Celestina (Week One)

     After reading the first half of Celestina, with the ideas from last week's class still fresh in my mind, I switched on the television and began watching “Singin’ in the Rain”. I immediately felt a calculating and cynical cog start to turn in my mind, a feeling that I haven’t felt any of the numerous other times I’ve watched this movie. The handsome Don Lockwood, played by Gene Kelly, that I once found so charming and romantic suddenly became the stubborn, lovesick Calisto. And Kathy Selden, played by Debbie Reynolds, the illusive Melibea. The more Kathy insulted Don, the more he chased after her. The more he chased after her, the more she liked him. 
     Don takes Kathy to a movie set, sets up the lights and the wind and the sunset background. The perfect scene to his perfect illusion. He creates an atmosphere where Kathy- her hair blowing in the wind, standing above him on a latter- is the ideal goddess, beautiful and out of reach. Not unlike when Calisto first sees Melibea in a garden; in an eden, where she stood innocent and pure.
     This isn’t the only instance, obviously, where concepts and characters from Celestina could be compared to movies or stories of romance. Fortunately though, “Singin’ in the Rain” is devoid of prostitutes (or it would have been a completely different movie...)
     Celestina also introduces a different spectrum of problems that a delusional love causes. The story shows how an obsessive love affects not only the person in question, but also the ones around him. Pármeno, for example, is hurt when Calisto allows his passion to blind him to reason and he does not listen to Pármeno’s advice. Instead, he berates him for getting in the way. Similarly, Melibea’s servant is frustrated because, even though she is looking out for Melibea’s well being, she is ignored.
     Yet, Pármeno falls into a similar cycle with his love, Areusa. He is guilty of doing the same things that he warned Calisto not to do. He offers up whatever he has to Celestina if she can make Areusa take notice of him, which she does in an unnerving way. Celestina practically bullies them into having sex with each other. The biggest surprise was not that Celestina was pushing them to have sex with each other, but that they complied relatively easily. Celestina basically sold Areusa to Pármeno and, as is stated in the supplemental reading on desire (From Twilight Moments to Moral Panics), prostitutions was only considered a “minor sin”.
     The biggest question Celestina has left me with thus far is whether or not to detest the old woman, Celestina. She is, without a doubt, an opportunist. She manipulates men and sells young women without batting her eyes. She thinks only of the profit and uses whatever means to achieve her goal. But, is she completely at fault? She is simply utilizing the selfishness of a society set on fulfilling their desires with prostitution and money. The characters allow themselves to become so consumed by their desire for others that they leave themselves vulnerable to be taken advantage of by Celestina.