La influencia de los libros de caballerías en las obras cervantinas sobre el cautiverio

Abstract

The theme of captivity in Cervantes’ works echoes not only biographical experience but also literary fiction. Critics tend to study all that this theme owes to the Byzantine novels, while overlooking its links with the romances of chivalry. The present article establishes the influence of the romances –es- pecially Palmerín de Olivia– in the different texts that Cervantes wrote about captivity, such as the plays El trato de Argel and Los baños de Argel, and the “exemplary novella” El amante liberal. It pays particular attention to the unquestionable influence of Palmerín de Olivia on Cervantes’ depiction of the “go-between lover”.