This website is dedicated to the study of comedias sueltas. The word suelta, meaning “loose,” exists as a noun or as an adjective to describe any number of objects, whether feminine, masculine, singular, or plural. We are looking at the word within the context of the literatura de cordel / pliegos sueltos tradition, and using it specifically to refer to the format in which certain texts were printed. Not only plays, but popular literature of all kinds (romances, relaciones—an early form of news dissemination—and songs) were part of the ephemera printed over the centuries and are often compared to English chapbooks.

For the characteristics of comedias sueltas specifically, read DWC’s article on this website under Essays.