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How does The Wonder-Working Magician reflect the influence of Jesuit religious drama?

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Calderón de la Barca, Pedro — Pedro Calderón de la Barca Pedro Calderón de la Barca, from a Spanish postage stamp, c. 1951.

The Wonder-Working Magician (El mágico prodigioso, 1637) reflects the influence of Jesuit drama through its thematic focus on the conversion and martyrdom of saints, a tradition established by the Society of Jesus to disseminate Roman Catholic doctrine.12

While Calderón’s secular works often explore the confusion and discord inherent in the natural order, his religious plays—including The Wonder-Working Magician—confront these natural values with supernatural ones. Like many Jesuit-influenced dramas, the play utilizes the life of a saint from the early church to illustrate the insufficiency of worldly pursuits such as beauty, love, wealth, and power. By dramatizing the protagonist's journey toward faith, the play serves to demonstrate that only the apprehension of an "infinite Good" can satisfy the human heart’s longing for truth and happiness. This approach aligns with the Jesuit practice of reinterpreting historical or legendary narratives through the lens of Catholic moral and religious theology.12