“In
The Dialogue of the Dogs”, Cervantes employs the use of colloquial exchange
between two characters to touch on various aspects of society in early modern
Spain. This dialogue, however, is irrationally taking place between two dogs
sharing autobiographical stories allowing Cervantes’ social satire and
criticisms to come across as more accessible to his audiences rather than
blatant denigration. A few of the social topics he addresses through this
unconventionally constructed short story are the corruption of authority, both
civic and religious, the effects of disconnected systems of power in morally
misguided societies and the plight of creative artists and writers such as
himself of being true to their works or creating publications tailored for mass
appeal.
One
of the stories Berganza the dog shares is about his time in a slaughterhouse in
Seville. Here, he is exposed to people of selfish intentions who have shunned
morality and proper social order in pursuit of the attainment of their own
self-interests. “…They are like vultures, maintaining themselves and their
mistresses on what they steal” (253). The unsupervised workers at the
slaughterhouse allowed their true personas to show, doing whatever it took to
plunder prime cutes of meet for themselves including causing harm or imposing
death to others without much remorse, as Berganza explains, “But nothing
shocked me more or struck me as more scandalous than to see that these
slaughterhouse workers will kill a man as easily as a cow”. The actions of
these workers represent the tendency for society to act in a mob mentality when
presented with opportunities, especially in societies where immoral behavior
was as commonplace as in early modern Spain’s working class. This may also be a
representation of Cervantes’ view of Spain’s lawmakers and nobility governing a
population whom they have no connection nor direct intervention into their day
to day lives, seeing how these laws actually impact the people. Rather, the
nobility employs public servants as protectors of the legal system despite the
fact that these servants can be just as immoral and self-interested as other
social deviants.
“Dialogue’s”
episode detailing Bergama’s tenure as a shepherd dog, addresses the corruptive
nature of humankind as well as dishonesty in spiritual leadership. The cruelty
conveyed through the dishonest shepherds, feigning attacks by wolves in order
to steal from their owners, serves as a vivid analogy of shepherds of Christian
followers deceiving their blindly faithful and unquestioning flock in order to
carry out their own agendas. Spain’s religious system at the time was
interwoven with the governmental system, thus allowing for decrees of
indulgence requirements and essentially ‘witch-hunts’ for religious deviants.
Berganza’s strong loyalty to his shepherd masters leads him to truly believe
their commands and accept punishment that may be given to him despite his own
rationale because he trusts them. They have fed him, seen him as useful and
continuously reinforce their orders. It is not only until he is exposed to the
true nature of the shepherds that Berganza is enlightened to the horrible
paradox that systematically exists and questions how such a corrupt system
based on trust could be exposed to more people. “I was shocked and amazed to
see that the shepherds were the wolves and the very people who were supposed to
be guarding the flock were tearing it to pieces”, “Who will have the power to
persuade anyone that the defenders are on the offensive, that the sentries are
sleeping, that it doesn’t pay to trust anyone and that those who guard also
kill?” (259). The parallels drawn from the story to Spanish society is
Cervantes’ call to action to a conscious collective of revolutionaries who must
aim to enlighten society of the corruption that exists in the Church and how the
same church that condemns nonbelievers and heretics does so to propagate the gluttonous
agendas of those in positions of power.
Cervantes
also comments on the challenges that writers face in his section detailing the
poet Berganza meets. Perhaps a reflection of Cervantes’ own impediments, the
poet is described as deeply enthralled in the particulars of his play, striving
to make it as historically accurate and poetically sound as possible only to be
ridiculed and deserted by one of the actors for the poets exorbitance and
demands. Cervantes seems to illustrate his own frustrations with a society
focused more on sensational and entertaining works of art as opposed to literal
contributions that serve to challenge societal inconsistencies and provide
historical and rational insight on social issues; thus inciting constructive
debate into the social consciousness of a population. I believe that Cervantes may feel that some
of his literary work and especially his poetry had been undervalued by society
while contributions such as Don Quixote, a classic in its own right,
were more appreciated because of its entertainment value. The poet portrayed in
“Dialogue” is fixated on the need for accuracy in his play and his efforts are
received as arbitrary embellishments. Cervantes hold the philosophy that art
and literature should serve the role of not only reflecting the society it
describes, but to also advocate for morality and the rectification of
injustices.
The
discourse between Berganza and Scipio is one that allows the audience to view
themselves and their actions from a different perspective, one of innocence and
simplicity. These dogs provide subjective insight into the actions of various
levels of early modern Spain’s society, and the corruption and inconsistencies
that exist throughout. Cervantes’ unconventional approach effectively
accomplishes his purpose for this short story. He humbles the audience and
forces autoscopic reflection, not only for the reader’s own motives and
behavior, but also for their societal institutions and cultural norms. The
constant theme of corruption expressed through satire in this story is a genre
that has been utilized by generations of advocacies in order to allow the level
of accessibility needed to incite grassroots-driven transformations of what
pillars society chooses to uphold, maintain and ratify.
De
Cervantes, Miguel. “The Dialogue of the Dogs.” In Exemplary Stories. New York: Oxford University Press, 1998
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