Please write a paragraph responding to "A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings" before tomorrow's class. Please read the entries of your classmates that come before and after yours. Feel free to, but don't feel obliged to, respond to one of the following prompts:
1. What similarities do you find between this story and "The Handsomest Drowned Man in the World"? Be as specific as you can.
2. What differences do you find? Be as specific as you can.
3. The author sub-titled each of these stories "A Tale for Children." Comment.
4. Find what to you is the most intriguing, surprising, or best moment in the story and write about it.
The author sub-titled each of his short stories "A Tale for Children." I find this very interesting because the stories don't remind me of bed-time reading. Many of them are a bit dark and abstract, some are even morbid. I don't think it would be inappropriate to read them to children, but the child would have to be a special child in order to find them captivating and understandable.
ReplyDeleteIn many of the stories the author writes about children, or a single child. They aren't necessarily the focus of the story, but they are present. In this way, maybe, the stories are intended for children. Their peers are involved in the tales and for that reason it may be assumed that they can relate to the stories. I don't, however, think this is completely true. I find it hard to relate to the characters in some of the stories, but I do feel a curiosity towards them. Maybe this curiosity is what makes the stories tales for children.
In this story I find it particularly interesting how cruelty and compassion coexist. There are moments of striking cruelty and heartlessness throughout the course of the story. The story ironically examines the human response to those who are weak, reliant, and different. After Pelayo and Elisenda’s child recovers from his illness, for example, the parents decide to put the old man to sea on a raft with only necessities for a mere three days rather than just killing him. This is very difficult considering the old man’s challenging situation and it was most definitely not a kind thing to do. However, once they discover that they can make a profit showcasing the old man, Pelayo and Elisenda hold him captive in a chicken coop outside, where strangers throw stones at him, stare at him, and even burn him with a branding iron.
ReplyDeleteAmongst the insensitivity and mistreatment, however, there do seem to be moments of compassion that are significant because they are so rare. Even though the old man is taken in bitterly, he eventually becomes a part of Pelayo and Elisenda’s home. When the old man finally leaves, flying into the sunset, Elisenda seems to feel a little bit of regret. It is the old mans patience with the people of the village that seems to make Elisenda, and Pelayo change their lives. I think that it could be a possibility that the old mans refusal to leave could be interpreted as a compassionate act to help the underprivileged couple.
Although the author may consider these stories to be for children, they are not at all similar to the stories that I would say are appropriate for that age group. I grew up with variations of stories about princes saving princesses and the evil women being destroyed in the end, the underlying theme in each tending to be love. However, the theme in Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s stories seems to be death, whether it is preparing for a funeral or, oddly enough, playing with and admiring a dead man.
ReplyDeleteThere does tend to be a child or children in each story, with whom the children reading the story may easily relate to. I realize that these younger characters tend to do things that all younger people would do: the child swinging his legs under his chair in Leaf Storm and the children playing with a dead man in the sand on the beach in The Handsomest Drowned Man in the World. I’m not saying that all children would play with a dead man, but most children like to play in the sand with whatever they can find.
The similarities between "The Most Handsome Drowned Man in the World" and this story have to do with the evolution of a supernatural figure effecting average townspeople. The way in which these events unfold, however, differ greatly. First, the arrival of the supernatural figure is received in different ways. When townspeople find the handsome man, they nearly praise him as a deity to the extent that it inspires their village to be a more beautiful place. The angel is treated like a circus animal (to the extent that the word circus is used multiple times). While the drowned man inspires a village, the Angel creates an annoyance for townspeople, and is treated as an impostor from Norway. Also noteworthy is the irony surrounding the Angel. The Angel, supposedly coming from a perfect world, seemingly drops down from the sky in a rainstorm. The Angel is said to have lost all of his grandeur he once possessed, though Angels are thought to be an inspiring sight. Finally, the response from the Vatican upon receiving news that an Angel was found is described as having "no sense of urgency." The highest authority that praises Angels and beings from heaven is casual about the arrival of an Angel in a village.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading this story, I noticed that there were striking similarities and differences between this and the previous story, "The Handsomest Drowned Man in the World." The two stories are similar in that they follow the same basic structure. A stranger arrives in some form, stays for some time, affects the people who interact with him, and the stranger leaves.
ReplyDeleteHowever there are several differences. In the story, "The Handsomest Drowned Man in the World," the man is of course, dead. This means he could not actually interact with the members of the village, as the angel did. What is also strikingly different between the two stories is in how the strangers were treated. While the handsome, albeit dead, man was pampered and revered, the ungainly and ugly angel was treated as an outcast and as a circus freak. I think this is a commentary on the way humans act. Because the dead stranger was a paragon, the epitome of manhood, and beautiful, he was treated so much better than the angel. The villagers saw the man's perfections and decided he was to be treated like a king, even though they had no idea what kind of a person he was. He may have drowned because he was thrown off a vessel for committing murder. But they see a man, old and bedraggled, and treat him terribly, even though they know he is a divine being. Marquez may be trying to say that we are scared of what we do not recognize, and may also be commenting on our bias towards beauty.
While comparing this story with "The Handsomest Drowned Man in the World", I noticed that both stories describe subjects that are rather dark. In this short story, an angel that has accidentally fallen from the sky is held captive and treated like an animal on show. The people in the villages of both stories seem to be oblivious to awful possibilities. In "The Handsomest Drowned Man in the World", the women never take into consideration that the corpse they have found is actually a dead person and may decay. Also, in "A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings", no one stops to think that this man that they've found lying in the mud is fragile and could possibly need medical help. I found it extremely interesting that the citizens of each story were so similar in their absentminded behavior. I also observed that the village people of each story both easily become fascinated with these creatures that have found their way into their area. In "The Handsomest Drowned Man in the World", the women and men have no concern for themselves as they touch the recently washed up corpse and decide on a name for it, while in this story there is absolutely no concern for the consequences of their actions towards the "angel". It appears to me that the setting of both "Children's tales" could be the same.
ReplyDeleteMotifs that I have observed in Marquez’s short stories are the general flaws of the villagers and the location of the setting- near the ocean and away from most foreign influences.
ReplyDeleteThese villagers are in poverty first of all. They are struggling to survive, and are described as very spiritual people; life after death is probably a relief to their situations, and is probably thought of as heaven, verses how the Egyptians thought of life after death- eternal hell.
The sincerity of the Drowned Man, Esteban, and the patience of the Old man with Enormous Wings juxtapose the villagers’ characteristics.
I believe Marquez titles these two short stories “FOR CHILDREN” to teach them early on to have patience, and to be sincere. Marquez depicts the villagers (which mostly all lack these two qualities) as basically savages, throwing carnivals, and acting as animals.
Marquez uses a lot of sarcasm in each story, mostly afflicting adults. They are the animals and savages, who have impure thoughts and unjust actions. The irony of this is that the children are generally more civilized and human. They are depicted in the first novel as playful and innocent.
In general, "Children's Tales" involve some kind of positive moral message through different characters in the tale. In Marquez's "A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings", three main positive moral messages are shown.
ReplyDeleteWhen Father Gonzaga goes to visit the angel, he begins to speak in Latin. He then realizes the angel doesn't speak Latin, and immediately becomes suspicious of the legitimacy of the angel. He is shocked because he had a preconceived notion about God and Heaven. Father Gonzaga also judges his humanity as another reason against him as an angel, because he was so sure about one notion about the heavens. This moral shows children not to pass someone or something by because they do not live up to certain unattainable expectations.
A second instance is when the story of the maid who was turned into a spider happens. Marquez writes this story so that the reader can sympathize with the "kid" that she is. Marquez also adds that her eyes seem conflicted, which is also a common issue with children. This instance is a type of moral because it indirectly tells the ready they are not alone.
Lastly, once the angel flew away the most important moral returns in a new "light". The angel was scrutinized and tortured by ignorant on lookers, while he sat in patience and peace. He did not get too angry and violent, he was just peaceful and calm. When he flew away the reader experienced the moral message of being able to stick through a tough situation despite all odds.
An interesting aspect of both "A Very Old Man With Enormous Wings" and "The Handsomest Drowned Man in the World" is their shared sub-title: "A Tale For Children". However there are clues to lead us to why this sub-title is present. Each story has an aspect of mysticism, as well as a strange tone that suggests an almost... adolescent interpretation of the events that are being described. In "A Very Old Man With Enormous Wings" we encounter what appears to be a fallen angel, a humanoid spider-lady, and a strange amount of lore that probably isn't fully in synch with that of our world. However, all of these seem to be accepted by the characters in the story in a way that doesn't seem to make sense. While undoubtably the characters in "A Very Old Man With Enormous Wings" are stricken with awe at the sight of their potentially biblical guest, they, and the rest of their community treat the man more similarly to a caged animal rather than something so unbelievably impossible that it could shake the stability of what they perceive as reality. Also there seems to be a simplicity in their acceptance of what occurs in the story, that in our world is something that only children would be able to accept. Our characters debate whether or not the old man could just be "A Norwegian with wings" and with time seem to almost forget about his extreme peculiarity, and allow him to live within their home as if he were a pet.
ReplyDelete"The Handsomest Drowned Man in the World" is full of themes that seemingly could have come straight out of the imagination of a child. In the beginning paragraph of the story this idea is alluded to through the games the children play with the dead man they discover on the beach. Pretending him to be a whale, or an enemy boat is an example of this. The rest of the story seems to be an example of how children rationalize the world. The conclusion to "The Handsomest Drowned Man in the World" is a makeover of the exterior of the entire village in which these people live. They build their houses larger in honor of the drowned man, they plant colorful flowers and use vibrant paints in memory of his beauty, and prepare him an extremely elaborate funeral. It seems as if this story was created in order to simplify the reality of the children to whom the story was tailored for. As apposed to explaining the complexities of changes in the trends of fashion and architecture our society has seen, we tell our youth lies to help them accept the world around them. This story is an example of this.
An interesting similarity that I noticed between "The Very Old Man with Enormous Wings" and "The Handsomest Drowned Man in the World" was from a line on page 108...
ReplyDelete"The angel was the only one who took no part in his own act."
This reminded me that in "The Handsomest Drowned Man in the World," because the man was dead, he obviously did not get a chance to take any part in his own act. When all the women were obsessing over the drowned man, he had no say in the situation. The same lack of participation occurred for the old man. In both stories the men were "muted" in a way. First: the drowned man was dead, and second, the old man did not speak the same language as the village people. Even since the old man was alive and was able to notice how people were becoming fascinated with him, he still didn't seem to engage with them.
Also, in both stories the villagers don't seem to have much control over events in their lives. It seems that every chance each town obtains to take advantage of a vulnerable foreigner, they use it.
They seemed to enjoy the power over these men, and created their own satisfying background stories for each of the characters. With the drowned man they gave him the name of Esteban and a pitiful mood for the life of a tall outcast. For the old man, they forced him to experience the life as an "alien," and claimed he was a Norwegian angel...
These village people seem to get heavily infatuated and use the characters that they're most interested in as their distraction from their own lives of problems. Another example, is once people in "The Very Old Man with Enormous WIngs," started becoming accustomed to seeing the angel, they moved on to the next big and better character...the maiden spider.
This can even relate to real life in a strange way to me. This is because when someone experiences a conflict at a point in his/her life, he/she tends to concentrate their time and energy into an intriguing subject, in order to use the focus as an escape. Not all of the time does this occur in reality, but it does seem to be something many people do naturally.
Garcia Marquez subtitles his stories as " a childrens tale" for some reason. What comes to my mind is that even though this kind of stories do not fit in a children tale it has resemblance in one way or another. first of all children tales use to be short and straight to the point, just like this collection of stories by the author. Another similarity might be the use of magical realism and fantastical characters. In this specific story Garcia Marquez adds characters that might appear in a children's book story such as Spider woman and a man that flies, But it is the actual content that as said before does not fit in to a typical fairytale or bed time story.
ReplyDeleteLike Zane said "but the child would have to be a special child in order to find them captivating and understandable". I would have to agree with because of the complexity and deep meaning of each story.
While reading this story, I had quite a few moments of shock and disappointment with the way that the people of this village treated the "angel". After Pelayo and Elisenda were told the man was an angel, they basically threw him into the chicken coop to rot for the next few months. I feel that in many other stories that were intended for children, this would be the point in the story where the "angel" is nursed back to health by the two loving parents of the small child, until he is well enough to travel back to his home. Instead, the "angel" is left to fend for himself outside while hoards of people come and spectate.
ReplyDeleteThe most surprising thing about this short story to me was that although the "angel" was mistreated and abused so harshly at the home of Pelayo and Elisenda, he still brought them prosperity and happiness. His presence allowed them to build a mansion, Pelayo was able to quit his job, and both parents were able to spend more time with their child, who was no longer sick. Also, the people of the village are observing miracles in their town, but they are bitter because they're not the miracles they asked for. Maybe if they treated the "angel" better their miracles would be more miraculous.
It was just shocking to me to see how poorly this man was treated, even though he was thought to hold the powers of an angel.
There are several important similarities between "The Handsomest Drowned Man in the World" and "The Very Old Man With the Enormous Wings". Both stories have a very similar structure and theme. A mystical like creature comes into their lives and then inspires or causes a change to those to those whose lives they touch. The stories themselves are also very dark. It is implied that both Esteban and the man with wings have come from some very harsh circumstances that led them to come to these people. The "angel" is a fallen one that can't seem to stand back up. Esteban's life has ended and his existence beforehand could have been fiercely cruel.
ReplyDeleteBoth stories have a lot of symbolism. In both they start out talking about the sea in some way. The sea could symbolize all life which can be unclear and murky and tends to surprise you. Esteban is a symbol of idealism verses reality. In reality this man is drowned and these people have no idea who is is or where he came from. Still, they believe that the appearance of this beautiful dead man has suddenly changed their entire village. When, in reality, the change was really brought about by themselves. Esteban did nothing except remain dead. The community made all kinda of assumptions about this man's life and the way people treated him, yet they know none of this to be true. The fallen angel symbolizes the impending fall from grace of Pelayo and Elisenda. They discover this creature and instead of helping it they decided to put it into the chicken coop. They often talk of the old man as being a source of irritation for them. Which symbolizes how sometimes when people have been blessed(in this case by an angel) they are not grateful for their blessing. Which may have ben able to help them more had they had a different attitude about it.
"a tale for children". I find it extremely weird that the author put this under both short stories. Neither story reminds me of a bed time story I heard when I was younger, but I do believe that there is a direct correlation between the stories and children. The children in both stories are mentioned through out the story "the very old man with enormous wings". The children are what cause the towns people in "the handsomest drowned man in the world" and it causes Pelayo to go outside and make his discovery of the very old man with enormous wings.
ReplyDeleteI also find it interesting that the children treat the dead man with no respect yet the towns people do, and how the children treat the Angel with respect but not the towns people.