City Of The Beast Symbols

How would being secluded from the world you know change your perspective of some of life's basic functions? Being away from normal civilization can strengthen the basic morals of life. As captured in ‘City of the Beasts’, by Isabel Allende, the characters' viewpoints are altered by being away from their home. In turn, they come to the stunning realization of many of life's values. Allende uses specific symbols to display these traits and their impact on peoples' lives. The various symbols in ‘City of the Beasts’, by Allende, elaborate on the basic themes of fear, death, and hope.

Alexander’s flute symbolizes hope. His original flute, stolen by a mischievous woman named Morgana at the onset of his adventure, was quickly replaced by an even more tremendous instrument. This flute, originally owned by his grandfather Joseph, was given to him by his eccentric grandmother, Kate. Although believing that he had his prized possession lost forever, hope soon gave him a gift beyond belief. As

said by Kate, "Here, Alexander. Your grandfather played this for forty years. Take care of it." (Allende 42). As Alexander’s journey played out, when seemingly unbearable situations arose, he would play his flute to alleviate the difficulties. The music produced by Alex, gives hope to him and his fellow team members, while soothing his enemies in the process. This trait was shared by the giant bat in the cave while on his quest for the water of health. By playing his cheerful tunes, the bat was subdued enough for him to pass. His quest for the water of health was now able to continue. "Then he realized that this water of health was the most valuable thing in the world to him, the only thing that could save his mother's life. He would have to leave his most valuable possession in exchange. He placed the flute on the ground... The slow trickle immediately started again." (Allende 315). At the climax of the story, Alex was journeying into the depths of the earth. In order to find the water of health, Alex gave up his prized flute, thus creating hope for is mom's survival.
Alternatively, the belief of the Beast was prone to causing fear in the hearts of many civilians and explorers.

Many described the Beast as a tall being with an indescribably foul odor. As Padre Valdomero fearfully explained the being which is the Beast, he stated, "What I have told many times: a giant more than nine feet tall, which moved very slowly and had a terrible odor. I was paralyzed with fear." (Allende 73). Armed with potentially fatal claws, the Beast can believably travel undetected, without warning. Having this in mind, the people that had any type of contact with the Beast, lived in an unexplainably endless terror. An example of the Beast’s victims is the one of the expedition’s soldiers, whose corpse looked distraught in fear, after he was attacked and killed by the Beast. The death of the soldier only escalated the fear of the group. However, their fear appeared to be mainly in their minds, as the Beasts are shown to be sensible, talking

creatures.
Finally, the vials, which are originally shown as the saviors of the Indians, turn out to symbolize the death in the Indians. Doctor Omayra Torres, once looked up to by the group as the protector for the Indians’ well-being, their viewpoints soon turned to see her as a mass-murderer. "Who could imagine that Omayra Torres, the person entrusted to vaccinate the Indians, was the one injecting them with death so her lover could appropriate their lands." (Allende 357). For years, Indian tribes perished after falsely being informed that vials of vaccines were actually the deadly measles virus. The Indians had thought that the Rahakanariwa was a cannibal bird but it was in fact the measles virus, which was killing off many other Indian tribes.
The symbolization of hope, fear and death were all essential plot points in City of the Beasts. They all changed how certain characters reacted to ideas and objects. Hope got the characters through road blocks in their adventure, which seemed impassable. Fear manipulated the minds of many people who came in contact with the Beast. Death killed off a culture that carried through a simplistic yet effective life. These strong symbols, ideas, and themes were not only important and necessary in this novel, but also in all of real life’s challenges.