SOURCE: Boyer, H. Patsy. Introduction to The Enchantments of Love: Amorous and Exemplary Novels, translated by H. Patsy Boyer, pp. xi-xxxi. Berkeley, Calif.: University of California Press, 1990.

In the following essay, Boyer provides an overview of Zayas's life and works.

The life of Maria de Zayas y Sotomayor remains largely a mystery. The only facts known about her are that she lived in Madrid during the first half of the seventeenth century and was a recognized literary figure. She wrote much occasional poetry, at least one play, The Betrayal of Friendship, and two best-selling collections of framed novellas, The Enchantments of Love: Amorous and Exemplary Novels (Novelas amorosas y ejemplares, 1637) and its sequel, The Disenchantments of Love (Desengaños amorosos, 1647). It is believed that she was noble, probably the daughter of don Fernando de Zayas y Sotomayor, a captain in the army and member of the elite Order...