The Trickster of Seville: Analysis of Major Characters
"The Trickster of Seville" centers around the character of Don Juan Tenorio, a notorious seducer who epitomizes the legendary Don Juan archetype. His primary goal is the seduction of women, accomplished through deception and charm. The narrative unfolds as Don Juan engages in various encounters, including a deceitful seduction of Isabela, who mistakes him for her true love, Duke Octavio. After a series of escapades, including a duel with Doña Ana’s father, Don Gonzalo, which results in the elder’s death, Don Juan's actions lead to dire consequences. His loyal servant, Catalinón, continuously warns him about the repercussions of his reckless behavior, but Don Juan remains unfazed. Notably, characters like Tisbea, a fisherman’s daughter who is seduced by Don Juan, and Aminta, who falls victim to his tricks before her wedding, contribute to the tale's rich exploration of themes like betrayal and the consequences of deceit. Ultimately, the story culminates in Don Juan's reckoning, marked by his encounters with the ghost of Don Gonzalo, highlighting the moral ramifications of his actions and the fates of those he wronged. Tisbea, in particular, stands out as the only character who does not achieve a marriage, representing the enduring impact of Don Juan's transgressions.
The Trickster of Seville: Analysis of Major Characters
Author: Tirso de Molina
First published: c. 1630
Genre: Play
Locale: Naples, Italy, and Seville, Spain
Plot: Social morality
Time: Seventeenth century
Don Juan Tenorio (WAHN teh-NOH-ree-oh), the protagonist, the typical depiction of the legendary Don Juan figure, whose main mission in life is to seduce as many women as possible. He achieves this end through trickery and sweet talk. In Naples, he steals into Isabela's room under cover of darkness, disguised as Duke Octavio, her lover. When Isabela calls for light after their sexual encounter, his true identity is revealed. He is immediately arrested, only to be permitted to escape through the connivance of his uncle, Don Pedro Tenorio, the Spanish ambassador to Italy. Don Juan next seduces Tisbea, a fisherman's daughter. Upon arriving in Seville, Don Juan discovers that the king has arranged his marriage to Doña Ana, who is in love with her cousin, the Marqués de la Mota. Don Juan, using trickery, insinuates himself into one of their nightly trysts, but when Doña Ana screams, her father, Don Gonzalo de Ulloa, enters the room and engages in a duel with Don Juan, who kills the old man. Don Juan makes hasty tracks from Seville to a small village where Aminta is planning to marry Batricio, but Don Juan steals into Aminta's bed before the nuptials. Meanwhile Duke Octavio, having learned of Don Juan's defiling of Isabela, presses Don Juan to marry her, to make her an “honest woman.” Don Juan comes to the tomb of Don Gonzalo and reads the inscription: “Here the most loyal knight waits for the Lord to wreak vengeance upon a traitor.” Affronted by the inscription, Don Juan completely forgets that in seducing Aminta, he had promised that if he did not marry her, God would kill him, by means of a dead man, for treachery and deceit. After two bizarre dinners with the statue of Don Gonzalo, Don Juan meets his end and all the other principals marry save for Tisbea, who never finds a husband.
Catalinón (kah-TAH-lee-NOHN), Don Juan's servant, who always has horses at the ready for his master's escapes. Catalinón continually warns his master about the possible consequences of his profligacy, but Don Juan brushes his admonitions aside by repeating, “That is a long way off.”
Isabela (ee-sah-BEHL-ah), an aristocratic young woman of Naples, in love with Duke Octavio, whom she eventually marries. She is tricked into having sex with Don Juan, who appears in her bed under cover of darkness and whom she mistakes for Duke Octavio.
Don Pedro Tenorio (PEH-droh), Don Juan's uncle, Spanish ambassador to Italy, who arranges for his nephew's escape after his arrest for seducing Isabela.
Marqués de la Mota (MOH-tah), Doña Ana's lover and cousin. Don Juan intercepts a letter from him to Doña Ana and, changing the time of their meeting, impersonates the Marqués in order to seduce Doña Ana.
Don Gonzalo de Ulloa (gohn-ZAH-loh deh ew-LYOH-ah), Doña Ana's father, who catches Don Juan in his daughter's bed and challenges him to a duel, in which Don Gonzalo is killed. The statue of this nobleman at his tomb then brings about Don Juan's downfall.
Tisbea (TIHS-bay-ah), a simple fisherman's daughter, who rescues Don Juan after he is shipwrecked on the Spanish coast following his escape from Naples. Don Juan seduces her by promising marriage, but at his master's command, Catalinón already has horses standing by to assure Don Juan's escape as soon as he has had his way with Tisbea. In the end, Tisbea is the only one of Don Juan's seductees who does not marry.
Aminta (ah-MIHN-tah), betrothed to Batricio when Don Juan, escaping from his deadly encounter with Don Gonzalo, arrives in her small town and insinuates himself upon the un-suspecting woman, who awaits her lover's arrival in her bed.