Social Class and Romance in Juan Marsé's Masterpiece

The Intersection of Love and Social Class

Topic: The love between different social classes.

Subject: Satire. The author tells the story in a sarcastic yet deeply emotional way.

The Plot of the Novel

Manolo, also known as Pijoaparte, meets a girl named Maruja at the Festival of Saint John. Maruja is the maid of Teresa. Some time later, he returns to see Maruja and tells her that he will visit her at her house, the Villa of the Serrat. At first, Manolo is unaware that Maruja is only the servant of the house, but he discovers the truth during the first night he spends with her. They live a romance until the day Maruja has an accident and falls into a coma from which she will not wake up.

The accident joins Teresa and Manolo as they visit the sick girl in the hospital every day. Eventually, they fall in love, but Maruja's death causes them to separate. Driven by love, Manolo attempts to see Teresa again, but he is denounced by The Syringe and spends two years in prison. Finally, when Luis gets out of jail, a friend of Maruja tells him that she has forgotten him.

Main Characters

• Manolo Pijoaparte: The protagonist who experiences a love story with Maruja and later with Teresa. He is a poor boy who makes his living stealing cars and motorcycles.
• Maruja: Teresa's maid who meets Manolo at the Festival of San Juan. She sees him every night in her room at the Villa. She dies in the hospital two months after hitting her head during a fall down the stairs.
• Teresa: A rich young woman belonging to the Catalan bourgeoisie. She is the lady of the Villa Serrat, a 19-year-old college student at the time of Maruja's accident. She falls in love with Manolo after getting to know him.

Secondary Characters

• The Cardinal: Manolo's boss. An old man who once belonged to the upper class, he now runs a business involving stolen bikes and cars provided by the "kids of Carmel," including Manolo.
• Hortensia (The Syringe): The Cardinal's niece. She is madly in love with Manolo. In a fit of rage after seeing a letter Manolo addressed to Teresa, she reports him for the theft of a Ducati. She is a nurse, which is why she is nicknamed The Syringe (La Jeringa).
• Bernardo: Pijoaparte's friend and former partner in crime. He loses prominence early in the novel because he stops stealing after marrying Rosa, a friend of Lola.
• The Sisters: Sisters who steal in Pijoaparte's neighborhood.
• Oriol and Marta Serrat: Teresa's father and mother.
• Teresa's Student Friends: They are introduced to Manolo and chat with him in a bar one afternoon.
• Maruja's Father and Brother: Characters who are barely mentioned in the play.