People of Spain - Spaniords

The "disease" of Spanish individualism, hot tempered, proud and assertive even in its humblest representative, may be termed the spirit of Don Juan. It would be difficult to find a Spaniard who on meeting a young and beautiful woman wouldnot feel to some extent obliged to pay her court. For him this is not a way of passing the time; on the contrary, it is a test of himself and of his own personality.

It is said as a joke that for the Spaniard there are three creatures on earth: man, woman, and the bull. There is a superstition that there is some kind of mysterious rapport between women and bulls, because woman, as Well as the bull, is given by nature to man as an opponent, an obstacle to be overcome, and a test to be passed. The woman is at bottom a pretext; the real stake is the pleasure of conquest and possession.

It should be remembered at this point that in Spain there is no middle way for a woman; she is either worshipped or despised; either wife and mother, or a creation of the devil. Though nowadays, and particularly in the larger towns, habits are changing fairly rapidly and women are acquiring greater independence and coming closer to full equality with men, it is still important in any consideration of the condition of women in Spanish life not to undervalue the enormous influence exercised by deep rooted religious concepts, the sense of sin, and the influence of the Church on the moral climate and social conventions.

In practice, women are still far from being considered equal to men. But though they are subordinated to men as far as social conditions and rights are concerned, they are also held sacred and inviolate in their position as wives and mothers. Inthis respect they are placed on a higher pedestal than men.

VENERATION OF WOMEN

The mother is considep!53 almost divine. It is enough to look at the traditional dress worn by women at their local fiestas to recognize a deep seated factor they all share despite their great variety: their clothes represent the realization of the secret idea held by men of women.

The embroidered costumes, rich in jewels and precious necklaces, are always worn by women, while men's dress is more sober; their clothes indicate that women are tied to the house and to their husbands' possessions.

Though it is almost inconceivable that a girl of fifteen or sixteen should not have a novio, or france, she is sacrosanct, and love is both religious and passionately earthy. The habit of the noviazgo or engagement lasting sometimes for many years is fundamental to Spanish social life. Foreigners, and Spaniards themselves, beginning with poets and artists of every period, find the custom of el amor a la reja extremely appealing: the girl sitting behind the first floor grille, with her lover outside leaning on the sill. In this position they may exchange whispers and sighs for hours on end.

COURTSHIP AND SERENADING

In any case, there is something extraordinarily fresh and innocent about the innate gallantry of the Spanish: as for instance in the custom of piropear, or paying compliments. Piropos or requiebros are made in the street to women, even unknown women. The piropo is a gallant phrase, quick witted to some degree and often quite poetic; it is fairly inoffensive, even though bold on occasion. It should not be considered rude or importunate, but rather as a well turned mark of admiration.

It can be paid to women of all social classes, from seamstresses, maids and working class girls' to senoritas of the highest standing, and it would be a mark of poor taste if the woman were to be offended by it, as the piropo does not in any way represent an attack on either the man's or the woman's morality or decorum.

This is one example: "Your tiny feet are so small that there is no time to admire them"; or another, praising the beauty of a woman's mouth: "Blessed are the microbes on your lips!" Plainly, the delight in a rather baroque, whimsical imagination is certainly not dead in the Spanish spirit.

Besides the piropos, this delight also shows itself in serenades under the loved one's porch, with a guitar accompaniment by willing friends, and with the girl herself chastely hidden behind the curtains of her room, just as in the most hackneyed scene from a film about Spain.

SPANISH PRIDE

Of particular renown is the pride of the pundonor, the point of honor or extremely haughty self respect,with which the Spaniard likes to invest his own moral stature. It has been said that the Spaniard sees himself standing erect, with a soul in place of a backbone. El alma, the soul, is his most importdnt possession; it supports him and has the strength of metal. For the Spaniard, el alma deserves to be demonstrated to others, to be tested to prove that it exists.

It is this feeling which incurs the risks taken against the bull in the arena, which for all its courage, dash, and nobility, does not possess a soul. It is this feeling which calls for adventure and conquests (the word "conquistador" is one of the few that is wholly Spanish). It is this feeling which leads to revolt and to submission at the same time, to dedication and to sacrifice (detectable quite clearly in the collective psychology of the participants at religious festivals). It is, finally, that "tragic view of life" which appears in every aspect of Spain, which haunts the chords of the guitar and the song of the gypsies.

This narrow street in Seville, cleverly shaded from the sun, winds through the city like a snake and is called, appropriately enough, the Calle Sierpes (Snake Street). Solemn religious processions pass along the street during Holy Week but at other times it is simply a place to shop, meet friends, or call out piropos (compliments) to the pretty girls.

The deep seated melancholy and religious obsession of the Spaniards are of a different kind than in other parts of Europe. It is as if the Spanish soul had two sides, one day, the other night. On one side there is the positive, sociable, vivacious and relatively simple Spanish character; on the other something difficult to discern, only to be guessed at behind the silence and mystery in which it lies concealed a 17th century sense of mortality and contempt for life.

This contempt is an expression of nobility which may be found throughout Spanish history and in its greatest men, side by side with a fanatical, and equally noble, inability to compromise, the spirit of todo o nada, all or nothing, which informs the Spaniard's whole life, and in particular his loves.

SPANISH GYPSIES

The picture of Spain would not be complete without the picturesque gitano, the gypsy. The best known are those of Seville, the gypsies of Andalusia, though there are others, including the Murcian gypsies of Totana. Living in an area where the heat is suffocating for the greater part of the year, these gypsies onceused to earn their living by selling snow. They went to the Spanish Sierra in one of the most mountainous parts of Murcia, gathered snow there from the rockiest peaks and deepest crevices, loaded it on to their donkeys, and brought it down along almost impassable paths in straggling cavalcades to the towns, where snow was in great demand.

It was used instead of ice for cooling drinks, and was therefore a prime necessity for the Spaniards. It was collected in special pozos de nieve snow wells, from which it was extracted by the iced drink sellers, who were and still are indispensable allies against heat and thirst at all fiestas and ceremonies.

The gypsies are easily distinguishable from the Spaniards and have been studied throughout their history. Some theories hold that they are the descendants of the Tziganes of old, who once lived on the banks of the Indus but left their country after Tamerlane's invasion. Their facial structure is in fact more Asian than European, and their strange language contains a certain number of words that come from Sanskrit.

The gypsies constitute a class and a people apart, who speak a language which they alone understand. They are well known for their extraordinary gift for mimicry and gesture when they speak. In spite of their fame as thieves and sorcerers, their habits are in general irreproachable: the women in particular are known for their chastity, in spite of the passionate and sensual movements they bring to their dancing.

The gypsies normally intermarry, after very long engagements, which, according to custom, should last two years. Their weddings are extremely noisy and are marked by singing, dancing, the music of guitars, castanets and tambourines, and solemn toasts. The festivities last at least three days, during which time the married couple and guests spend most of what they own.