Indiana University
The critical trends of the last few decades have created discourses that allow critics to verbalize new theoretical frameworks within which to discuss literature. One of the more recent of these movements, New Historicism, has redirected the task of the literary critic from literary interpretation to cultural analysis. The non-literary elements generally restricted from textually-based approaches such as New Criticism, structuralism, and deconstruction, become essential components of the New Historical agenda. The same critic, however, who may today approach a text through New Historicism, thanks to the critical eclecticism fostered by post-structuralism, may tomorrow elucidate different aspects of the text by using an entirely different approach. It should come to us as no surprise, then, that an experienced critic such as Joseph V. Ricapito blends New Historical criticism with more traditional forms of textual analysis in his effort to continue to unravel portions of seven of Cervantes's Exemplary Novels.
As the introduction outlines, Ricapito believes firmly that
Cervantes takes the material for his stories principally from life, not from
literature. For Ricapito, unlike many modern critics, the
Exemplary Novels do much more than experiment
with and challenge Renaissance notions of mimesis and verisimilitude. He finds
his ideas more in line with those expressed in Stephen J. Greenblatt's
Renaissance Self-Fashioning: From More to
Shakespeare (1980). «The
novelas», states
—138→
Ricapito, «are a glimpse of Cervantes's Spain and include a
cataloguing of the social, political, and historical problems of the
time»
(4). Until Carroll Johnson's «'La
española inglesa' and the Practice of Literary Production» (1988),
few critics had attempted a historical reading -as cultural criticism- of the
Exemplary Novels, and even works like
Johnson's, according to Ricapito, «merely show the need and the place
for a 'readjustment'»
to a more appropriate historical interpretation
(6).
In chapter 1, «'La gitanilla': At the Crossroads of History
and Creativity», Ricapito documents the presence of Gypsies in the
Spanish Peninsula from their arrival in approximately 1425 to their
mistreatment during the eighteenth century, paying particular attention to
their minority status and the similarity of their situation to that of the Jews
and the Moors. Ricapito highlights the rejection by the Spanish socio-political
structure of the religious practices, language, marriage ceremonies, and
women's roles in Gypsy society. He points out that certain edicts from Phillip
II condemned not just the Gypsies, but also anyone «who dressed like
them»
(12), thus justifying the application of his
analysis to Preciosa and Andrés. Ricapito proposes that Cervantes's
creation of an idealistic Gypsy society reflects a sympathetic Cervantine view
of marginalized and oppressed peoples -especially Jews and
conversos- in the Spanish communities
of his day. Cervantes, claims Ricapito, sees the social problems of his day
and, not content merely to reflect them mimetically, chooses to portray them
artistically by transposing the prevalent popular negative view of the Gypsies
and creating in its place a positive vision of Gypsy society, allowing,
nevertheless, at the same time, glimpses at the pain and suffering that
marginalized subjects endure. «Cervantes's skill», Ricapito
concludes, «was unsurpassable inasmuch as he created a second reality,
a literary one, removed from the sordid, ugly reality that was attached to the
lives and mores of the Gypsies»
(36).
Chapter 2, «Católicos secretos,
conversos, and the Myth of the Maritime Life in 'La española
inglesa'», challenges Johnson's seminal article and posits a
«historical and political view [that] goes well beyond Johnson's
insistence on the second siege of Cádiz»
(39).
For Ricapito, the phrase
católicos secretos holds the key to
the interpretation of the novella. He documents the problems associated with
recusancy throughout Queen Elizabeth's reign and makes manifest the real need
for secrecy and the real consequences inflicted on Catholics unable or
unwilling to cloak their religious allegiances. Ricapito suggests that this
text, like «La gitanilla», manifests a subversive subtext that
mirrors the problems of underprivileged groups in sixteenth- and
seventeenth-century Spain (53). He argues that, although the text superficially
addresses the problems of English Catholics, «the dilemma of Jews and
conversos represented for Cervantes
and his readership a problem of greater immediacy»
(53).
Ricapito finds support for his hypothesis in Cervantes's tolerant presentation
of the Turks, «who appear less hostile and antagonistic than might
have been warranted at the time»
(63). Ricaredo,
Ricapito points out, grants the Turks their freedom, and it is one of the freed
Turks who eventually saves Ricaredo. Chapter 2 also introduces what Ricapito
terms «the myth of freedom embodied in the travel on the infinite
seas»
(64), a myth that can account for the large
numbers of sailors, who in spite of the
—139→
risks and peril
associated with privateering ventures such as that of Ricaredo, nevertheless,
eagerly offered their services. As a final point in this chapter, Ricapito
draws an analogy between Ricaredo, the Cervantine character, and Recaredo, the
medieval king of the Peninsular Visigoths. Recaredo converted to Catholicism
and subsequently, like Ricaredo, became a champion of the «true»
faith. He became, explains Ricapito, «a symbol of religious strife, of
religious dedication, of personal valor»
(68). Ricapito
admits that this analogy is not without problems, that Recaredo did, in fact,
oversee the forced conversion of Jews. He maintains, nevertheless, that the
analogy is important in that it recognizes the connections Cervantes probably
consciously made with history.
Chapter 3, «'El licenciado Vidriera', or 'La historia de un
fracaso'», emphasizes the novella's blend of history and literature.
Ricapito begins by explaining the favored status accorded licentiates with a
law degree from the University of Salamanca. Upon their graduation, he informs
us, they were granted government posts, important positions in the church, and
professorships. He then proceeds to outline the reasons for Tomás
Rueda's inconceivable failure: he descends from the working class, he has no
influential friends or family, and he may very well have been a
converso, (thus linking this novella
with the other two). Ricapito demonstrates that only the rich and privileged
benefitted from the advantage of a university law degree. He stresses the
importance of the possibility that Tomás is a
converso, insisting that
«[b]eing a commoner or a poor farmer does not seem to be
enough [emphasis Ricapito's] to have
prevented Vidriera's rise»
(81). Ricapito divides the
story into three parts. The first, the successful adventures of Tomás as
a student, is a manifestation, Ricapito claims, of Cervantes's personal
admiration and approval of Tomás's efforts. The second stage, that of
the «demented» Licentiate made of glass, reflects Cervantes's own
feelings of failure and echoes his own sentiments through the Licentiate's
caustic aphorisms. To evaluate this second stage, Ricapito draws from the
insights of psychological criticism. In analyzing Tomás's inability to
advance beyond student status in society, Ricapito states: «This
process of failure could not have had a positive effect on someone who moved in
an historical atmosphere not given to allowing the expression of one's
dissatisfaction»
(90). Tomás's delusional
condition represses both his own failures and those of Cervantes, as well.
Tomás hides behind his demented condition to unleash his anger and
frustrations on society, and Cervantes hides behind Tomás to express
through him his own disappointments and inhibitions. The final stage of the
story sees Tomás part for Flanders. Ricapito views Cervantes's brief
allusion to the war in Flanders as a conscientious objection to
«Spain's persistent use of force in the Netherlands»
(94, quoted from A. A. Parker). Ricapito concludes that
Tomás represents Cervantes's vision of a complete failure: Tomás
failed to capitalize on his education, he then failed as a madman to contribute
constructively to society, and finally, he died miserably in a
«dubious political and religious enterprise»
(95).
Chapter 4, «The Prose of Honor», examines four
different novelle, each of which deals with some aspect of honor. Ricapito
suggests that these «honor novellas»
were written
(1) to compete with the popularity of Lope's honor plays, and (2)
to present Cervantes's own vision of «some of the socially
—140→
acceptable uses of
honra»
(99).
In this chapter Ricapito focuses more on the literary and less on the
historical. He proceeds with the basic assumption that Lope's presentation of
the
honra theme tended to
«reinforc[e] the public's own basic belief in the efficacy of such a
concept as a way of life»
(100). The first novella
examined, «La fuerza de la sangre», casts the theme of dishonor by
rape in a new light. Rather than condemning the victim to social
marginalization, Cervantes grants her an understanding father and mother, and a
future mother-in-law who is anxious to rectify the injustices of her son.
Ricapito also suggests that the spatial organization of the novella and the
emphasis on visual and oral elements serve to indicate a conscious effort by
the author to compete with the theater of Lope. In «La señora
Cornelia», Ricapito points out, the characters themselves often make
reference to their status as characters in a play. Ricapito sees this novella
as a parody of a tragicomedy, for although the characters speak of avenging
honor, there is never any real loss of honor, since the Duke's intentions were
always honorable. Thus the threat of death and violence evaporates and we are
left with «humane, rational, and Christian resolutions»
, the
type Cervantes espouses (111). Ricapito claims that with
«Las dos doncellas» Cervantes goes one up on Lope, introducing two
dishonored damsels rather than one. Once again, however, Ricapito sees
Cervantes enact a humane, non-violent solution. Ricapito views «El celoso
extremeño» as the most extreme case of Cervantes's treatment of
the honor theme. Regardless of the extent of Leonora's culpability, according
to Ricapito's interpretation of both real and literary honor customs,
Carrizales should have killed both Loaysa and Leonora when he found them
together in bed. As Ricapito points out, however, even in this extreme
situation Cervantes will not sanction «the socially accepted
response»
and even causes the unprecedented -that the offended
husband would tell his widow-to-be to marry her alleged lover.
The final chapter, «Apologia pro patria
sua: Cervantes's 'La señora Cornelia'», reframes the novella
as Cervantes's defense of the battered spirit of his once proud country.
Ricapito suggests that Cervantes may have gained the inspiration for the
novella during his stay with Cardinal Acquaviva, for whom, perhaps, he had
served as a teacher. In spite, however, of Cervantes's extensive experience
with Italian language, literature, and geography, the Italian cities he
describes in his tales seem not to reflect faithfully the physical properties
of the actual locations. For Ricapito, the «meaning of Italy in 'La
señora Cornelia' corresponds... to a specific historical
problem»
(124), not to an accurate description of
physical details. Ricapito maintains that, at the cusp of the seventeenth
century, Spanish culture was on the decline and Italian culture presented an
image to be admired. Cervantes reflects this idealization of Italy in his
Spanish characters' desires to explore Italy, as well as their desire to learn
the language and Italian customs. While Italy was often idealized by the
Spanish, Ricapito shows that contemporary Italians looked down on Spaniards and
Spanish culture. For the Italians the Spanish were prideful, vain, and
ceremonious. He notes Cervantes's depiction of Italian sentiments in the
Italian
ama's statement that serving Spaniards
is the worst she has had to endure. Cervantes, however, was a Spaniard who not
only admired Italy, but was also proud of Spanish accomplishments.
In Ricapito's opinion, the Basque students manifest Cervantes's
desire to promote a new understanding of Spanish pride. The Basque characters
have all the physical and moral qualities of perfect gentlemen, yet rather than
boastfully broadcasting their Spanish origins, they have mastered the Italian
language and are capable, when necessary, of dealing with the Italians on an
«equal linguistic level»
(132). Thus, in
Ricapito's view, this novella presents Cervantes's response to Italians who
view Spaniards as «vacuous boors, exemplary on the outside but empty
on the inside»
(134). Cervantes creates a story that
gives Spanish readers nostalgic memories both of an Italy they may have visited
and of a Spain that no longer exists outside the mind.
Ricapito's scholarship demonstrates the benefits derived from
examining literature and history within the same frame. Ricapito reveres
Cervantes's creative abilities and loathes reducing his work to mere mimetic
realism. For Ricapito, the
Exemplary Novels reflect «a literary
creation whose substance is historical in nature and consists of the history
that Cervantes lived»
(4).
Cervantistas will welcome this new approach
to the study of the
Exemplary Novels.