La Celestina 1

1) The garden in the opening scene is probably a reference to the mention of the Garden of Eden later on in scene two: “This is woman, the ancient curse that drove Adam out of the delights of Eden; she it was who sent the human race to hell” (Act I, Scene 1, page 8). Parmeno later speaks of Calisto’s encounter with Melibea: “getting into her garden was the occasion for you seeing her and speaking with her; that led to love; love caused you pain; and pain lost you your body, your soul, and your money” (Act I, Scene I, page 35). Lastly, Calisto consistently makes references throughout the text of the “fire” burning his soul ever since his encounter with Melibea. Given all of these references to Melibea and her effect upon Calisto, it is safe to say that the garden represents not only Melibea herself, but women and love in general, which, according to Sempronio, are evils that will drive a man from happiness. The fire that consumes Calisto, then, is a reference to the hell that Melibea is putting him through.

I am hesitant to believe that Melibea’s words are genuine in the opening scene. In several stories from class, and other stories I have read, a character or the narrator notes that, sometimes, when a woman rejects a man, it is due to custom. If this is taken to be true here, and Melibea is not rejecting Calisto because she hates him, but out of custom, then it may be said that it is ‘custom’ that destroys love and sends people to hell, not women, as Sempronio thinks.

2) I think that Sempronio’s first ‘inner monologue’ represents how people strive to act in a way that is good and pleasing to god, but are often led astray by selfishness or greed. Sempronio, therefore, may, to a certain extent, represent humanity. It is clear that his actions, at least in the beginning of the scene, are driven by his desire to do good by God so that he is not punished by the devil: “And yet, it’s a wicked thing to hope to gain by another’s death. Maybe the devil’s deceiving me and if he dies I’ll be hanged, and that will be the end of Sempronio!” (Ac t I, Scene II, page 3). Given Sempronio’s previous interpretation of women and the garden of Eden, it is not surprising that Sempronio interprets Calisto’s love for Melibea as a kind of blasphemy against God: when Sempronio asks Calisto is he is not a Christian, Calisto responds that he is a Melibean. In Sempronio’s next ‘inner monologue,’ he states that “wise men, saints, and prophets have forgotten Thee for love,” making it clear that Sempronio views Calisto’s love for Melibea as a curse that defies God and Christianity. However, it is interesting to note that Sempronio ends up acting by that very way that he condemns women of acting: he decides to lie, trick, and deceive Calisto because of his greed, making Calisto think that he his helping him when, in fact, he hates him.

3) Celestina uses the desires of men to make a profit; she can therefore be thought of as an external representation of Sempronio’s greed, which causes him to use Calisto’s desires against him to make a profit. She may also represent how evils are mistaken for virtues, as when Calisto falsely thinks that she is going to help him out of his misery. In this, she also represents lies, as seen when she lies not only to Sempronio about the owner of the footsteps he hears when he first comes to see her, but also when Calisto mistakes her charade for truth.