Incantation

Catalina, or “Crow” as she is nicknamed, is the antagonist and a foil for the protagonist, Estrella. The two lead parallel lives and initially see their futures as intertwined, but Catalina proves to be a greedy and self-centered person. She constantly wishes for the things Estrella has, including her looks, belongings, and social status, embodying the theme of Jealousy and the Appearance of Wealth. Catalina particularly covets the pearl necklace that she manipulates Estrella into giving her. Catalina’s desire for Andres further underscores her role as a foil. However, rather than having an emotional connection with him as Estrella does, Catalina views him as a path to prosperity.

While the book begins with Catalina and Estrella in similar positions, it ends with the steep social and material decline of Estrella and the rise of Catalina. Her behavior during the burning of the books in the Plaza foreshadows the betrayal that facilitates her self-enrichment: “Catalina applauded with the other onlookers in the square when a soldier threw a bucket of cold water over the old man. I merely stood there” (8). Catalina’s delight in someone else’s pain demonstrates her callousness—a throughline as she sneaks in to steal the belongings of the Arrias family and betrays Estrella for profit and revenge. At the Inquisition trials, Catalina proudly wears Estrella’s necklace while also displaying many other belongings taken from those she has accused of heresy.

A 35-year-old widow and the protagonist’s mother, Abra has multiple public roles in the community. She is known for her beautifully dyed wool and her knowledge of healing. A smart and beautiful woman, Abra uses the education she received from her father to participate in intellectual conversations and develop relationships across language barriers. She passes on her knowledge of plants and the world to her daughter, taking Estrella with her on her excursions to the hills and the Muslim quarter. This also gives Abra the flexibility to educate her daughter away from the eyes of her Christian neighbors. Abra places special importance on her ability to divine the future; she thinks of herself as “the queen of all fate” and is fearless in her daughter’s eyes (10).

However, Abra’s jobs expose her to public scrutiny and also form the basis for the suspicion and envy surrounding her. When she is arrested, those that were jealous of her and her beauty use the details of her work to make insulting and ridiculous claims. When Abra is imprisoned, she works to send the precious emerald ring to Estrella and the poisoned tablets to her son to protect both of them. It is her beauty that ultimately protects her, as the judge allows her to die before the fires are set.

Estrella’s wise and respected grandfather is initially a withdrawn and aloof character in his granddaughter’s eyes. The first reference to him compares his long beard to that of the rabbi featured in the first chapter. Such hints as to his secret Jewish identity grow until Estrella finally confronts him and earns his respect. As the novel progresses, he becomes a mentor to Estrella, her increasing affinity for her Jewish identity paralleling her growing closeness to her grandfather.

While he is known as a teacher, Estrella’s grandfather also has a secret role in the community as a surgeon. His willingness to pursue this forbidden work shows his dedication to his faith and his willingness to continue upholding his identity and traditions. His dismissal of women and their intelligence reveals the more negative side of his traditionalism, although he makes an exception by teaching his daughter, Abra, and later Estrella. While he is the first to be executed by the Inquisition, his ideas live on in the notebook that his wife takes from their house.

Luis is Estrella’s older brother, who spends much of the novel away studying at seminary. Despite being burdened with tremendous expectations, Luis is always compassionate and kind. Estrella narrates, “He was my grandparents’ favorite, and for good reason” (10). Rather than becoming spoiled, however, he remains close to Estrella and generous with the people of their community. A smart young man, he was tutored by his grandfather for a special purpose beyond the priesthood: He sees himself as Friar deLeon’s successor and believes he will take on the role of protecting this community. He speaks multiple languages, and his dedication to studying never wavers. Luis is a constant in Estrella’s life, and his arrest demonstrates the power and reach of the Spanish Inquisition, which tracks and arrests someone far away from Estrella’s village.

The character with the most dramatic transformation, Estrella’s grandmother (also known as “Carmen” or “Sarah”) struggles with maintaining the family’s secret identity. The fear of discovery has driven her to be an aloof and imposing person, with Estrella seeing her corrections as worse than her grandfather’s silence. While she seems cruel to Estrella at times, threatening to sell Dini and never being pleased with Estrella’s work, it comes from a place of anxiety.

The novel shows Estrella’s grandmother to be in a loving relationship with her husband, who often uses her secret name of “Sarah” to show their love. As a name from the Old Testament (i.e., the Hebrew Bible), the name forms some of the evidence brought against her husband at trial. Her descent into denial as the family suffers at the hands of the court warns Estrella about what happens when one succumbs to grief.