ABSTRACT
The politics of identity in early modern Spain get played out in the everyday skirmishes and court battles which take place between individuals of different classes, religious castes and genders, and find their subtlest expression in the provocative literature of the period, written by societal outsiders. While it is startling to read this characterization from the pen of such an astute Cervantine critic and biographer, Canavaggio is certainly not alone in his interpretation of the behavior of the women of the Cervantes family. The so-called Ezpeleta affair provides a clear illustration of the very public nature of the Cervantes women's ignominy. The play on words is, of course, a reference to La lozana andaluza, by Francisco Delicado, published anonymously in Venice in 1528. In 1566, Andrea's father "Rodrigo finds himself involved once more in a suit over debts: during his absence, a creditor named Rodrigo de Chaves has demanded seizure of his goods.
