Artful Rhetoric: The Case of Lázaro de Tormes

Despite its early date of publication (1554), its comparative brevity, and its precocious entry into the realm of narrative realism, the anonymous La vida de Lazarillo de Tormes y de sus fortunas y adversidades is an exceptionally — and perhaps deceptively — complex work. Lazarillo de Tormes is a sophisticated text on a number of levels. First and foremost, it offers an intricate rhetorical display, posing questions that require answers and answers that may be more open to interpretation than resolved unequivocally. There is a plan to the narrative, but the plan simultaneously presents arguments and counterarguments that intersect, or