Magic in La Celestina

rELESTINA'S use of magic to strengthen and extend her ac-tivities as go-between has long been the subject of controversy. However, it was not until P. E. Russell published his La magia como tema integral de la Tragicomedia de Calisto y Melibea 1 that a strong case was made for its role as central to the dramatic action. The majority of critics before Russell tended to minimize the element of magic, either by writing it off as superfluous or by ignoring it entirely. Those few commentators who took Celestina's witchcraft more seriously (mainly the so-called German critics), failed to present their case with the rigor necessary to make it convincing. With this in mind, Russell proceeded to demonstrate the importance of sorcery and witchcraft in fifteenth-century society. He made it plain that, generally, the men of Rojas' time believed in the efficacy of magic, while moral and ecclesiastical authorities warned of its dangers. At the same time he offered a close textual analysis in support of his contention that magic is a vital element in the work. In the light of this contribution, any Celestina study dealing with magic must of necessity allow for the fact that, in Rojas' world, magic played a greater role in the understanding of natural phenomena than it does for the modern reader. If we are to disagree with Russell, we must acknowledge his lucid, point by point demonstration of Celestina's use of a diabolical pact to capture the will of Melibea: we must not ignore the evidence that Rojas has planted to make us believe (if only provisionally), along with

Art · Astronomy · MAGIC (telescope · Physics · Early Modern Spanish Literature · Historical and Linguistic Studies · Medieval Iberian Studies