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Lucrecia’s Role as a Classical Nursemaid in Celestina
- Hispania
- Johns Hopkins University Press
- Volume 101, Number 2, June 2018
- pp. 294-305
- 10.1353/hpn.2018.0121
- Article
- Additional Information
Abstract:
Celestina scholarship has overlooked the important role Lucrecia plays in the unfolding of Calisto and Melibea’s sexual relationship and in the configuration of Rojas’s Tragicomedia. Critics have branded Lucrecia as the archetype of the disloyal servant who looks out for her own interests over those of Melibea. Contrary to other critics, this paper argues that Lucrecia’s character exhibits typological traits of the classical nursemaid, whose affective bonds transcended the servant-mistress dynamics. This study shows that more than merely displaying unwavering faith and love, Lucrecia acts like a protective mother who, unlike Alisa, never leaves Melibea’s side.