Celestina Week One

Celestina Questions

2. Discuss Calisto and Sempronio’s conversation in Act I. How do you interpret Calisto’s illness? His discussion about Melibea? The discussion about women? What occurs here? Use quotes and specific examples for the text to support your answer.

Calisto is ill because he desires Melibea, a woman he is in love with. When Sempronio asks him about his religion, Calisto responds, "I am a Melibean. I worship Melibea, I believe in Melibea and I adore Melibea." Calisto's desire for Melibea places her on a pedestal, putting her even more out of reach (as we discussed last class). His desire has caused him to be "ill", and Sempronio is not buying it. Sempronio tells Calisto that "women and wine make men renege" and that "they dare to do whatever enters their heads without pausing for a moment's thought...just think of those pea brains under the flimsy fabric holding those tresses in place." Sempronio, although attributing negative characteristics to women, is at least seeing women as human, and therefore subject to negative characteristics. This completely goes over Calisto's head, and he starts trying to defend his holy view of Melibea by discussing her physical traits- her "round firm breasts", "full lips", and 'slanted eyes" are a few of many flattering features. Just like we saw in the Song of Songs, the object of desire is always described physically. It is always her physical form that causes the narrator to swoon. In this discussion, Sempronio tries to get Calisto to understand that he sees Melibea "through a magnifying glass" and that he is not being realistic, but Calisto is a star-crossed lover and he only sees his mighty desire for Melibea. I found it interesting how negative Sempronio is about women- looks like he has been burned by love before!

4. Analyze Parmeno’s long speeches concerning Celestina. What is her history, profession, etc.? What do you think she represents within the text? How does the entire community view this woman? Why? Use specific examples from the text to support your answer.

Celestina is a former prostitute and now a witch and "virgin-mender". Parmeno describes her as a "mistress of six trades, namely; seamstress, parfumier, a dab hand at painting faces and patching maidenheads, a bawd and a bit of a witch." She is a woman of many trades and of much knowledge, which intrigues anyone she comes in contact wit. She is also quite persuasive; she convinces Parmeno, who initially warned Calisto about her, that she loves him and he can trust her. She tells him to "abandon your impetuous youth and follow the common sense your elders teach. Where better than following the good counsel of the woman your parents entrusted you to?" She tells him to befriend Sempronio, because "you can't hope to be Calisto's friend because that rarely happens when there's such a difference in rank." Celestina is a catalyst, using the power of suggestion and persuasion to cause actions that greatly influence the rest of the play. She is so important to the play that it was named after her; surely this was done on purpose! Overall, Celestina is quite infamous in the community for her immorality, audacity, and avarice.

6. We will talk more in class about Areusa and her illness in Act VII, but how do you interpret Celestina's actions with Areusa (maybe even apart from her illness)? What might these actions have to say about Celestina? What insight do we gain about her character here?


Celestina teases Areusa with a cure for her illness, saying to her "you are so plump and firm! Such lovely breasts!" Areusa is very hesitant and unsure about whether Celestina is even going to cure her at first, asking Celestina, "Why all the flattery, Celestina, when I want no one? Just give me a cure and stop making fun of me." Celestina sees that Areusa just wants a cure, but that's no fun for Celestina, who is ultimately a selfish woman, so she talks in circles and keeps Areusa asking for a cure. This was an interesting scene because it does reveal a significant amount about Celestina- she is not concerned about what will happen to those she is employed by. She is simply looking to please herself by toying with these people like puppets. 

My overall argument about Celestina is that Calisto and Melibea are the desirer/object of desire, respectively, and Celestina is the catalyst that promotes the desire of those around her. She is seemingly helping the "lovers", but not seriously helping them. She has her own desires that she wants to fu