Big Mama's Funeral
Gabriel García Márquez story, Big Mama's Funeral, is a story filled with fantastical scenes and events much in line with Don Quixote and Candide. The introductory paragraphs of Big Mama's Funeral and Candide sound so similar in voice the two authors could be mistaken for the same. In Candide, one finds a series of episodes that are so far from the truth and yet perfectly explainable. The story of the fate of Dr. Pangloss, the death and resurrection of Cunegund and of her Jesuit brother, and the story of the old woman with one buttock are farcical in the same way as the episodes in Big Mama's Funeral. In Don Quixote, we find a man, for the most part average, who wishes to become a knight-errant. In his quest is as series of happenings so ridiculous they are nothing short of tabloid-style sensationalism, or drug induced hallucinations.
In Big Mama's Funeral, we are told the story of the death and funeral of Big Mama. In the events of her life and the days proceeding and proceeding her death we find events and stories of the past that are truly fantastical. In the annals of her past we find that in her family the "uncles married the daughters of their nieces, and the cousins married their aunts, and the brothers their sisters-in-law, until an intricate mesh of consanguinity was formed." Here, García Márquez takes the simple act of incestuous relationships, which do occur, and elevates them to an extreme level. This is the writing style of García Márquez and the two aforementioned writers, Cervantes and Voltaire.
In 1949, Dana Gioia reflected on the significance of Gabriel García Márquez’s narrative style when he accurately quoted, “[it] describes the matter-of-fact combination of the fantastic and everyday in Latin American literature” (Gioia). Today, García Márquez’s work is synonymous with magical realism. In “Un Señor Muy Viejo con Alas Enormes,” the tale begins with be dramatically bleak fairytale introduction:
But there she was marrying with my uncle, my father’s brother, who is just as similar to my father as I am to Hercules. Within a month following my father’s death, before her tears had time to dry, she got married. So quick to jump and fall into their bed of incest.
Marquez used Magical Realism elements to showcase supernatural beings, and to teach valuable lessons. Within the themes of both stories a strong moral component is found. To get the point of this moral across, Marquez uses distinct writing techniques. He paints the picture of his setting through his descriptive language, but, not all of his stories are exactly the same! This is what makes them such a delight to read; the different workings that make up each individual story are beautiful on their own, but can be compared to each other.
De Cervantes, Miguel. Don Quixote De La Mancha. Trans. Charles Jarvis. Ed. E. C. Riley. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1999. Print.
In The Chronicle of a Death Foretold, religion acts as a foremost determinant of the meaning of Santiago’s murder and parallels biblical passages. Gabriel García Márquez employs religious symbolism throughout his novella which alludes to Christ, his familiars, and his death on the cross. There are many representations throughout the novella that portray these biblical references, such as the murder of Santiago, the Divine Face, the cock’s crowing and the characters, Bayardo San Roman, Maria Cervantes, Divina Flor, and the Vicario children.
Meursault’s Maman, when introduced to the reader, has already passed away; however, her past relationships that disclose themselves when Meursault attends the funeral directly contrast her son’s emotional receptivity, or lack thereof. During Maman’s funeral, a woman “in the second row...emitted a little choking sob” (8). The keeper subsequently relieves Meursault of his frustration by explaining to him that “she was devoted to [his] mother” and that they were close friends (8). Along with friendship, Maman also embraces romance during her last few days with her relationship with Thomas Perez at the home, where “[he] and [maman] [are] almost inseparable” and “people [would] tease Perez about having a fiance” (10). Maman’s attempt to form de...
Initially it was thought infants become attached to their mother due to her feeding them most. Infant’s get pleasure from being fed and associate this with the mother which results in an attachment being formed. This theory
Mahatma Gandhi was born October 2nd in 1869. He grew up with the Hindu culture around him because the main religion where he was born was Hinduism. He heard about a religion called the Jain religion, which influenced his thoughts on the world around him. The religion was based around peace and being non violent to living beings and things. After spent lots of his life in Africa working on Indian civil rights. He tried to make things non violent as he believed that people should be non violent. He held the salt march on the 12th of March 1930 with almost 80 people; they marched about 10 miles a day. They did this because the English made it illegal to have salt. This shows Gandhi’s leader ship and how he believed and made things better. Gandhi died on January 30th in 1948 at the age of 78. Many people were sad at his death because he was an important person to many and people such as Martin Luther King Jr. used his concept of non-violence.
Don Quixote is one of the oldest forms of the modern novel. Written in the early 17th century it follows the adventures of Don Quixote and his sidekick Sancho Panza. In Don Quixote, Cervantes satirizes the idea of a hero. Don Quixote sees himself as a noble knight among the ignorant common folk, but everyone else sees him as a bumbling idiot who has gone mad. Therefore, the novel’s longevity in the western canon is due to the humorous power struggle and the quest of a hero Don Quixote faces throughout the story.
The 1950’s Cinderella created by world-renown Disney director, Clyde Geronimi, has been established as the most renown and generic story out of all. In comparison to Charles Perrault’s “Cinderella”, the standard storyline, both have the same concepts. Similarities such as the abuse, the magic, and the happily ever after is present in both exactly. Although, there are also horrifying aspects to discuss about Cinderella and their other versions. Certain acts such as the abuse and mutilation are considered to be unjust and not right, no matter the situation; but perhaps Cinderella was not as virtuous and kind as portrayed in the 1950’s film.
“As a child I assumed that when I reached adulthood, I would have grown-up thoughts.”- David Sedaris. The transition from a child to an adult could be a very intimidating time, this is because not only are people expected to know more but the increase of responsibility sometimes terrifies people. Many reasons on why some prefer childhood over their now adulthood varies on responsibility, the things people are required to know, and the the idea of having a parent or being a parent.
Gabriel Garcia Collected Novellas: Chronicle of A Death Foretold. New York[:] Harper Collins Publishers, 1990.
Having a home for themselves and their family to live in is a major necessity in the way of life, having a vehicle is the next big thing for an adult to have. Having both necessities comes with a price, that price being the bills behind it. If an adult has a house that adult will accumulate not only a power/light bill, but a water bill, a cable bill if they would like to watch tv, maybe even an internet or gas bill. Not to mention the bills that come with having a car. They could have a car payment, or how about gas? What about all the tire replacements or oil changes needed? What happens if something goes wrong? These questions and these bills can cause an adult to go into major stress mode. As to where with children none of that stuff will even phase them, because they simply just do not have to think about things like
To begin with, as an adult, I start valuing how “easy” it was to be a child when I have to pay my car insurance, phone bill, gas, and other responsibilities I have to take care of. I remember as a child my mom would give me $20 and I felt rich. Now,