A Critical Study of the Spanish Picaresque Novel and a Comparison of the Picaresque Elements with Certain Phases of New Mexican Folklore

The purpose of this study is to show that since the beginning of Spanish civilization, picaresque elements existed among the Spanish people; that these elements have been preserved by Spaniards through all these centuries; and that Spaniards value the picaresque at the present time. To do this, picaresque literature will be studied from the first known novels to the present time. This peculiar form of literature will be compared with Spanish life as well and with the life reflected in the folklore of New Mexico