the short story, “A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings
”, by
Gabriel García Márquez, the old man, seen as an angel is often seen as symbol of Hope, goodness, Purity, Protection, or comfort. They are also represented as beautiful winged figures unlike the very old man in the story. "His huge buzzard wings, dirty and half-plucked" we re ironically conveyed as an image of age and prosperity. As oppose to an angel, the old man is seen as weak, dependent, and different.
Any heavenly qualities he had weren't seen by the people, exce pt for the neighbor woman.
Against her judgment, the people decide to "put the angel on a raft with fresh water and provisions for three days and leave him to his fate on the high seas"(
Márquez
) instead …show more content…
Despite of the cruelty and use for profit, compassio n opened up which the old man soon became a part of the couple's household. The theme of th e story is based off humanity and how we treat our fellow humans, whether they can relate t o us or not, which this is viewed all throughout the story. To the people this man seems nothing more than an old man
, "There were only a few faded hairs left on his bald skull and very few teeth in his mouth, and his pitiful condition of a drenched great-grandfather had taken away any sense of gran deur he might have had"(
Márquez
), they do not see the qualities of an angel in the very old man. Instead of treating him like a supernatural beyond nature, he is cooped up in a chicken cage and taunted for profit. Even
Smith 1 though he maintains great tolerance for the maltreatmen t from the people, it still does not impress them . The man is described as a human, but he doe sn’t seem to have the dignity of an angel as the people would expect. Although he has of all t hese human qualities, he is still treated inhumanly. Ironically, majority of the people think the ol d man lacks dignity, but the poor treatment actually comes to show the lack of dignity a nd humanity from the people. Majority
”, by
Gabriel García Márquez, the old man, seen as an angel is often seen as symbol of Hope, goodness, Purity, Protection, or comfort. They are also represented as beautiful winged figures unlike the very old man in the story. "His huge buzzard wings, dirty and half-plucked" we re ironically conveyed as an image of age and prosperity. As oppose to an angel, the old man is seen as weak, dependent, and different.
Any heavenly qualities he had weren't seen by the people, exce pt for the neighbor woman.
Against her judgment, the people decide to "put the angel on a raft with fresh water and provisions for three days and leave him to his fate on the high seas"(
Márquez
) instead …show more content…
Despite of the cruelty and use for profit, compassio n opened up which the old man soon became a part of the couple's household. The theme of th e story is based off humanity and how we treat our fellow humans, whether they can relate t o us or not, which this is viewed all throughout the story. To the people this man seems nothing more than an old man
, "There were only a few faded hairs left on his bald skull and very few teeth in his mouth, and his pitiful condition of a drenched great-grandfather had taken away any sense of gran deur he might have had"(
Márquez
), they do not see the qualities of an angel in the very old man. Instead of treating him like a supernatural beyond nature, he is cooped up in a chicken cage and taunted for profit. Even
Smith 1 though he maintains great tolerance for the maltreatmen t from the people, it still does not impress them . The man is described as a human, but he doe sn’t seem to have the dignity of an angel as the people would expect. Although he has of all t hese human qualities, he is still treated inhumanly. Ironically, majority of the people think the ol d man lacks dignity, but the poor treatment actually comes to show the lack of dignity a nd humanity from the people. Majority