The social act-space and its code of behavior in La 'Familia de Pascual Duarte' (Camilo Jose Cela)

Camilio Jose Cela's novel La familia de Pascual Duarte [Pascual Duarte's Family] (1942) has been criticized from different ideological points of view. In this essay, my intent is to offer a different and complementary vision of the character of Pascual Duarte. Here, I analyze the existence of a code of masculinity and Pascual's mode of violent behavior to conform to such a code. In examining Pascual Duarte, I trace the allegorical character of the novel and the interrelation of these aspects in the social act-space. This last factor functions as an envelope which encloses and marks the validity of public acts and then inserts itself in the opinion of the reader creating a critical voice which judges Pascual's deeds. The theoretical framework for this essay is based on studies that question the legitimacy of the patriarchal project and, together with a 'perverse' reading, reveal the text's valuable statement on the existence of a masculine code.