Presenter: Julien Simon, PhD

Abstract

In the early days of the printing press, La Celestina (1499) was published in Spain; it is the story of two lovers: Calisto and Melibea. However, it is the go-between of the story, Celestina, who would soon capture the interest of contemporaneous readers. After a couple of decades, her name started to appear in the titles of the Spanish editions. Many of the translations into European languages bore her name. And the numerous sixteenth-century imitations and continuations of the story also centered on the go-between, rather than on the two lovers. How did La Celestina, and its eponymous character, manage to move its readership to the point of becoming one of the most successful works in early modernity? In exploring this question, one must first distinguish two reading communities: the educated and the lay readers. Following an analysis of the aspects of the work that differentially appealed to these two reading communities, this presentation will delve into the affective underpinnings that also contributed to its success, particularly among the lay readers. We will see for instance how the printers, editors, and the author himself were attuned to the responses of early readers and how they capitalized on these responses to heighten the psychological impact of the story and in turn increase sales figures. 

Biographical Statement

Dr. Julien Simon is Associate Professor of Spanish and Director of Study Abroad at Indiana University East. His research focuses on early modern Spanish studies, cinema and literature, and cognitive literary studies. He is former member of the executive committee for the MLA Division on Cognitive Approaches to Literature (chair in 2013). He is co-editor of Cognitive Literary Studies (U of Texas P, 2012), Cognitive Cervantes (spec. issue of Bulletin of the Cervantes Society of America, spring 2012), Cognitive Approaches to Early Modern Spanish Literature (Oxford UP, 2016), and Self, Other, and Context in Early Modern Spain: Studies in Honor of Howard Mancing (Juan de la Cuesta, 2017).