Understanding Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s Literary Legacy
Gabriel Garcia Marquez was born in Aracataca, Colombia, in 1928. He belongs to a group of writers from the 1960s and combines his journalistic activity with writing short stories and novels. His literary summit was his novel One Hundred Years of Solitude (1967). He was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1982. The most significant elements of Latin American novels are:
- Real magic
- The incorporation of the subconscious
- Incorporation of a mythical-allegorical theme
- The presence of death
- The breakdown of linear time
- The illogicality
- The experimentation with language
- The sacred sense of the body
The historical context is marked by political, social, and cultural factors. South American countries have experienced acute political instability throughout the twentieth century. The social situation of the population is a mixture of races that have little chance of integration due to misery and poverty. The cultural situation masterfully manages to unite tradition, modernity, and experimentation.
Chronicle of a Death Foretold
Trend Fiction: This short story blends elements of journalism and the novel. The most original aspects are the reduction and temporal anachronism. It covers only an hour but refers to children and their incipient old age characterized by:
- Magic realism
- Universalism and extension of the issues raised
- Undisputed star of the human being, immersed in an existential complex
- Renewal of narrative features:
- a) Subjectivism
- b) Break of the linearity of time
- c) Incorporation of the subconscious through the interior monologue
Arguments: The Vicario twins kill Santiago Nasar for the dishonor of their sister, who married Angela Bayardo San Roman. From the beginning of the novel, his death is announced. Everyone knows he will be killed, and nobody does anything to help.
The main theme is the tragic destiny or fate, related to the themes of honor, education, and political-social structures.
Perspective and Narrative Techniques
Structure: The story is composed of five chapters without a linear structure.
Chapter 1:
Santiago Nasar, 21 years old, is killed the day after the wedding. Angela was not a virgin, so Bayardo returns to his parents. The news spreads, but nobody helps.
Chapter 2:
Bayardo comes six months before; he is attractive and rich. He marries Angela, discovers she was not a virgin, and she says it was Santiago’s fault.
Chapter 3:
The twins announce they are going to kill Santiago and seek him out.
Chapter 4:
Santiago’s family is buried, and Bayardo and the Vicario twins leave the village. Angela writes letters for 17 years and eventually reunites with Bayardo.
Chapter 5:
People are affected by the crime for years. When the news of Santiago’s death spreads, the twins attack, and he dies at his door.
Narrative Techniques: Time, Space, and Characters
Time is cyclical and atomized; it decomposes at a moment. It is a tale of memories of events, past or twenty years later.
Space: The story is set in Garcia Marquez’s hometown on the Caribbean coast.
Characters:
- Santiago: 21 years old, has a divine face, a hacienda bequeathed by his father. Dreamer, happy, peaceful, friendly, formal, and believing.
- Bayardo: A train engineer, well-dressed, gallant with women, wealthy, and enjoys holidays.
- Angela: The youngest in the family, not a believer, but very modest with men. She matures after the events and becomes witty, although she hides the truth about what happened.
- The Twins: They seek to restore honor to their family; none of them wanted to pass this critical moment as they were not tried.
- A Journalist: A friend of Santiago who attempts to reconstruct what happened; it becomes personal as he investigates.
Language and Style
The narrative is a mixture of the legendary style of magic realism, with dense prose and poetic metaphors. It incorporates elements of violence and tragedy. Slang is used as the twins come from a humble family. The ironic treatment of the facts is another hallmark of the style.