This paper analyzes the themes of identity and border in El Criticón by Baltasar Gracián as they propose themselves during the journey of the two protagonists of this work. The wanderings of Critilo and Andrenio throughout the towns of Spain and 17th-century Europe allow the reader to reflect upon vices and virtues of the lands the two pilgrims go through. In several instances the Criticón emphasizes the importance of symbolical, political, geographical and – above all – religious borders. These crossings allow the two pilgrims to construct, by comparing the human stereotypes in the several countries they visit, their notion of Spanish identity and, more widely, the ideal features of the prudent and wise man, capable to cross any border, even the one between life and death.
Identidades y fronteras en "El Criticón" de Baltasar Gracián
GAMBIN, Felice
2013-01-01
Abstract
This paper analyzes the themes of identity and border in El Criticón by Baltasar Gracián as they propose themselves during the journey of the two protagonists of this work. The wanderings of Critilo and Andrenio throughout the towns of Spain and 17th-century Europe allow the reader to reflect upon vices and virtues of the lands the two pilgrims go through. In several instances the Criticón emphasizes the importance of symbolical, political, geographical and – above all – religious borders. These crossings allow the two pilgrims to construct, by comparing the human stereotypes in the several countries they visit, their notion of Spanish identity and, more widely, the ideal features of the prudent and wise man, capable to cross any border, even the one between life and death.
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