Raymond Cazis
Professor Peer
ENG 2850
7 September 2016
Blog Post: The Life of Lazarillo de Tormes Ch. 1 and 2
Lazaro: A Transitional Character
From the very first pages of The Life of Lazarillo de Tormes, we see how the protagonist Lazaro is a transitional character who is affected by the ups and downs of his life’s journey. This work is the first of the Picaresque genre, and it is considered the foundation of the modern novel. This is important to take notice because the characters of the modern novel transition from static characters, seemingly unaffected by their circumstances, into metamorphic characters who transform according their journeys. Lazaro is certainly one of these transitional characters. In the first two chapters, he learns and adapts to the situations he encounters under his first two masters—the blind man and the priest.
Lazaro’s first master the blind man, who is a trickster himself (and one of the best!), teaches Lazaro his devious ways. Lazaro’s time with the blind man taught him “wits and ingenuity” (p. 14), providing him with the requisite skills that make him become our Picaresque protagonist, just as the trickster characters of the Anansi stories. “But with all his experience and shrewdness I found ways to get around him, so that always, or at least most of the time, I collared the lion’s share” (p. 15). Lazaro learned how to fend for himself and how to use others for his own advantage.
These skills took Lazaro from a childish state of naivety into a state of being informed of the realities of society. This enlightened Lazaro as to how those on the fringes of society, such as the blind beggar, could take advantage of and manipulate mainstream characters for their own benefit. The blind beggar, although himself very aware of the difficulties of existence, was a “close-fisted and stingy” man. He would provide only necessities for Lazaro, and he even sometimes lacked at that! To ease his hunger, Lazaro would steal food from his blind master’s sack and wine from his wine jug. He would also steal a portion of the blind man’s alms by keeping a portion of each for himself. Lazaro, out of necessity, learned to adapt to his situation so that he could provide for himself.
Biblical References
I also want to mention a few of the biblical references I noticed in the first two chapters. These references are important, considering this work was written during the Counter-Reformation when the Inquisition was imposed. I see a certain parallel between Lazaro and Lazarus of the Bible. Lazarus is a character in the Bible who existed by eating crumbs that fell from a rich man’s table. Lazarus died a poor beggar, but because of his faith, passed into heaven after death. The rich man did not go to heaven due to his lack of faith. I believe Lazaro is a reference to Lazarus, in that Lazaro is also poor, maintaining an existence at the mercy of his masters. Perhaps in the end, Lazaro too will see is misfortune turn into something positive.
On page 13, the blind man says to Lazaro, “Silver and gold have I none, but I can give you plenty of good tips on how to get along.” This is another biblical reference to a portion of Scripture in which a lame man begged money from the apostles Peter and John. Peter answered the beggar, “Silver and gold have I none, but such as I have give I thee” (Acts 3:6). Peter then healed the lame man so that he could walk. This shows that the blind man was an enlightening figure to Lazaro, in a way “healing” him so that he could walk through the rest of his journey.
The third biblical reference I want to mention is found on page 21. It reads, “At the end of three days if we’d had neither we did a St. John and shook the dust of the place from our feet.” This is another reference to the apostles in which Jesus told the apostles to “shake off the dust of your feet” (Matthew 10:14) when they were not well-received in a city.
Death as a Release
Lastly, I want to point attention to the line, “So really there was no ease for me except death” (p. 34). In the first two chapters, Lazaro’s troubles would not cease. Just as soon as his situation would improve, he would find himself struggling again. This line also supports the parallel to Lazarus, whose earthly troubles were never resolved. Only after death did Lazarus’s troubles cease. This raises a question in my mind: will Lazaro’s troubles be resolved only after death? Will death serve as the instrument of peace for Lazaro, or will he find along his journey a path towards a better existence?
