This research discusses the changing role of women in Spanish society during the nineteenth century through the works of Francisca Navarro and Joaquina Garcia Balmaseda. The thesis shows the break with the traditional image of the "angel del hogar" and the gradual incorporation of the social changes affecting women which were reflected in the female protagonists of the comedies written by such playwrights. By reading theoretical texts of the emerging feminist theory and through analysis of the main female characters, this study examines the changes regarding the established canon and its own evolution within the nineteenth century, from the works of a pioneer like Francisca Navarro in the first third of the century to those of Joaquina Gracia Balmaseda towards the end of it.

The question of decline in the historiography of seventeenth-century Spain originally included socio-economic analyses that determined the decline of Spain was an economic recession. Eventually, the historiographical debate shifted to include cultural elements of seventeenth-century Spanish society. Gender within the context of decline provides further insight into how the deterioration of the Spanish economy and the deterioration of Spanish political power in Europe affected Spanish self-perception. The prolific Spanish women writers, in addition, featured their points of view on manhood in their works and created a model of masculinity known as virtuous masculinity. They expected Spanish men to perform their masculine duties as protectors and providers both in public and in private. Seventeenth-century decline influenced how women viewed masculinity. Their new model of masculinity was based on ideas that male authors had developed, but went further by emphasizing men treating their wives well.