Chapters on Spanish LiteratureFitzmaurice-Kelly, James
History
Chapters on Spanish Literature
Fitzmaurice-Kelly, James
Spanish literature; Spanish literature -- History and criticism
Finally Love sets to moralising, and departs after warning his client
against over-indulgence in either white wine or red, holding up as
an awful example the hermit who, after years of ascetic practices,
got drunk for the first time in his life, and committed atrocious
crimes which brought him to the gallows. The Archpriest ponders over
Love’s seductive precepts, finds that his conduct hitherto has been in
accordance with them, determines to persevere in the same crooked but
pleasant path, and looks forward to the future with glad confidence. He
straightway consults Love’s wife—Venus—concerning a new passion which
(as he says) he has conceived for Doña Endrina, a handsome young widow
of Calatayud. Whatever may be the case with the Archpriest’s other
love affairs, this episode in the _Libro de buen amor_ is imaginative,
being an extremely brilliant hispaniolisation of a dreary Latin play
entitled _De Amore_, ascribed to a misty personage known as Pamphilus
Maurilianus—apparently a monk who lived during the twelfth century.
The old crone of the Latin play reappears in the _Libro de buen amor_
as Urraca (better recognised by her nickname of Trotaconventos),
Galatea becomes Doña Endrina, and Pamphilus becomes Don Melón de la
Uerta. There are passages in which Don Melón de la Uerta seems, at
first sight, to be a pseudonym of the Archpriest’s; but the source
of the story is beyond all doubt, for Juan Ruiz supplies a virtuous
ending, and carefully explains that for the licentious character of the
narrative Pamphilus and Ovid are responsible:—
doña endrina e don melon en vno casados son,
alegran se las conpañas en las bodas con rrason;
sy vjllanja ha dicho aya de vos perdon,
quelo felo de estoria dis panfilo e nason.
In order that there may be no misconception on this point, the
Archpriest returns to it later, averring that no such experience ever
befell him personally, and that he gives the story to set women on
their guard against lying procuresses and bland lechers:—
Entyende byen mj estoria dela fija del endrino,
dixela per te dar ensienpro, non por que amj vjno;
guardate de falsa vieja, de rriso de mal vesjno,
sola con ome non te fyes, njn te llegues al espjno.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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