Perceval- Part 1

One of the things that first caught my eye in this piece was the numerous parallels to masonry and masonic rituals. While the establishment of Freemasonry does not come about until the 16th or 17th century, many of the rituals date to much earlier times.

The first potentially masonic reference that I noticed was the fact that Perceval is the son of a widow. This made me recall the (somewhat) famous masonic phrase "Oh Lord my God, is there no help for the widow's son?" Seeing as this story predates the advent of Freemasonry, I felt compelled to research earlier significances of a widows son. My research turned up rather interesting results.

One early belief was that the mother represented the soul and the father represented the instructor. This sentiment holds true to this day. I know that in my family my father took on the responsibility of instructing me on how to do many things, whereas my mother was always a more compassionate and comforting influence. When the man reached adulthood, it was believed that the father (instructor) did not live on within the man, and that the mother (soul) remained. This effectively "widowed" the mother, and turned the son into the widows son.

This information greatly supports my theory of a premasonic influence in Chretien's writing. From the beginning Chretien makes it clear that this is to be a coming of age story. I do not think that his use of seeds as a metaphor is a mistake. Neither is the fact that the story commences in the spring and that Perceval initiates his journey of discovery en route to checking on the planters. All of these things are symbols of a new beginning, in this case, a new beginning, or perhaps the true beginning, of Perceval's life.

The fact that Perceval's father died when Perceval was quite young also supports this theory. It can be assumed that his father was somewhat successful in educating his children, seeing as we know that Perceval's older brothers were knights. Therefore, Perceval's ignorance can be traced to the absence of his fathers presence, and as such, the absence of an instructor.

At this point, the connection to Freemasonry can be made complete. Freemasonry is an organization that claims to exist to promote learning and understanding of individual spirituality. This is something that masons believe is learned through allegory and experience. It is common knowledge that the masons use rituals and tests to teach and initiate their members into different ranks. This is exactly what Perceval needs to do. He questions those who he doesn't understand, and he proves himself by defeating the Red Knight. The phrase "...is there no help for the widow's son?" is designed to show that a mason is in distress, but I think that this meaning can be broadened to mean that a man needs help in learning about himself or others, and this is the kind of help that Perceval needs.

That Obscure Object of Desire

In Bunuel's film, I believe it is fairly clear that Conchita is meant to represent the "obscure object of desire". This is evident because everything about her character is somehow obscured or hidden. The most blatant of these obscurities is the fact that she is played by two characters. The transience and amorphousness of this does much to obscure her character. Another device used to obscure her person is the fact that she holds no steady job. In fact, nothing about her remains static. She moves from job to job, house to house, and not even her reactions to Matthieu are congruous. The only constant that we know of is her love for dancing. She even says that this is the only thing that interests her.

I find dancing to be an appropriate act to represent desire, and as such, Conchita. Desire is essentially a longing for something. It is not the actual act of attaining or having said object. Actually, once the object desired is attained, the desire no longer exists. Dancing, especially some Spanish dances, is a good example of this. When the couples are dancing, it is easy to see the sexual tension that can build between them. Some dances even include motions that have sexual connotations. Despite all of this, intercourse is never achieved. Depending on the couple, passion and desire are clearly evident, yet no resolution is found. Conchita's solo dancing also demonstrates this. She dances for tourists (which are by nature transient) who clearly want and desire her body, yet she never (as far as we can see) gives herself to them.

Celestina- Day 5

At the end of the novel, one thing that becomes clear is Pleberio's lack of love for his daughter. While he makes it seem like he loved Melibea, it is clear that he doesn't truly love her. First, had he loved her, much of this story would be different. He would have known Melibea better and the whole affair between her and Calisto wouldn't have happened. His lack of love was also manifested in his speech at the end of the book. In this speech he mourns the loss of Melibea, but only in its relationship to him. He doesn't seem to care about the pain that she went through or her suffering, but he does care about his. This can clearly be seen in his last sentence:

"Why did you afflict me and leave me sad and alone in this vale of tears?"

If Pleberio didn't love Melibea to begin with though, it raises the question as to why he is mourning her loss. I think that the reason has something to do with the world Pleberio tried to create. Melibea killing herself is merely proof that his patriarchal society is defunct. He tried to protect her by raising both physical and metaphorical barriers, but it shows that passion will break through the toughest bonds. I think that the other reason for his sadness is the fact that her suicide will bring shame and dishonor to him. This will come not only from her suicide, which was quite frowned upon by the Church and society, but also from the fact that her and Calisto's story will most likely be circulated through the city.

Celestina- Day 4

The existence of Pleberio's male dominated world and Celestina's female dominated world can be likened to one of those books that have a clear plastic page over a paper page. Bits of the paper show through in the gaps where there is no printing, but the majority of the image comes from the ink on the plastic. In Celestina, Pleberio's world is like the plastic, and Celestina's is the paper. On the surface, everything appears prim and proper. Melibea seems to be a young virgin, Pleberio thinks he and Alisa are in control of Melibea's destiny, and their household seems impervious to the outside world. While all of this is true, parts of Celestina's world show through. Celestina and Calisto manage to enter their house, and Alisia warns Melibea of Celestina's true nature.

Once the page is turned, however, it is easy to see how Pleberio's utopia is merely a facade. Celestina's influence extends farther into Pleberio's world than he would ever imagine. Melibea is no longer a virgin, and in reality, her parents do not even know her. Alisia believes that Melibea doesn't even know about the existence of sex, and this lulls the parents into a false sense of security. Celestina knows Melibea better though. While Melibea's parent's are clueless about their daughter's thoughts and emotions, Celestina knows exactly what Melibea wants, and how to make sure she gets it.

To stick with this metaphor, the situation in Celestina reminds me of one such book that I had as a child. The book was a picture book of Roman architecture. On the plastic pages were artist's renderings of what they thought Roman constructs like the Colosseum looked like in their prime. On the paper pages were actual images of these buildings now, obviously much more delapidated and derelict than their plastic counterparts. In Celestina Pleberio attempts to hide Celestina's world. In his first "speech" he says that the best way to make a girl seem respectable is for her to marry young. His thought behind this is to stop her from sinning before she can sin. I think it is obvious that this is merely a "quick fix" for a much deeper "problem" in Pleberio's society. If he were alive today he would probably be a politician. The world that Celestina has created is the reality of life. It is not as nice as Pleberio's, but there are several key differences that make it more appealing. First, it is based on reality, not illusions. While the prostitutes create an illusion of love, it is one that is mutually understood, and I would imagine, sometimes necessary for them to perform their job. Second, Celestina's world is focused on life and living it. Pleberio focuses on life too, but he spends much time dwelling on death and trying to refuse living. Celestina uses death as a motivator to live life, Pleberio uses it as an excuse to refuse those around him the right to live their lives. This sentiment is shown where Pleberio says:

"And since we are uncertain when we should be called, seeing such clear signs, we must gird up our loins and pickup our burdens in readiness for our enforced march."

What Pleberio is saying here is that one should always act righteous, because they can never know when death is coming for them. This differs from something Celestina would say in the sense that she would advocate for the opposite, telling someone to live life to the fullest, because they only have a short time to do so.

Celestina- Day 3

1. Celestina's actions towards Areusa lend much insight into her character. First, we can see that Celestina still has desires and feelings towards women. This sequence of events begins with Celestina commenting on Areusa's bed. She says that her bad smells sweet, and then she even gets into bed with Areusa. Then, even thought it is not implicitly stated, we can assume that Celestina molests Areusa. The dialogue includes Celestina saying that she will feel Areusa to attempt a diagnosis of the illness, and then is followed by Areusa telling Celestina that the pain is farther up, over her stomach. Finally, Celestina comments on Areusa's breasts and her youth, and advises her to enjoy it while it lasts. While I feel that this conveys a sense of lust towards Areusa, I also believe that Celestina is jealous of Areusa and her youth. She gets frustrated when Areusa talks of having only one lover, and I think it is because she cannot have any lovers, and she detests Areusa's waste of this advantage.

One thing that puzzles me about this act is Areusa's illness. I cannot guess it's exact nature, but I can only imagine what type of illness it might be.We are only given a few clues about it. The first is that Celestina is familiar with it, and that this familiarity is due to her sins. Then, we know that Celestina's prescription for a cure is sex. She also says that after Areusa is done having sex with Parmeno she will wake up pale, but be cured. The only guess that I can fathom as to Areusa's illness, is that perhaps Areusa is menstruating. We know that Areusa is rather young, due to a remark that Celestina made a little earlier in the act. If Parmeno sleeps with, and impregnates, Areusa, she will miss her period the next month. While this inference may be far off-kilter, it is the only one I have.

Celestina- Day 2

1. At the end of act three it is easy to see Celestina's uncertainty about how Melibea will respond to her ministrations. First, she finds it necessary to create a talisman of sorts to use on Melibea. This is in the form of the thread that she anoints with oil and the prayer she says to Pluto. This becomes even more obvious with the final words she says; "or so I think." I think that Melibea has good cause to be hesitant about the success of her plan. She certainly realizes that the "love" between Calisto and Melibea is merely lust. She would also realize how capricious lust can be. This can be seen in the very essence of the story, when Calisto wanders into Melibea's garden and suddenly falls in love with her.

2. Throughout the novel, Celestina's fame seems to proceed her wherever she goes. Interestingly enough, the only person who doesn't know who she is is Calisto, and as a result he is the only person that genuinely trusts her. Celestina's reputation is one that can be a double edged sword. In the case of Lucretia, it helped her cause, because Lucretia is related to one of Celestina's prostitutes. In the case of Melibea, Celestina's reputation, compounded with the discovery of her true goal, almost caused Celestina's demise. I find that this says a lot about individual interpretation. First, due their different backgrounds, Lucretia and Melibea both interpret Celestina's reputation differently. Lucretia is more favorably inclined to Celestina because of her upraising. As a cousin of the one prostitute, it can be assumed that Lucretia is the female counterpart to Parmeno, at least in the sense that she most likely came from the underbelly of the city and is striving to better herself. Melibea's response was far from favorable though. I believe this is due to the fact that Melibea was raised in a different world, and sees no place for Celestina in it.

Celestina- Day 1

1. I found the discussion that Calisto and Sempronio have at the beginning of Act 1 to be quite amusing. As a matter of fact, I have been entertained throughout the entirety of the first two acts. The characters and their dialogue is so funny, that I find myself chuckling out loud. Anyway, I digress. When Calisto and Sempronio are talking, I do not interpret Calisto's illness to be one of love. Perhaps it is one of lust, but I would favor another theory over that one. I believe that Calisto is merely bored with his life. The reason I discard love as the cause of his melancholy stems from his reaction to a joke that Sempronio made about the people of Sodom. In response to this joke Calisto says:
"Damn you! You've made me laugh, a thing I hadn't expected to do this year."

This shows that Calisto doesn't care to cure his "love sickness", but that he would rather mope around and garner sympathy from his servants. This is similar to Romeo's reaction to Rosalind's scorn, where he locks himself away and makes people worry about him.

As to their discussion about women, I believe I found a reason for Sempronio's misogynistic view. In his discourse on the topic he says that women can't stop lusting for men and that this is their great weakness. I think that the reason he believes this is because he is in love with one of Celestina's whores. I do not think he realizes exactly what she is though, and because of this he finds all women to be like Elicia.