The Uses of the Aside in Celestina

CELESTINESCA
THE USES OF THE ASIDE I N CELESTINA
P a t r i c i a Finch
Berea College, Kentucky
The a s i d e , a fundamental d e v i c e i n drama from t h e c l a s s i c a l t h e a t e r
onward, i s y e t a n o t h e r f a s c i n a t i n g p i e c e of t h e Celestina puzzle.
Although
t h e r e a r e many d i f f e r e n t t y p e s , t h e a s i d e can b e d e f i n e d a s follows: when
two c h a r a c t e r s a r e on s t a g e t o g e t h e r , an a s i d e i s any u t t e r a n c e by e i t h e r
s p e a k e r n o t i n t e n d e d t o b e h e a r d by t h e o t h e r and n o t i n f a c t heard o r prop e r l y h e a r d by him. A v a r i a t i o n i s p o s s i b l e w i t h t h r e e c h a r a c t e r s on s t a g e
t o g e t h e r , f o r t h e n any remark made by t h e f i r s t t o t h e second n o t meant t o
be heard b y , and n o t h e a r d o r h e a r d p r o p e r l y by t h e t h i r d , i s an a s i d e .
Rojas u s e s t h i s d r a m a t i c t e c h n i q u e t o b r i d g e t h e gap between drama and narr a t i v e ; i t is p a r t i c u l a r l y u s e f u l - i n t h e noveZa diaZogada, and l a t e r becomes a fundamental d e v i c e i n t h e e a r l y p i c a r e s q u e , s o c l o s e l y l i n k e d t o
'
CeZestina.
The f i r s t and most obvious f u n c t i o n of t h e a s i d e i n drama i s t o advance t h e p l o t -- t o l e t t h e audience and sometimes a l s o a c h a r a c t e r , know
something w h i l e e x c l u d i n g a n o t h e r c h a r a c t e r who i s p r e s e n t . One common ins t a n c e is t h a t of two c h a r a c t e r s p l o t t i n g a g a i n s t a t h i r d i n h i s presence.
I t i s c u r i o u s , and a l s o s i g n i f i c a n t , t h a t t h e r e i s no example of an a s i d e
f u n c t i o n i n g t o advance t h e p l o t i n Celestina. I w i l l t a k e up R o j a s ' exclus i o n of t h i s t y p e of a s i d e l a t e r .
A second f u n c t i o n of t h e a s i d e f i g u r e s i m p o r t a n t l y i n c h a r a c t e r i z a tion.
The c h a r a c t e r s p e a k i n g r e v e a l s n o t only i m p o r t a n t c l u e s t o h i s own
p e r s o n a l i t y , b e l i e f s , and r e l a t i o n s h i p s w i t h t h e o t h e r c h a r a c t e r s , b u t may
a l s o r e v e a l t h e s e same a s p e c t s f o r o t h e r c h a r a c t e r s p r e s e n t .
For example,
when Sempronio s a y s , a s i d e , i n h i s m a s t e r C a l i s t o ' s presence:
"No me engaiio yo, que l o c o e s t 5 e s t e m i amo" ( I , 25) , 2 i t r e v e a l s a pragmatic a t t i t u d e
toward h i s m a s t e r ' s s i t u a t i o n .
This a s i d e engages t h e r e a d e r o r audience
d i r e c t l y and we, l i k e t h e o b s e r v e r s of Las Meninas, a r e drawn i n t o t h e work
and p a r t i c i p a t e i n i t .
Most a s i d e s i n Cezestina a r e of t h i s t y p e , b u t even t h e a s i d e d i r e c t e d t o a n o t h e r c h a r a c t e r prompts a c l o s e r l i s t e n i n g o r reading.
For example, i n Act IV C e l e s t i n a t a l k s t o an i n v i s i b l e P l u t 6 n i n t h e p r e s e n c e of
Melibea:
"Por a q u i anda e l d i a b l o a p a r e j a n d o o p o r t u n i d a d , a r r e z i a n d o e l
mal a l a o t r a .
iEa!
ibuen amigo, t e n e r r e z i o ! Agora e s mi tiempo o nunca.
No l a d e x e s , llGvamela de a q u i quien digo" (IV, 163).
I f t h i s aside
CELESTINESCA
r e v e a l s C e l e s t i n a ' s continued r e l i a n c e upon h e r p a c t w i t h t h e d e v i l , highl i g h t i n g a t t h e same time t h e hypocrisy of h e r words t o Melibea, a t a n o t h e r
moment she r e v e a l s an u n s e t t l e d confidence i n h e r c o n j u r a t i o n , when s h e app r e h e n s i v e l y exclaims:
"iEn h o r a mala acP v i n e , s i me f a l t a m i conjuro:
iEa pues!
Bien s 6 a q u i e n d i g 0 i c e , hermano que s e va t o d o a perder!"
(IV, 8 7 ) .
Not only is C e l e s t i n a ' s psyche r e v e a l e d through t h e s e a s i d e s , b u t we
a r e a l s o " l e t i n " on how s h e views h e r p r o g r e s s towards h e r g o a l s .
When
she says aside:
" i M k f u e r t e e s t a v a Troya, y aun o t r a s m C s b r a v a s h e yo
amansado! Ninguna tempestad mucho d u r a , " we s e n s e t h a t a l t h o u g h Melibea
seems t o s t a n d f i r m a t f i r s t , C e l e s t i n a w i l l p e r s i s t . A d d i t i o n a l l y , Lucrec i a i n another a s i d e reinforces t h e audience's r e a l i z a t i o n t h a t h e r m i s tress i s y i e l d i n g t o C e l e s t i n a ' s s u a s i o n s :
"iYa, Ya, p e r d i d a e s m i axial
iM& l e q u e r r z d a r ,
LSecretamente q u i e r e que venga C e l e s t i n a ? iFraude ay!
que 10 dicho:"
(IV, 93). The a s i d e h e l p s c h a r a c t e r i z e L u c r e c i a by r e v e a l i n g what s h e is t h i n k i n g , when s h e s a y s :
"No miento yo, que imal v a e s t e
fecho:"
(IV, 93).
This c l a r - i f i e s L u c r e c i a ' s o p i n i o n of C e l e s t i n a and h e r
f e a r a t Melibea's involvement w i t h t h e go-between.
Celestina i n turn, a s
"m6s s e r a mes h e g a i n s c o n f i d e n c e , s a y s a s i d e , b u t i n f r o n t of Melibea:
n e s t e r y mCs h a r 6 s ; y aunque no s e t e agradezca" (IV, 93).
This help t o
b r i n g t o t h e s u r f a c e C e l e s t i n a ' s a g g r e s s i v e , hard-hearted d e t e r m i n a t i o n t o
succeed a t a l l c o s t s .
'
S i m i l a r l y , i n Act V 1 1 PCrmeno's thoughts and f e e l i n g s and C e l e s t i n a ' s
v i n d i c t i v e , manipulative motivation a r e a r t i c u l a t e d i n t h e asides.
After
C e l e s t i n a p r a i s e s PBrmeno's m o t h e r ' s b r u j e f i a s , PBrmeno e x p r e s s e s t h e shame
t h a t t h i s p r a i s e h a s caused him--exactly C e l e s t i n a ' s i n t e n t i o n : "No l a med r e Dios m& e s t a v i e j a , que e l l a me da p l a z e r con e s t o s l o o r e s de s u s pal a b r a s " (VII, 118).
When PBrmeno i m p l i e s t h a t C e l e s t i n a ' s p e r s e v e r a n c e i n
h e r s i n s makes h e r more r e p r e h e n s i b l e than h i s mother, we a r e prepared f o r
"Lastim&teme, don Loquit h e bawd's n e x t a s s a u l t i n t h e f o l l o w i n g a s i d e :
110. LA l a s verdades nos andamos?
Pues e s p e r a , que yo t e t o c a r 6 donde t e
A s i m i l a r a s i d e i n Act I X r e v e a l s C e l e s t i n a ' s determid u e l a " (VII, 119).
"TG me pagarBs, doiia l o c a ,
n a t i o n t o punish Melibea f o r c r i t i c i z i n g h e r :
l a s o b r a d e t u y r a " (IX, 153).
S i n c e up t o t h i s p o i n t C e l e s t i n a h a s been
f l a t t e r i n g Melibea, t h e a s i d e i s t h u s our g u i d e t o what C e l e s t i n a i s thinki n g a s opposed t o what s h e i s saying.
Another i n s t a n c e of t h i s kind of
a s i d e i s s e e n when C e l e s t i n a s a y s t o Sempronio, i n answer t o C a l i s t o ' s
p r a i s e of h e r : "Dile que c i e r r e l a boca y comience a b r i r l a b o l s a " ( I , 46).
We s e e suddenly C e l e s t i n a ' s a v a r i c i o u s and d u p l i c i t o u s n a t u r e .
It i s
through t h e a s i d e t h a t s h e becomes a multi-dimensional, t h i n k i n g person.
When C a l i s t o rewards CeThis i s t r u e f o r o t h e r c h a r a c t e r s a s w e l l .
l e s t i n a f o r h e r s e r v i c e s w i t h a g o l d c h a i n , Plrmeno's greedy n a t u r e s u r i,No 10 oyes, Sem" i c a d e n i l l a l a llama!
f a c e s i n an a s i d e t o Sempronio:
Pues yo t e c e r t i f i c o no d i e s s e m i p a r t e p o r
pronio?
No e s t i m a e l g a s t o .
However,
medio marco d e oro, p o r mal que l a v i e j a 10 r e p a r t a " (XI, 163).
an e a r l i e r a s i d e by PBrmeno r e v e a l s t h e power C e l e s t i n a h a s over him,
achieved through t h e e r o t i c p l e a s u r e s h e p r o c u r e s f o r him.
PCrmeno begs
C e l e s t i n a i n f r o n t of Areusa:
"Madre mla, por amor de Dios, que no s a l g a
Ofrdyo d e a q u i s i n buen c o n c i e r t o ; que me ha muerto de amores s u v i s t a .
iEa:
c e l e quanto mi p a d r e t e dex6 p a r a m,:
d i l e que l e dard quanto tengo.
d l s e l o , que me p a r e c e que no me q u i e r e mirar"
( V I I , 127).
PBrmeno w i l l
CELESTINESCA
g i v e a n y t h i n g i n exchange f o r Areusa's favors--a r e v e r s a l of c e r t a i n a t t i t u d e s expressed e a r l i e r , i n atdo I. H e h a s come t o s e e k t h e Loco amor t h a t
h e c r i t i c i z e d i n C a l i s t o , and f a l l s v i c t i m t o - t h e same procuress. .
T h i s b r i n g s u s t o a t h i r d important use of t h e a s i d e -- t o u n d e r l i n e a
d i d a c t i c level i n the text.
A look a t who d e l i v e r s t h e a s i d e s and what is
s a i d i n them c l a r i f i e s t h i s p o i n t .
Many of t h e a s i d e s a r e spoken b y . t h e
s e r v a n t s a s t h e y comment on t h e i r m a s t e r ' s a c t i o n s .
Throughout t h e work,
Sempronio and Plrmeno d e l i v e r a u t h o r i t a t i v e a s i d e s , r e f l e c t i n g t h e moral
s t a t e d i n one h a l f of t h e ' p r e c i p i t by Rojas: "compuesta e n r e p r e h e n s i h de
10s l o c o s enamorados, que, vencidos e n s u desordenado a p e t i t o , a s u s amigas
llaman e d i z e n s e r s u dios.''
For example, when C a l i s t o c a l l s Melibea h i s
"iAlgo e s 10 que digo!
god, Sempronio s a y s :
i A m l s h a de y r e s t e hecho!
i n o b a s t a l o c o , s i n o ereje!"
( I , 25).
He l a t e r r e i t e r a t e s h i s c r i t i c i s m
of C a l i s t o ' s s i n f u l worship of Melibea by speaking d i r e c t l y t o an imagined
l i s t e n e r : "Ojktes qu6 .blasfemia?
i V i s t e qu6 ceguedad?" ( I , 27). H e goes
.on t o c r i t i c i z e C a l i s t o ' s presumption: "iO pusilthimo:
i O fideputa!
iQu6
Nembrot:
~QuGmagno Alexandre!
Los q u a l e s n o s610 d e l seiiorfo d e l mundo,
m l s d e l c i e l o s e juzgaron s e r dignos" ( I , 2 8 ) .
.,
I n t h e same s c e n e Sempronio exclaims:
d i r l a g o r a e s t e c a u t i v o de m i amo!" ( I , 32).
"iQuG m e n t i r a s 6
qu6 l o c u r a s
When PHrmeno and Sempronio a r e w i t n e s s e s t o C e l e s t i n a ' s manipulation
When
o f C a l i s t o , t h e y comment a s i d e a s t o what a f o o l t h e i r master is.
Sempronio warns Plrmeno t h a t C a l i s t o might h e a r him he, Plrmeno, exclaims
a s i d e : "iOyrl e l d i a b l o : E s t l colgado de l a boca de l a v i e j a , s o r d o y mud o y c i e g o , hecho p e r s o n a j e s i n s o n , que aunque l e di6semos h i g a s , d i r f a
que alqlvamos las manos a Dios, rogando por buen f i n de s u s amores" (XI,
164).
I n Act X Melibea's s e r v a n t L u c r e c i a s a r c a s t i c a l l y comments a s i d e i n
r e a c t i o n t o A l i s a ' s b e l a t e d doubts a s t o t h e p r o p r i e t y of C e l e s t i n a ' s f r e Lucrecia's aside i n
quent v i s i t s :
"Tarde acuerda n u e s t r a ama" (X, 161).
Act I X r e i t e r a t e s a n o t h e r moral purpose s e t o u t i n t h e o t h e r h a l f of t h e
precipit:
"fecha en a v i s o de 10s engaiios de l a s a l c a h u e t a s y malos y lis o n j e r o s s i r v i e n t e s , " a s s h e exclaims i n t h e presence of C e l e s t i n a and Semp r o n i o : " j A s s i t e a r r a s t r e , traydora!
iTG no s a b e s qu6 e s ? Haze l a v i e j a
f a l s a s u s hechizos y v a s s e ; d e s p u l s h l z e s e de nuevas" (IX, 151).
Earlier,
i n Act V, i n C e l e s t i n a ' s presence,-Sempronio had s a i d , a s i d e : " i O l i s o n j e ra v i e j a :
iO v i e j a l l e n a de mal!"
(V. 9 7 ) .
...
I n a d d i t i o n t o t h e s e t h r e e important f e a t u r e s of t h e a s i d e i n C e t e s t i -
nu, t h e a s i d e a l s o p r o v i d e s comic r e l i e f and u n d e r l i n e s t h e m a s t e r s ' g u l l i bility.
For example, a f t e r C a l i s t o ends h i s P e t r a r c h a n d e s c r i p t i o n of Mel i b e a i n Act I, proclaiming:
"no ha m l s menester p a r a c o n v e r t i r 10s homb r e s e n p i e d r a s , " Sempronio answers under h i s b r e a t h , "iM& en asnos.' ( I ,
I n t h e love scene between C a l i s t o and Melibea, L u c r e c i a ' s a s i d e s re32).
1 i e v e . t h e t e n s i o n , a t t h e same time p i q u i n g t h e r e a d e r ' s i n t e r e s t and leavi n g him more e a g e r t o r e t u r n h i s a t t e n t i o n t o t h e l o v e scene. I n t e r r u p t i n g
t h e l o v e r ' s devaneos, L u c r e c i a s a y s , "Mala l a n d r e me mate s i m l s 10s scucho. iVida es S s t a ? jQue me e s t L yo deshaziendo de d e n t e r a , y e l l a esquiv l n d o s e porque l a ruegan!
Ya, ya apaziguado e s e l ruydo:
no o v i e r o n me-
CELESTINESCA
n e s t e r i e s p a r t i d o r e s . Pero tambidn me 10s h a r i a yo, s i e s t o s necios de s u s
c r i a d o s me f a b l a s s e n e n t r e d i a ; per0 esperan que 10s tengo que y r a buscar"
( X I X , 227).
This a s i d e a l s o helps t o r e v e a l L u c r e c i a ' s s u s c e p t i b i l i t y t o
t h e sexual d e s i r e s through which C e l e s t i n a manipulates a l l of t h e characte.cs. Later i n t h e scene Lucrecia, s t i l l eavesdropping on t h e love-making,
cements a s i d e , "Ya me duele a m i l a c a b e ~ a descuchar y no a e l l o s de ha5 1 i ~ ,:t:i l o s brasos de retoGar, n i l a s bocas de besar.
i h d a r ! Ya c a l l a n ;
. a cres m e parece que v a l a vencida" (XIX, 227).
Having chosen a genre which excludes n a r r a t i v e commentary, Rojas makes
e x p e r t use of t h e a s i d e t o r e v e a l t o t h e r e a d e r important c o n t r a s t s between
what t h e c h a r a c t e r s say and what they think.
Thus t h e device i s made t o
s e r v e h e r e , a s i t would l a t e r i n t h e picaresque novel, t o r e v e a l hypocrisy
and deviousness.
I n Celestina one i s reminded by t h e s e r v a n t s ' a s i d e s how b l i n d t h e i r
m a s t e r s , both C a l i s t o and Melibea, a r e .
I n Act V Plrmeno whispers t o Semp r o n i c s o t h a t C e l e s t i n a and C a l i s t o do n o t hear:
"Aquel a t e n t o escuchar
de C a l e s t i n a da m a t e r i a de a l a r g a r en s u razdn a n u e s t r o amo.
Lldgate a
e l l a , d a l e d e l p i e , haglmosle de seiias que no e s p e r e m5s, s i n o que s e vaya.
Que no hay t a n loco hombre nacido, que s o l o mucho hable" (V, 112).
This
a s i d e shows n o t only t h a t C a l i s t o i s being drawn i n t o C e l e s t i n a ' s n e t b u t
a l s o r e v e a l s what h i s s e r v a n t s t h i n k of him and of h i s mad behaviour.
Cel e s t i n a knows, t o o , a s s h e r e v e a l s i n h e r answering a s i d e t o Sempronio,
"que e l c a e r 5 de s u asno."
Plrmeno's a s i d e t o Sempronio i n C a l i s t o ' s presence t r e n c h a n t l y i d e n t i f i e s h i s m a l a i s e when he exclaims of C a l i s t o , "All5
i Y en t a l hora comiesses e l d i a c i t r h
y r 5 s con e l d i a b l o t G y malos aiios!
como Apuleyo e l veneno, que l e convertiB en asno!" ( V I I I , 139). This a s i d e
r e c a p i t u l a t e s and r e i n f o r c e s t h e precipit.
C a l i s t o , because of h i s Zoco
arnor, has become an a s s , but he is t o o b l i n d t o s e e i t .
He i s unaware of
t h e r e a l world ,and does not perceive t h e sarcasm i n comments made by h i s
" f a i t h f u l " s e r v a n t s . He i s t o t a l l y unaware of t h e i n c r e a s i n g d i s l o y a l t y of
PCrmeno and Sempronio.
Through Rojas' m a s t e r f u l a p p l i c a t i o n of t h e a s i d e
we, t h e audience ( r e a d e r s ) , become aware of t h e i n c r e a s i n g cynicism of t h e
s e r v a n t s , while t h e masters remain blinded t o i t . For example, when C a l i s t o sends Sempronio f o r food, he s a y s : " m i f i e 1 c r i a d o , m i buen c o n s e j e r o ,
m i l e a 1 servidor,
c i e r t o tengo, segiin t u l i m p i e ~ ade s e r v i c i o , quie. r e s t a n t o m i v i d a como l a tuya" ( V I I I , 138).
Sempronio answers t h i s ingenuous p r a i s e w i t h an a s i d e t o Parmeno which b r i n g s us back t o r e a l i t y by
mockingly asking PLrmeno t o s t e a l e x t r a food f o r t h e i r g i r l f r i e n d s w h i l e he
i s a t i t : "iCrdeslo t G , Plrmeno? Bien sd que no 10 j u r a r i a s .
Acucrdate,
s i f u e r e s por conserva, apaiies un b o t e p a r a a q u e l l a g e n t e z i l l a , que nos v a
m l s , y a buen entendedor
En l a bragueta c a b r l " ( V I I I , 138-139).
...
...
Asides a r e used w i t h g r e a t e s t frequency i n t h e key a c t s of Celestina.
I n Act I t h e r e a r e e l e v e n , f u n c t i o n i n g t o inform us of C a l i s t o ' s r e a c t i o n
t o h i s new i n f a t u a t i o n , t o show us t h e s e r v a n t s ' opinion of h i s s t r a n g e beh a v i o r , and t o r e v e a l o t h e r a s p e c t s of t h e p e r s o n a l i t i e s of a l l t h r e e .
In
Act I V , a t u r n i n g p o i n t of t h e work, e i g h t a s i d e s f u n c t i o n i n t h e charact e r i z a t i o n of C e l e s t i n a , Melibea, and Lucrecia and r e v e a l t h e i r r e a c t i o n s
t o C e l e s t i n a ' s manipulative.powers.
CELESTINESCA
It i s s i g n i f i c a n t t h a t t h i r t y of t h e t h i r t y - n i n e a s i d e s spoken a r e del i v e r e d by Phrmeno, Sempronio, and Lucrecia.
The remaining n i n e a r e by CeNone of t h e a s i d e s i s d e l i v e r e d by C a l i s t o o r Melibea, f o r t h e
lestina.
d e v i c e f u n c t i o n s almost e x c l u s i v e l y t o r e v e a l r e t i c e n c e , deviousness, o r
d u p l i c i t y of c h a r a c t e r . We a r e made aware of t h e hypocrisy i n t h e d i s p a r i t y between what t h e s e r v a n t s and C e l e s t i n a say and what they think.
In the
absence of any a s i d e s , C a l i s t o and Melibea seem f l a t , one-dimensional
c h a r a c t e r s by c o n t r a s t . We f e e l no s t r o n g a t t r a c t i o n t o them nor do we rea c t a g a i n s t them.
The s e r v a n t s become s i g n i f i c a n t c h a r a c t e r s l a r g e l y
through t h e use of t h e aside.
C a l i s t o and Melibea a r e not very i n t e r e s t i n g
because t h e r e i s no d i f f e r e n c e e s t a b l i s h e d between what they a r e t h i n k i n g
and what they a r e saying. They a r e t r a n s p a r e n t .
There i s no challenge t o
t h e r e a d e r o r viewer t o t r y t o understand them, while we have s t i l l today
I t is p a r t l y through t h e a s i d e t h a t
not puzzled out t h e "real" C e l e s t i n a .
C e l e s t i n a ' s complexity i s developed, and i t s f u n c t i o n i n c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n
h e l p s account f o r t h e work being c a l l e d CeZestina and n o t Tragicomedia de
Cazisto y MeZibea. The r a t h e r t r i t e p l o t i s not what holds t h e r e a d e r , b u t
t h e c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n , and i t i s t h i s emphasis on c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n t h a t
l e a d s Cezestina away from t h e drama toward t h e novel. On t h i s p o i n t Anthony Close observes t h a t " i n A r i s t o t l e ' s Poetics, c h a r a c t e r i s one of t h e s i x
p a r t s of tragedy, t o g e t h e r with p l o t , d i c t i o n , thou h t , s p e c t a c l e , melody.
.lt4
The p o t e n t i a l of t h e
I n t h e modern novel, i t i s the e s s e n t i a l p a r t
a s i d e i n c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n i s used t o g r e a t advantage i n t h e c r e a t i o n of t h e
picaresque and is not t h e l e a s t important among t h e techniques t h e genre
s h a r e s with CeZestina. The anonymous a u t h o r ' s c l e v e r use of t h e a s i d e i n
t h e c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n of L a z a r i l l o makes t h e work much more dramatic than
would have been t h e case had Lazaro simply n a r r a t e d h i s p a s t experiences.
Key scenes a r e always dramatized, and i t is t h e use of t h e a s i d e i n t h e s e
scenes t h a t makes L a z a r i l l o come t o l i f e and engage t h e r e a d e r i n h i s journey through h i s l i f e .
The a s i d e s , a s i n Cezestina, f u n c t i o n a l s o t o r e i n f o r c e t h e moral i n t e n t of t h e anonymous author. L a z a r i l l o d e l i v e r s s e v e r a l
p h i l o s o p h i c a l a s i d e s ; f o r example, i n t h e f i r s t Tratado, L a z a r i l l o r e f l e c t s
on h i s s t e p b r o t h e r ' s f e a r of h i s b l a c k f a t h e r : "iCu5ntos debe de ha e r en
( I , 111.'
We
e l mundo que huyen de o t r a s porque no s e veen a s i mesmos!"
s e e L a z a r i l l o ' s s p i r i t of r e s o l v e when he s a y s t o h i m s e l f , "Verdad d i c e est e , que me cumple a v i v a r e l o j o y a v i s a r , pues s o l o soy, y pensar c6mo me
The a s i d e a l s o c r e a t e s comic r e l i e f , when, f o r examsepa v a l e r " (I, 13).
"no hay t a l cosa en e l
p l e , L a z a r i l l o responds t o t h e escudero's comment:
mundo p a r a v i v i r mucho que poco corner," with:
"Si por e s a v i a e s
nunca yo m o r i r s , que siempre he guardado e s a r e g l a por f u e r z a , y aun espero
There a r e more examples
en m i desdicha, t e n e l l a toda m i vida" (111, 47).
(seventeen i n t o t a l , s i x t e e n i n t h e f i r s t t h r e e tratados), and they funct i o n , a s i n CeZestina, p r i n c i p a l l y f o r c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n . L a z a r i l l o ' s r a d i c a l s o l i t u d e precludes t h e i n t r o d u c t i o n of an i n t e r l o c u t o r with whom he can
s h a r e t h e s e r e a c t i o n s , but they a r e t r u e " i n t e r i o r a s i d e s , " d e l i v e r e d a s
d i r e c t address.
I n t h e Quijote, t o o , t h e a s i d e functions t o a i d c h a r a c t e r I n Don Quii z a t i o n , as opposed t o advancing t h e p l o t a s i t does i n drama.
jobe, a f t e r Sancho r e a l i z e s t h a t c e r t a i n t h i n g s he s a y s t o h i s master w i l l
r e s u l t i n punishment, he l e a r n s t o t e l l h i s master what he wants t o h e a r ,
and t h e n t u r n s t o t h e r e a d e r t o s t a t e what he t r u l y t h i n k s of t h e s i t u a t ion.
..
. . .,
CELESTINESCA
I n c o n c l u s i o n , t h e l e n g t h of CeZestina, w i t h a consequent emphasis
upon t h e p r e s e n t a t i o n of t h e c o m p l e x i t i e s of c h a r a c t e r , moves i t away from
t h e normal c o n f i n e s of drama toward t h e u s u a l province of n a r r a t i v e .
The
a s i d e i s s i g n i f i c a n t i n t h i s p r o c e s s , and i t s p o t e n t i a l would l a t e r be recognized and used t o g r e a t advantage 'in t h e c r e a t i o n of t h e picaresque.
NOTES
David Bain, Actors and Audience. A Study o f , Asides and Related C a v e n t i a s i n Greek Drama (Oxford: Oxford U n i v e r s i t y P r e s s , 1977), p. 17.
*
Fernando de Rojas, La Celestina, ed. Humberto L6pez Morales,
(Mad r i d : .Cupsa, 1976).
A l l c i t a t i o n s a r e by a c t and page number from t h i s
edition.
Anthony Close, " C h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n and Dialogue i n c e r v a & e s l s
d i a en Prosa, "' Modern Lmguage Review 76 (1981), 356.
'Come-
Anonymous, LazariZto de Tonnes, ed. F r a n c i s c o Rico (Barcelona: Edit o r i a l P l a n e t a , 1976). A l l c i t a t i o n s a r e from t h i s e d i t i o n , by tratado and
page number.
TRISTAN:
tos
"
...
( S e v i l l a 1517-18)
Coge, S o s i a , e s s o s s e s o s d e e s s o s c a n i O d i a de aziago! i O arrebatado fin!"
(Auto 19)