PARODY, POPULAR CULTURE, AND THE NARRATIVE OF JAVIER TOMEO by MARK W. PLEISS B.A., Simpson College, 2007 M.A., University of Colorado at Boulder, 2009 A thesis submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate School of the University of Colorado in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of Spanish and Portuguese 2015 This thesis entitled: Parody, Popular Culture, and the Narrative of Javier Tomeo written by Mark W. Pleiss has been approved for the Department of Spanish and Portuguese __________________________________________________ Dr. Nina L. Molinaro __________________________________________________ Dr. Juan Herrero-Senés __________________________________________________ Dr. Tania Martuscelli __________________________________________________ Dr. Andrés Prieto __________________________________________________ Dr. Robert Buffington Date __________________________________ The final copy of this thesis has been examined by the signatories, and We find that both the content and the form meet acceptable presentation standards of scholarly work in the abovementioned discipline. iii Pleiss, Mark W. (Ph.D. Spanish Literature, Department of Spanish and Portuguese) Parody, Popular Culture, and the Narrative of Javier Tomeo Dissertation Director: Professor Nina L. Molinaro My thesis sketches a constellation of parodic Works Within the contemporary Spanish author Javier Tomeo's (1932-2013) immense literary universe. These novels include El discutido testamento de Gastón de Puyparlier (1990), Preparativos de viaje (1996), La noche del lobo (2006), Constructores de monstruos (2013), El cazador de leones (1987), and Los amantes de silicona (2008). It is my contention that the Aragonese author repeatedly incorporates and reconfigures the conventions of genres and sub-genres of popular literature and film in order to critique the proliferation of mass culture in Spain during his career as a writer. My heretofore unexplored theoretical model describes the structural and thematic roles of parody in Tomeo’s novelistic discourse, and it suggests that parody figures prominently in the author’s fiction from the late 1980s until 2013. My study is organized into four chapters, in Which I study hoW Tomeo parodies specific genres and sub-genres of popular fiction. My introduction describes the author’s precarious place in contemporary Spanish literature, and it revieWs theory and criticism by the leading experts on parody. My first analytical chapter studies the parody of tWo crime fiction sub-genres, the classic detective novel and the spy novel, in El discutido testamento de Gastón de Puyparlier and Preparativos de viaje. My second chapter studies the parody of werewolf narratives and Frankenstein narratives in La noche del lobo and Constructores de monstruos. Finally, my third chapter looks at the ironic revision of sentimental and erotic romance novels in El cazador de leones and Los amantes de silicona. In doing so, I propose iv that parody structures Tomeo’s fiction, and that it also serves two thematic purposes. First, the author uses parody to subvert the optimistic and reaffirming WorldvieWs commonly found in popular culture. Second, the author uses parody to criticize readers and Writers of popular genre literature and film. Parody alloWs Tomeo to express his misgivings toWard the groWing influence of mass culture inside and outside of Spain, and it also alloWs him to project a unique image of the contemporary human condition as defined by absurdity, abnormality, and loneliness. v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This project greW With the help of family, friends, and colleagues. I first want to thank my brother Mike, my sister Michelle, and my parents, Robert and Roberta. Their support, love, and prayers got me through the loWs and alloWed me to embrace the journey that this project entailed. I dedicate my thesis to Erin, Who Was With me through it all. She Was my inspiration for Waking up every morning to Write, and the reason that I Will continue to write in the future. My dissertation would not have been possible without the dedication and guidance of my advisor, Nina Molinaro. It was a truly extraordinary experience to work with someone Who had met Tomeo and who also shared my love for his fiction. Even though we did not alWays come to the same conclusions, We could always agree on how funny, how strange, and hoW truly unique Tomeo’s fiction is, especially in the context of contemporary Spanish literature. Moreover, Nina Was alWays there to support me. She read countless drafts, reworked countless sentences, and met With me regularly outside of office hours. She taught me hoW to think and write in neW Ways and shoWed me, through example, hoW to behave as a professional, a scholar, and a colleague. Thank you Nina, for everything. This project also would not have been possible without the support of Juan Herrero- Senés. Many of the foundational ideas for this project developed in his graduate seminar on Spanish Avant-Garde Literature, and many more came from our chats at the coffee shop. Juan’s creativity added extra imagination to my chapters, and his attention to detail sharpened my ideas. He helped me brainstorm ideas, and he gave me advice about all the questions that come up While Writing a dissertation, looking for a job, and planning a wedding. Thank you, Juan. vi I also want to thank Tania Martuscelli. Tania’s eye for parody and her illuminating understanding of Tomeo’s characters greatly contributed to my analyses, and her willingness to read and provide feedback in an efficient manner Was vital to the timely completion of my thesis. I also Want to thank Andrés Prieto and Robert Buffington. Andrés has been an extraordinary mentor, friend, and teammate for the last tWo years, and Professor Buffington read and provided feedback in a very timely manner. I sincerely thank both of them for their help in the completion of this project. Finally, I Would like to acknoWledge my teaching coordinators and unofficial mentors Mary Long and Anne Becher. They went above and beyond their job descriptions in helping me to groW as a teacher and a professional during the last seven years. I also want to acknowledge the man behind the project, Javier Tomeo. I had the opportunity to meet Tomeo at his hospital bed in Barcelona only a feW months before his death at the age of 80. He Was in pain When I met him for the first and last time, but he was kind, friendly, and energetic - a man With a poWerful inner child. I will never forget his smile, that of a Neapolitan Mastiff, and his voice, that of the giants from his stories. Meeting an author you are writing about can be a risky proposition, but Tomeo proved hoW rewarding it can be. Our short conversation gave my Writing a sense of purpose that may not have been present otherwise. Thank you for meeting me With me, Javier. Thank you for alWays being yourself. And thank you for making me laugh. My friends and colleagues inside and outside of the Mckenna Languages building also played a vital role in the completion of this project. In particular, I Want to mention David Harper, Suzie Wright, Harrison Meadows, Valentina Iturbe-La Grave, Laura Cesarco Eglin, Meredith Jeffers, and Mariana Bolivar Rubin. Their friendship means the World to me. vii Moreover, I Want to thank the faculty at Simpson College, and especially Mark Bates, CoryAnne Harrigan, David Wolf, and Brian Steffen. Also, I Want to thank my former colleagues at IES Ruiz de Alda in San Javier, Murcia and Vicente Cervera Salinas at the Universidad de Murcia. My year With the Auxiliares de Conversación program provided me an opportunity to meet these remarkable scholars and people. Last, and certainly not least, I Want to thank the administrative staff in the Mckenna Languages building, especially Doreen Williams. I also want to thank our Associate Chair of Graduate Studies Juan Pablo Dabove and the Chair of the Spanish and Portuguese department Peter Elmore. Both helped me to grow as a scholar and provided me With the financial support I needed to study and to attend conferences. I thank everyone here and those I forgot to mention. I will never forget all of your kindness, professionalism, and support. viii Table of Contents Introduction Parody, Popular Culture, and the Narrative of Javier Tomeo 1-32 Chapter #1 Impossible Mysteries: Parody, Crime Fiction, and Absurdity in El discutido testamento de Gastón de Puyparlier and Preparativos de viaje 33-85 Chapter #2 Real Monsters: Humor, Horror, and Parody in La noche del lobo and Constructores de monstruos 86-145 Chapter #3 Writing Bad Romance: Parody, Solitude, and Communication in El cazador de leones and Los amantes de silicona 146-200 Conclusions 200-210 Works Cited 211-220 1 Introduction: Parody, Popular Culture, and the Narrative of Javier Tomeo Mi pretensión es que la literatura es para reflexionar al lector sobre los problemas de ciertos momentos. No me interesan los libros de consumo barato. La literatura es algo sagrado. Javier Tomeo With twenty-nine novels, thirteen collections of short stories, four works of theater, and a children’s book, Javier Tomeo (Quicena, 1932-2013) Will be remembered as one of Spain’s most prolific authors during the tWentieth century. Tomeo published Constructores de monstruos only tWo months before his death in June 2013, and it stands as his final contribution to a publishing career that has spanned more than five decades. He collected a variety of awards throughout his career; these include the Gold Medal for Letters in Aragón, El Premio de Novela Corta Ciudad de Barbastro, and a nomination for the Nobel Prize. His novels have been adapted for prestigious theaters across Europe, and they also have been translated into more than fifteen languages. Despite his editorial success, Tomeo continues to be ignored by those in charge of Spain’s major literary aWards, and he has not received the extensive criticism afforded to Writers With similar artistic visions.