Sea and World in Melibea's desiderative imaginary

Abstract

The Celestina —both Comedy and Tragicomedy— appears while Columbus' voyages were taking place. News of the Discovery were not limited to the circles of power. They were also proclaimed in the squares of cities and villages. In this context, and going beyond the applied rhetorical procedure, this paper defends the hypothesis that the amphibological phrases «rodear el mundo» and «pasar la mar» pronounced by Melibea in the 16th auto, in her desiderative imagery, may well refer not to the Mediterranean Sea, but to the Atlantic Ocean, as well as to a possible circumnavigation of the Earth which, although not yet accomplished, had already been theoretically demonstrated.