Sir, quoth he, y shall the telle:
Thy shame noo lenger couere y nelle.
A souldiour thou hast with the,
That thinketh for to shende the.
Thy doughter, that so fair is,
He hath leyn by, ywis.
In-to hir boure with strength he yede:
By thy doughter his wille he dede.[63]
[63] Caius MS., p. 187.
This incident may have prompted Martorell to ascribe to Tirant the rôle of a passionate lover, and we feel that he adopted the suggestion without any hesitation whatever. Boccaccio’s influence was powerful in those days, and the incident afforded great possibilities for emulating the famous Italian writer. If this conjecture be true, our censure of the author must be limited to a reproach for having so easily and so shamelessly followed that influence. But Martorell keeps in close touch with real life. It may be that such conduct of knights had come to his notice directly or indirectly. If that is the reason why the obscene features were introduced, our condemnation will not be extremely severe. But if it was his purpose to present to us an ideal hero, then the author is deserving of the most scathing denunciation possible, for he must have been as morally weak as the hero he asks us to admire. He seems to take a delight in describing unbecoming and immoral scenes. Not only does he give vivid narrations of Tirant’s efforts to attain the “compliment de amor,” but he also makes bold descriptions of the liaison between the empress and Hypolite; the relations of Diaphebus and Stephania; and the revolting plan by which Viuda Reposada succeeded in making Tirant believe that Carmesina was unfaithful. But we may be doing the author a grave injustice. Possibly these immoral scenes were intended to have a moral effect. It may have been the purpose of Martorell to disgust the readers with these scenes. Possibly it was a protest against the immoral conditions that prevailed in his time.