Breaking the rules: transgression and carnival in Ultimas tardes con Teresa

Rituals and celebrations emerge as a central structuring device in the love story that forms the center of Ultimas tardes con Teresa, Juan Marse's prize-winning novel of 1965. The narrative begins with a couple, Manolo and Teresa, strolling through the center of Barcelona during Fiesta Mayor, one of the end-of-summer rites. As if engaged in a ritual re-enactment, they repeat the experience of Manolo's brother a decade earlier: he, too, found romance at the same festival.