In Don Juan and the Point of Honor, James Mandrell undertakes a
systematic examination of the many questions surrounding the
legendary character. On the one hand, it might be argued that Don
Juan threatens society, since he is supposedly an agent of social
anarchy. On the other hand, given his intriguing sexual
accomplishments, he could be viewed as a positive expression of
life itself. James Mandrell shows what is at stake in the asking of
such questions and, moreover, what is at stake in representations
and considerations of Don Juan.
After a discussion of the ways that Don Juan's seductive powers
infiltrate and influence the interpretations of texts of which he
is a part, Mandrell continues with close readings of key Spanish
literary works ranging from the seventeenth to the twentieth
centuries. All of these works involve interrelated issues as
regards Don Juan: the worldly uses and abuses of language; the
power of literature to engender and embody other literary texts;
seduction and its psychological and social subtexts; and society in
relation to Don Juan as well as Don Juan's role in society.
Ultimately, these notions are tied into the concept of honor as it
works in literature and society. Mandrell concludes with a study of
modern adaptations of Don Juan and his story in various theories of
culture, society, and economic organizations.
What emerges is a view of Don Juan as a positive social force in
patriarchal society and culture--as well as a force operative at
the level of desire as it is made manifest in language. Mandrell
shows that Don Juan should not be treated as an innocent or
outmoded cultural artifact. Instead, he is a character whose story
and vicissitudes are still significant in the context of our
twenty-first-century world.
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