Antonio Jose Bolivar, the main character in The Old Man Who Read Love Stories, had a life filled with disapproval and rejection. As an unaccepted member of the Shuar natives of the Amazon, Bolivar is thought of as a Shuar by most, but according to the Shuar he is still not one of them. Throughout his 40 year stay with the Shuar natives, which truly began when he seeked out their assistance after being injured by a venomous snake in the forest, he was thought of as “part gringo, part Shuar”, thus making him not fully accepted by either group. This is stated in the 3rd chapter of the novel in this quote: “Life in the jungle tempered every inch in his body. He acquired feline muscles that hardened over the passage of time. He knew the jungle as
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He swam as well as a Shuar. In short, he was like a Shuar, and yet was not one of them.” (Sepulveda 40) Antonio Jose Bolivar is showed to, at this point, understand the crucial message the Shuar and indirectly shared with him. That while they accepted him into their tribe and thought of him as a loving and phenomenal member of their community, he was not and would never be a Shuar as he was settler and not a native to the Amazon. Later on in chapter 3, Antonio Jose Bolivar kills a man with his own weapon after poisoning the man with a blowdart, without giving him the chance to fight back. This action forces the Shuar to shun Antonio only further. This was due the Shuar belief because the man died in fear and not while courageously fighting, the spirit of Nushino, Antonio’s friend who had been killed by the man, would be forever trapped in the jungle. This is discussed in this quote written by Sepulveda: “The Shuar were waiting for him on the opposite bank. They rushed to help him out of the water, but to his bewilderment, as soon as they saw the corpse they burst into inconsolable weeping. They were crying, not for the foreigner, but for Nushino. Antonio Jose Bolivar was not one of them, but was like
He swam as well as a Shuar. In short, he was like a Shuar, and yet was not one of them.” (Sepulveda 40) Antonio Jose Bolivar is showed to, at this point, understand the crucial message the Shuar and indirectly shared with him. That while they accepted him into their tribe and thought of him as a loving and phenomenal member of their community, he was not and would never be a Shuar as he was settler and not a native to the Amazon. Later on in chapter 3, Antonio Jose Bolivar kills a man with his own weapon after poisoning the man with a blowdart, without giving him the chance to fight back. This action forces the Shuar to shun Antonio only further. This was due the Shuar belief because the man died in fear and not while courageously fighting, the spirit of Nushino, Antonio’s friend who had been killed by the man, would be forever trapped in the jungle. This is discussed in this quote written by Sepulveda: “The Shuar were waiting for him on the opposite bank. They rushed to help him out of the water, but to his bewilderment, as soon as they saw the corpse they burst into inconsolable weeping. They were crying, not for the foreigner, but for Nushino. Antonio Jose Bolivar was not one of them, but was like