Royal Hunt: Day 3; Documentary Projects: Day 6; Notes on 100 Years of Solitude

Period 1:

We will continue to read Royal Hunt of the Sun.

Period 2ish:

Please work on your South and Central American Culture documentary projects/research or your writing/workshops with time remaining in class.

100 Years of Solitude Notes:

Macondo is drawn from García Márquez's childhood town, Aracataca. Aracataca is located near the north (Caribbean) coast of Colombia, 80 km South of Santa Marta. Macondo was originally the name of banana plantation and literally means "banana" in the Bantu language.

In June 2006, the people of Aracataca organized a referendum to change the name of the town to Aracataca Macondo. Although the yes vote won, the referendum failed because of lack of voters and Aracataca kept its traditional name.

The town first appears in García Márquez's short story "Leaf Storm" but he uses the setting in many of his works. An author that uses the same setting for his/her stories is a regional writer.

Characters in 100 Years of Solitude

The first half (150-200 pages) in this book deals greatly with the first and second generations of the Buendia family. Here are some notes to think about and help you:

First Generation:

• Jose Arcadio Buendía is the first patriarch of the Buendia family and the founder of Macondo of which he dreams of a city of mirrors and establishes the town. He is an inquisitive man of massive strength (like his son Jose Arcadio) and energy who spends more time on his scientific pursuits. Eventually, he is tied to a tree for most of his life (i.e., his own family tree) and withdraws from his family in solitude until his death.
• Úrsula Iguarán is one of the two matriarchs of the Buendía family and is wife to José Arcadio Buendía. She lives to be over 130 years old and oversees the Buendía household through six of the seven generations documented in the novel. She is a very strong character and often succeeds where the men of her family fail. She is the archetypical mother figure in the novel and represents stability to contrast the wild adventures of her children.

 Second generation:

• José Arcadio is Jose Arcadio Buendía's firstborn son and has inherited his father's stubborn impulsive personality.  He leaves Macondo to chase a Gypsy girl and returns many years later as an enormous man covered in tattoos, claiming that he's sailed the world's seas. Various characters represent the explorer spirit found in the Buendia family line. Jose Arcadio marries his adopted sister Rebeca, and he dies from a mysterious gunshot wound, days after saving his brother from execution.
• Colonel Aureliano Buendia is José Arcadio Buendía's second son and the first person to be born in Macondo. He is plagued with premonitions (a quality echoed in various characters) and represents a warrior/leader and rebel archetype. He is also a sensitive artist who writes poetry and creates finely crafted golden fish. During the wars, he fathers 17 sons by unknown women. All of the Aurelianos in this book are fragmented versions of his character.
• Remedios Moscote is the youngest daughter of the town's Conservative administrator, Don Apolinar Moscote. She is quite beautiful and Colonel Aureliano Buendia falls in love with her, despite her extreme youth. She dies shortly after their marriage due to blood poisoning during pregnancy.
• Amaranta and Rebeca. Amaranta is Jose Arcadio Buendia's third child (and only legitimate daughter). Amaranta grows up as a companion of her adopted sister Rebeca. However, her feelings toward Rebeca turn sour over Pietro Crespi, whom both sisters desire in their teenage years. Amaranta dies a lonely and virginal spinster while Rebeca is the daughter of Ursula Iguaran's second cousins. At first, she refuses to speak and has the habit of eating earth and whitewash from the walls of the house, a condition known as pica. She arrives carrying a canvas bag containing her parents' bones and seems not to understand or speak Spanish. She falls in love with (and marries) her adoptive brother José Arcadio after his return from traveling the world. While not incest exactly, the insular relationships within the family are important to note here. When Jose Arcadio dies, she lives in seclusion or solitude for the rest of her life. This happens to several characters at some point in their lives.

THEMES

When we write we should be trying to make a point or explain an observation about the human condition as it relates to ourselves and our characters or fictional world.

In 100 Years of Solitude the themes of time and solitude (isolation) are central to understanding the point of this book. By considering these themes, we, as readers and students, can at least try to grasp what Marquez is trying to teach or tell us about ourselves as human beings. Ah, the power of literature!

The novel's central theme is solitude or human isolation. The Buendia Family--as our protagonists--represent the human condition. Protagonists usually represent the common man or woman (Everyman). Critics have noted that the Beundias "are solitary individuals living together as strangers in the same house. As such, they personify the predicament of the human race."

Gabriel García Márquez does not number his chapters in this book. A reader may wonder why? Perhaps this is the author's way of making us notice time. You do not necessarily notice your life passing day by day. Taken into consideration the flow of human experience we notice that which is important or life-altering, but the days themselves slip fluidly away. This experience is likely to become more pronounced as your life continues. The bewilderment of the older generation looking back and saying: "where did my life go?" is a very human experience.

Authors not using traditional fiction conventions draw attention to their work. Without chapters, readers think of a book as a single entity. In 100 Years of Solitude Marquez presents us with twenty unmarked subdivisions (chapters) that are "not [treated] as discrete segments but interlinked members in a unitary whole: one text."

The work is fluid, with descriptive, detail-filled paragraphs interspersed with minimal dialogue. From word choice (diction), verisimilitude, to sentence and syntax, Marquez builds his paragraphs to include both the normal activities of his characters along with the episodes that remain relevant and dynamic. The chapters flow into one another to create a full text of seamless narrative: time does not stop until the very end (as is the way of all things).

What is confusing for a reader or a student is that the book is not linear. An author can choose to write either chronologically (time events happen one after the other in a normal and expected cause/effect fashion) or use a non-linear narrative, utilizing flashbacks, flashforwards, and fragmented events that build suspense (but may be confusing for weaker readers). If you, as a young writer, need a challenge or are bored with the same ol' chronological narrative, try a nonlinear plot design in your fiction. You will find it much more interesting (as does a skilled reader).

HOMEWORK: Continue reading 100 Years of Solitude. Aim to complete up to pg. 358. Consider the notes above (read them!) and take written notes of characters not listed above that we read about in the novel. Continue to look for evidence and examples of magical realism and keep track of characters (many of whom repeat themselves). It's a good idea to write down your observations in notes for your test.

Be sure to bring your projects to class to deliver them by the beginning of Period 2! You will have some minor time to work on your projects Thursday before we view the presentations.