Juan de Pareja

Juan de Pareja is the protagonist of the novel. He is a Negro man, born into slavery in 1610. His mother is Zulema, a beautiful Negro slave. Juan never knows who his father is. He suspects that a Spaniard from one of Master's warehouses is his father. As a boy, Juan is content to be a slave and devoted to his mistress, who provides him with food and occasionally allows him to watch strolling players at the fair. Juan must go to work as a pageboy at the age of six, when his mother dies. Juan is deeply religious. As a boy, he often loses track of time in church, and as a man, religion is a source of great solace to him. Juan serenely accepts slavery as his lot in life, believing that it is God's will for him. He resents his cruel treatment at the...