CHAPTER VI
CONCLUSION: GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF TIRANT LO BLANCH
The Catalan romance of chivalry, Tirant lo Blanch, may be described as a composite historical novel with a hero of a composite historical character. From the beginning of the work to the end of the William of Warwick episode the scenes are laid in England, and were it not for the fact that Martorell describes a Moorish invasion as taking place in that kingdom, we should be obliged to say that the atmosphere is absolutely English. However, after Tirant’s return to the continent, a purely Catalan or Aragonese spirit pervades the romance to the very end. The names of other countries may be given as the scenes of Tirant’s activities, but the Catalan heart and mind are always in evidence. The author’s direct experience and his intimate acquaintance with the history of his country find expression at every favorable opportunity. Whatever is described or narrated bears a pronounced Catalan stamp. Tirant’s relief expedition to Rhodes is based on the siege of that place in 1444, but the manner in which he succeeded in reaching the castle was copied from Roger de Flor’s successful attempt to relieve Messina. The expedition of the King of France against the infidels is based on the crusades of Louis IX; yet the way that it ravaged the shores of Turkey was very similar to the manner in which the vessels of King Jaime, King Peter’s predecessor, devastated the shores of Africa. Tirant’s activities in the service of the Emperor of Constantinople are based on the Catalan-Aragonese expedition to the East under the leadership of Roger de Flor, but it cannot be forgotten that the English romance, Guy of Warwick, has left strong and indisputable traces in this part of the work. The conquest of Barbary is based on the experiences of the kings of Aragon with the Saracens of northwestern Africa, but, in making use of these historical elements, Martorell absolutely disregards their chronological order. According to these historical data, Tirant’s military career begins in the middle of the fifteenth century and ends incongruously in the early years of the fourteenth. The hero is made up of elements taken from Guy of Warwick, Richard of Beauchamp, Roger de Flor, Saint Louis, Peter the Second of Aragon and others. It is clear that Martorell had no intention of singing the praises of Roger de Flor or of any other historical personage. In fact it seems that he attempts to disguise and conceal the historical elements. If he had adhered to these elements too closely, he would by that very act have deprived himself of the liberty of proceeding with his composition as he pleased.
Martorell had probably no other purpose in view than that of writing a romance of chivalry in which the hero was to conform in the main to his notion of what constituted a great military leader. He was of a practical bent and he desired to present to us a lifelike hero, one whose exploits should be within the bounds of possibility. All material that was given place in his work seems to be based on what he himself directly observed or what he had read or heard related. No wild flights of the imagination are attempted. Occasionally passages are met with relating incredible occurrences, but these are not of his own invention. Within this work may be found religious and philosophical discourses; speeches and disputations among members of the imperial councils; formal debates among members of the imperial family; documents and papers drawn up by notaries; formal challenges and replies to these; dramatic lamentations; long and fervent prayers; and allusions to classical Latin authors, to biblical characters and to figures prominent in mediaeval literature. Many of these features bear evidence that they are not original with Martorell, but were copied, some closely, others loosely, from models that he found here and there. But at times he is delightfully original. On these occasions his narrations are natural and the dialogues exceedingly sprightly, making a striking contrast with his other heavy and stilted literary efforts. It is to be regretted that he did not cast aside the models that he copied or imitated, and free himself from the influence of other authors. His book would in that case have been reduced to approximately one-fourth of its present size, but quite probably it would now be considered a masterpiece of narration and dialogue.
Martorell, to judge him by the work that he has produced—unfortunately we know nothing at all concerning him from any other source—gives us the impression that he was a monk or an ecclesiastic. The intensely religious spirit that pervades the book, the sermons and prayers, and the efforts to conquer or crush the enemies of the Holy Catholic Church point strongly in that direction. His high regard for the orders of knighthood and his great admiration for distinguished heroes give some grounds for believing that he was a member of a military order. However, the various documents drawn up in legal form leave the impression that he was a notary. But he has included in his work several features that are not in harmony with a serious and lofty purpose. From these a fair idea of his character and disposition may be obtained. He is jolly, jovial, frivolous, talkative, malicieux, and bold even to impertinence. He is queer and eccentric. He has peculiar ideas as to the fitness of things. He shows extremely bad taste from the standpoint of the present time. Sometimes he permits his hero to conduct himself in an undignified manner, or makes him the victim of mishaps that tend to decrease our admiration for him. And then as a climax to these occasional disparaging portrayals, he endows his hero with a low, immoral nature.
Tirant lo Blanch is pictured to us as a noble, generous, religious, intrepid, valiant, and invincible military leader. He is admirable in all respects but one—he is morally a weakling. This inconsistency, together with other incongruities, has led a scholarly critic[80] to declare that Tirant lo Blanch is a parody on the romances of chivalry and that “the animus of the whole narrative is satire.” But the romance taken as a whole does not warrant such a conclusion, for the general tone of it is earnest and sincere. Several features of the work seem to be presented in a satirical spirit, but still it is very doubtful that the author intended to hold up certain foibles, follies or vices to reprobation and ridicule. Is it not rather probable that these features are due to the realistic tendencies of the author, or to his whims and humors? Were some of these features perhaps intended as a protest against the immorality of knights in general? Were they to teach a moral lesson? If these questions are answered affirmatively, difficulties will confront us, for Hypolite, the paramour of the empress, is not punished for his sinful liaison; on the contrary he is rewarded, for after the death of the emperor and the princess he becomes the imperial ruler and his reign is a long and glorious one. Nor was he to be punished in the next world, for we are told “... e podeu creure que per lo bon regiment, e per la bona e virtuosa vida fon [Lemperador e la Emperadriu] collocats en la gloria de paradis.”[81] It is impossible to believe that it was Martorell’s purpose to deride and ridicule the deeds of prowess and the noble enterprises of the champion knight of the English court, the deliverer of the Knights of Rhodes, the intrepid knight of the French king’s expedition against the infidels, the missionary-conqueror of Barbary, and the liberator of the Grecian Empire. Surely the spirit of the narration of these important activities of Tirant is not satire.
[80] F.M. Warren, A History of the Novel Previous to the Seventeenth Century, New York, 1895; pp. 173 and 175.
[81] ... and you may feel assured that on account of their excellent rule, and their good and upright lives, they were taken up to enjoy the glories of paradise.
This Catalan romance of chivalry may have been conceived in accordance with the taste of Martorell’s times, but conditions have changed. The standards by which we measure the actions of men now are not the same as they were then. If an author wishes us to become enthusiastic in our admiration for his hero, the latter must conform to our standards. We insist that the protagonist be, above all, heroic from a moral standpoint. If he lacks that attribute we cannot give him a full measure of appreciation. An immoral hero is a paradox, an impossibility with us of the present day; consequently we shall never be able to regard Tirant lo Blanch as a great hero. But from the foregoing study it may perhaps appear that the “cura’s” estimate, composed both of enthusiasm and reprobation (as set forth in the passage quoted in the opening paragraph), is not unworthy of the good sense and critical acumen of the great Cervantes.
FINIS.