The Betrothed: I Promessi Sposi

Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 1827

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Summary

Background

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Introduction-Chapter 7

Chapters 8-15

Chapters 16-23

Chapters 24-31

Chapters 32-38

Character Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

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Themes

Navigating Injustice

The Betrothed tells a story in which the law and justice are not always compatible. The novel is set on the Italian peninsula in the early 17th century, a time of disunification, rule from abroad, and widespread corruption. Local barons are rich and powerful; they employ the bravi to do their dirty work, using hardened criminals to police the land as they see fit, rather than in accordance with any loftier idea of justice. Don Rodrigo embodies this form of corruption. With his band of bravi, he is the legal institution in the region. He cannot be questioned, due to his connections to the powerful, his wealth, and the armed men he has at his disposal. He is also closely associated with the local lawyer, Professor Argle-Bargle, and the Mayor, which adds a bureaucratic legitimacy to his authority. Don Rodrigo’s word is the law, but his decisions do not in any way adhere to some idealized form of justice. When Renzo is denied his marriage due to Don Rodrigo’s interference, he visits Professor Argle-Bargle. The lawyer is willing to help, but only when he mistakenly believes that Renzo is one of the bravi. When he learns that Renzo is the injured party, he chases Renzo from his office. The law serves at the disposal of the powerful and the innocent are denied any real justice, thus forcing them to navigate injustice on their own.

The corruption in the society causes widespread social unrest. A famine intensifies this unrest, as Renzo discovers when he enters Milan. Already bristling at his mistreatment from Don Rodrigo, Renzo is predisposed to take the side of the poor people who are denied bread due to the meddling of the corrupt government officials and business owners. The riot seems like a just cause (at least at first) to Renzo, who quickly becomes a central figure in the scene. Renzo quickly latches on to the idea of the riot as the language of the unheard, as a way of manifesting actual justice when the law no longer serves its purpose. The starving people take the bread and leave the corrupt officials to stew over their failures. Only by going outside the boundaries of the law are these people able to survive. To Renzo, survival seems like justice and, the more he learns about the cynical and corrupt world, the more he begins to suspect that the law is not the unquestionable institution which he believed it to be. Renzo placed his faith in the law to help him, as the people of Milan trusted the law to feed them. Renzo discovers that the monolithic law, however, is simply a fallible human creation which perpetrates corruption.

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Since the law cannot be trusted to offer justice, Renzo and the characters must turn to alternative institutions and ideas in Navigating Injustice. The church plays an important role in this respect, as sincere priests such as Fra Crisoforo and Cardinal Borromeo adhere to a sense of divine justice which is free from the shackles of human fallibility. The church is not infallible, however, as shown by the self-interest of Don Abbondio and the crimes of the Signora. Divine justice is not beholden to the law, but it cannot be policed or enforced in a meaningful manner. Renzo’s quest for justice, in this sense, becomes a quest to find meaning in social institutions. The law is a human creation, so he must trust in humans as individuals to do what is right. In The Betrothed, justice is only available to those who place their trust in higher, more abstract versions of right and wrong. The law, written by corrupt humans, cannot be trusted to do anything other than continue the corruption while individuals, inspired by God or goodness, can help one another.

The Importance of Faith

Adherence to religion is expected throughout the 17th-century society depicted in the novel. Beyond the simple institutions of religion (namely, the Catholic Church), there exists a sincere belief which shapes the society. The characters are products of their age; they genuinely believe in the existence of an interventionalist God, with this belief dictating their actions. When the priests such as Fra Cristoforo preach for others to trust in God and remember The Importance of Faith, they are not only being sincere, but they are also being respected. The existence of God comforts those who have been wronged, such as Renzo and Lucia. Even the minor characters, such as Perpetua and Agnese, sincerely believe in God enough to give their lives purpose and meaning. Ironically, those more closely associated with the church act in a more agnostic fashion. Don Abbondio may preach the Bible, but he is mostly interested in himself. The Signora, meanwhile, may be powerful in the religious convent, but her life is littered with regrets, bitterness, and a litany of sins. These religious figures are not following the faith, and they are not demonstrating their sincere belief in God.

Lucia is the shining example of those who are defined by their faith. Lucia’s life is simple, at least at first. She grows up in a small town and believes she will marry the man she loves. Her life and her ambitions are modest and humble, in accordance with the church’s suggestions for modesty and humility. Lucia sincerely believes in the existence of God and, unlike many other characters, lives in accordance with these beliefs. Her humility and devotion are so pure, in fact, that she becomes a striking, almost saintlike figure. She has the power to convince people to give up their sinful pasts simply by existing in their presents. The sincerity of Lucia’s belief is almost a divine force in itself, as it spreads a gospel of belief. Lucia is a missionary for sincerity, a figure whose mere existence proselytizes the importance of a genuine belief in God. Ironically, the same sincerity which defines and comforts Lucia also threatens to destroy her life. She makes a promise to God, swearing a vow of chastity if she is able to gain her freedom. Lucia’s commitment to her vow, even in the face of a lifetime of despair, illustrates the sincerity of her belief. Only through the religious guidance of Fra Cristoforo, a religious figure whom she trusts, is she able to forgive herself of such a commitment. Only further religion can undo the bind into which Lucia has been placed by her devotion.

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Amid this sincere faith, redemption plays an important role in the story. No character, no matter how evil, is beyond redemption. The Nameless One is reputedly the cruelest and most violent man in the region, yet his encounter with Lucia and her sincerity is enough to inspire a redemption within him. Don Rodrigo scorns this redemption, but he also has the potential to be redeemed. The best example of the importance of redemption is the conversation between Fra Cristoforo and Renzo. Standing over the dying Don Rodrigo, Renzo curses his enemy. Fra Cristoforo turns on him with more fury than he exhibits anywhere else in the novel. He is angrier with Renzo’s anger than he is with Don Rodrigo. Renzo accepts the criticism and, with Fra Cristoforo, prays for Don Rodrigo’s redemption. Renzo is willing to embrace the redemption of his sworn enemy as a sign of his devotion. He practices a sincere, humane form of religion which accepts the fallibility of man. In doing so, he reveals the power he has over Don Rodrigo. The Importance of Faith is, in this way, portrayed as more powerful than anything else.

Framing History Through Literature

As well as the many characters in The Betrothed, the narrator emerges as a character in his own right. Though he is never named, the narrator plays a similar role (and shares many experiences and biases) to Alessandro Manzoni. The narrator presents The Betrothed as a recovered text, something that he has discovered and wants to share with the world. While the original author of this text is not named, the narrator admits that he has rewritten and restructured much of the novel to accommodate modern (19th-century) sensibilities. Throughout his introduction and his addresses to the audience, the narrator strives to establish The Betrothed as a genuine historical text. To achieve this, the narrator plays with Framing History Through Literature via the novel itself, adding in historical references and allusions so that the audience can carry out further research on these subjects, while coloring this presentation with the narrator’s opinions. Often, these references concern actual history. These references serve a narrative purpose, as they bolster the verisimilitude of the fictional text by making it appear more authentic. The narrator plays the role of the fact checker, guiding the audience through the movement of history. In this fashion, The Betrothed becomes more than just a love story; it becomes an important document of history, which hints at the narrator’s grandiose ambitions.

By situating his story in this grand historical narrative, the narrator has the effect of portraying his dual protagonists as though they are being swept along by the tides of history. Renzo and Lucia are deeply in love; their marriage is denied to them by the cruelty of Don Rodrigo and the cowardice of Don Abbondio, yet they are subject to greater forces than any individual can muster. Don Rodrigo and his bravi may try to kidnap Lucia, but the famine and the plague that define the novel in historical terms illustrate how one man’s actions can pale in comparison to the power of the natural world. Even the 30 Years’ War, which ravages the land, has an external, almost environmental quality, as the narrator introduces the belligerents at a distance and keeps them away from the narrative focus. Amid this historical turmoil, Renzo and Lucia struggle to assert their own agency. Lucia often cloisters herself away and trusts in God, whereas Renzo embraces the movements of history. He leads the riots that are a response to the famine, and he allies with the corrupt officials who police the plague-ridden streets of Milan. He uses the movements of history to his immediate advantage, swimming with the current of history so as to accelerate and bolster his own agency.

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According to the narrator (and The Betrothed date of publication), the narrator is telling the story from two centuries in the future. Ironically, he is as temporally detached from the time of his characters as modern audiences are detached from his era. The perspective and insight which the narrator gains from these two centuries allows him to judge and editorialize, such as when he chides the people of Milan for not knowing that the plague could be spread through clothing. The modern audience, however, can similarly chide the narrator for his mistake, as he does not know, nor could he know, that the plague was spread by the fleas. The narrator’s authority is undermined by the same spread of history which, he believes, gives him intellectual authority over the characters in his novel. As well as making The Betrothed appear more of a legitimate historical narrative, the narrator’s pronounced role bolsters and characterizes his role, revealing him to be prone to the same mistakes which he criticizes in his story.