Abstract
El castigo del penséque and Quien calla, otorga offer a unique opportunity to reflect on Tirso de Molina's penchant for developing ideas over two and three distinct comedias and work together to illustrate their author's intense interest in language, speech, and writing. The comedia that announces a continuation, El castigo del penséque, addresses in conjunction with the second play, Quien calla, otorga, the very processes of writing and interpretation. With these two comedias, Tirso once again demonstrates the power of speech and the way in which the dramatic word, indeed, all language, works in concert with worldly action even as he subtly shows how two distinct and discrete works open to interpretation can form a single conceptual whole. (JM)