Through the horrific tale of blood avenging in the name of family honor, Ismail Kadare provides a broad outlook of Albania’s Kanun in Broken April (1990). The author makes use of different perspectives to provide an overall view of the culture of Albania. One such perspective comes from Mark Ukacierra, who provides an insider’s approach to the horrific law of the blood feuds. Kadare shifts to the perspective of Mark and makes use of techniques such as metaphors, free indirect discourse and internal conflict to emphasize the horror of the Kanun and its prominence in the modern society.
Kadare emphasizes the horror of the Kanun through the use of internal conflict within Mark Ukacierra’s character. As the Steward of the Blood goes through several journals based on the Kanun, he picks out references to the "blood industry," "blood merchandise," or "blood-feud mechanism” (Kadare 141). This creates a monstrous image of the Kanun through the eyes of a journalist. The image is so horrifying that Mark, initially, is unable to come to terms with it. However, later in the chapter, Mark himself refers to “the machinery of death” (146), which enables the readers to witness a change in his stance on the Kanun. Additionally, Mark Ukacierra is absorbed by tales “published in those sickening periodicals, strung out along their columns as if in coffins” which, according to him, are only “corpses” of the news which is being spread around the highlands (150). This repeated metaphor for death and blood is carried throughout until the author ironically reveals that the Steward of the Blood is “blood sick”. He seems to evolve from a controlling authoritarian into a gentle victim of the Kanun. In the end, Kadare not only unveils Mark’s true attitude t...
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...On the one hand, the steward of the blood represents the old traditions of the high plateau, which gives the people a sense of honor. On the other hand, the Prince represented the financially rewarding side of the Kanun, which portrays the Kanun to be a set of old fashioned laws only used for economic gain in the modern world.
In summary, Mark Ukacierra’s free indirect discourse manages to highlight the horrific nature of the Kanun as well as open the readers to regard the dilemma faced by people stuck in the feud system. Moreover, it draws attention to the status of age-old traditions, such as the practicing of the blood law, in modern day society. Kadare’s shift to Mark Ukacierra’s perspective helps to identify with characters stuck in the feud system.
Works Cited
Kadare, Ismail. Broken April. Trans. Ivan R. Dee. New York: New Amsterdam
Books, 1990. Print.
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