocratic lineage. Tapia y Rivera demonstrates his support for women's rights as well as his position against slavery in this late 19th-century melodrama. 

Author Biography

Alejandro Tapia y Rivera is considered by many to be the father of Puerto Rican literature. He was a poet, a dramaturg, an essayist, a biographer, and a writer. He is the author of Biblioteca histórica de Puerto Rico, La leyenda de los veinte años, Mis memorias, La palma del cacique, and La Sataniada, among other works.