English Literature Essay
In Gabriel Garcias, Chronicle of a death foretold and Mariama Bas So long a letter, What I find most interesting is the use of the literary devices such as Foreshadowing, recollections, reminisces, themes and symbols and other devices which I will later on dissect in the essay. These language features stirs the reader's urge to read more as they ponder on reality and also into the way devices have been used ,to bring out the principle of life and its moments. Comparatively, the two books take us on a ride of Anguish and amazement. On these lines, I can hereby mention, the two books as somewhat of an eye-opener. These two books sum up the engagement that happens in it. This conflict will shoot us on for a proper read as we shall get to see man in conflict with man, man again in conflict with nature and man in conflict with self.
In Chronicle of a death foretold, Symbolism in the "white linen" of Santiago has been purposely used and it is supposed to be taken literally and also as a representative of a higher, more complicated meaning. It is a representation of his role as an offering. The white linen is a symbol of virtue which Santiago wears. It is a way of contradicting the mass that he's not the culprit of Angela and this clearly reveals to us how the general public are quick to judge the named victim based on insubstantial evidence. By using Foreshadowing it provides tastes and clues of what transpires later on in the book or in the forthcoming. Marquez uses this to unveil to us that, Santiago is actually wrongly accused which put's the reader on the same level of understanding as his. He also wants us to see the village is run on social rules.
The pictorial consciousness of the reader is more stimulated by the use of imagery of the "steamboat" which is visually entailed to be old and have less splendor than it was year's ago. It's fascinating how Marquez uses this to demonstrate that Christianity, a ritual inaugurated by the society is followed by no one because they did before. Religion is also a subject of how insincere the society is. Religion comes in when the murder circumstance is seen dealt with in court. The author interestingly has used juxtaposition of the church and law as entailed, "the court declared in good faith". This is very erroneous as the justice system should never in any away have any links to faith or religion in this case, in this mode, it's supposed to rule in accordance to the logics and rights. Father Amador and also the archbishop do not pay attention to Santiago Nasar's murder as they think it's unimportant. Error is to human, forgiveness is divine , the saying goes. Not in this eye for an eye society! If that is how the church, a place deliverance is showed, then why would they not pay attention to what they have power on? Is it just utter lack of facts?
Marquez has made use of Religious allusions intriguingly. An example is when Marquez mentions, "…the apostolic lap of Maria Alejandrina Cervantes". This is regarded unruly in the eyes of church and religion as one piece. Religion being contrasted to prostitute is a complete contradiction and is absolute immoral. Irrationality comes to play when the men in this individualism driven society who claim to endorse this religious ideology are the ones benefiting from Maria. How ironic, that also she may be deemed right to fit into the society with uprightness as she's not holding back her trade. Marquez used the idea of prostitution to bring to light the insincerity of his deceptive society. Santiago is faulted to have allegedly tainted Angela Vicario before marriage, though the men continually visit prostitution services. These prostitutes are hyped as seen by the way Maria Alejandrina Cervantes is portrayed as a 'houri' which is a Muslim word that means holy virgin.
The author's use of euphemism emphasizes the arrogance of the people in the society. The writer uses them to try and hide what is evident deluding himself to think that what he is doing is not really wrong. Instead of just saying murder, the author uses "the barbarous work of death". Also, premarital sex is devised as "childhood accidents". The use of euphemism shows how concealed the society is. They have religious rules that reprove such incidences but then the author tries to play with our consciousness by presenting them to us as if they are something good to hear yet they are not!
On the other hand, in "So long a letter", what I find intriguing is the use of recollection and we also see the subject of relationship right at the beginning of the book. Ramatoulaye writes a letter to her good friend Aissatou to revive their ties after their "long relationship" which taught her that, "confiding in others dispels pain." She thinks over her ruined marriage with Modou and the book connects the betrayal she got from her husband. Aissatou, who faced similar circumstances, is able to share mutual feelings with her friend whose marriage had been ruined due to polygamy. However, what matters is how both of them took the daring act not to take the place of a submissive wife. Ramatoulaye and Aissatou, despite their situations, are victims of denial of traditional customs which refute women equal stand to that of men. They have endured sufferings in this hugely male-controlled society.
Modou doesn't inform Ramatoulaye about his motives to get married to another woman. The Imam and his brother are the ones who Modou send to report to Ramatoulaye, that is, after he has wedded Binetou. What gutters most is his sudden ignorance of supporting his family and how he deserts them as he pays attention to Binetou. This action, which is authorized by Islam, is an unfaithfulness of his wife's trust and an unruly denial of their life together. Ramatoulaye feels despair for Binetou as she perceives of how her youth has been destroyed. "At the age of love and freedom from care, this child is dogged by sadness". This shows us a regretful tone of Binetou's choice and how the death of Modou has affected her. Ramatoulaye, herself says that "I am excessively sentimental. I was not at all pleased by this display on either side. In this, I feel the bitterness of being rejected and being treated as a second rate as Binetou takes privilege over their marriage. This statement of being sentimental is only a way of playing down the disappointment and condemnation.
"Was it madness, weakness, irresistible love? What inner mix-up led Modou fall to marry Binetou?" The tone used here is of resentment and confusion. The feeling of disloyalty stings her. She feels that she has served her husband so faithfully and deserves nothing less, "the addition of a rival to my life was not enough for him…He risked to commit such an act of repudiation." The rhetorical question is passionate and appeals to the readers to share in her sentimental mix-up. She also recalls of how,"Daouda Dieng…knew how to win hearts." She bears with her recollections of regret at the loss of chance with Daouda. He was the family choice and affluent by the standards of the times, but Ramatoulaye "preferred the man in the eternal khaki suit", Modou. Dieng now is a symbol of infidelity as the woman feels the loss or shame of suffering silently. "I no longer scorn my mother's reserve concerning {Modou} for a mother can instinctively feel where her child's happiness lies." Ramatoulaye regrets having not taken heed of mother's advice-too good to be true as she found Modou to "too handsome, toorefined, too perfect for a man" probably signaling that too polished is too dangerous.
In the two books, "So long a letter" and "Chronicle of a death foretold", the use of literary devices has helped me understand the in depth essence of what the books are all about. These devices also help the reader to get a taste of what life in their societies are. In "So long a letter", there's been highlighted the dissimilarity in culture to women and the injustices that equality can bring to first wives. On the other hand, in "Chronicle of a death foretold", I get to see how ill-mannered the society is. It's a 'mind your own business' society and they don't care about the welfare of another person as long as they are in the safe. The two books have therefore fascinated me owing to the author's presentation. They have managed to satisfy our ego. The books have changed the opinion of me in such a way that now, I can perceive life in a different dimension.
(Garcia, 2007)
(Ba, 1989)
