“In seeking truth you have to get both sides of a story” (Cronkite). Machismo is a spectrum with various levels. There are both positive and negative sides to the gamut of machismo. In Chronicles of a Death Foretold, the narrator goes back to the town where Santiago is brutally murdered by the Vicario brothers, in search for truth about guilt or innocence. Bayardo San Roman, Angela’s ex-husband, returns Angela for losing her virginity before marriage. The Vicario brothers murder Santiago to regain the honor of Angela’s lost virginity. Xius is a widower, who sells his house to Bayardo. This house contains all of Xius’ belongings, which he keeps after his wife dies. Bayardo pressures Xius till he finally accepts the offer of giving away all his
…show more content…
Xius has the positive qualities of machismo, because he is the husband who would die for his wife- in any instance. Xius is a widower, who lives in a home which symbolizes his wife. All of the items in the home have value to Xius and his wife because, as the narrator states, “the objects in the house had been bought by his wife over a whole lifetime of sacrifice and that for him they were still a part of her” (Marques 35-36). Bayardo, Angela’s finance, pressures Xius to sell the house to him; to show the lust Bayardo has for Angela. Xius continuously refuses multiple times to Bayardo’s tempting offers, but soon Xius finally gives in; he had no choice due to the amount of pressure put on the bargains. Two months after selling the house, Xius dies from a shattered heart. Dr. Dionisio Iguaran affirms, after the death, ‘“He was healthier than the rest of us, but when you listened with the stethoscope you could hear the tears bubbling inside his heart”’ (Marquez 37). Marquez depicts Xius as having positive characteristics of machismo to represent the valuable aspect machismo can bring to a relationship, which contains true love. Xius’ house means a great deal to him, which is why he stays in the house to remember memories from his marriage. The house keeps Xius peaceful, because he believes he is still living with his wife. Once Xius sells the house, after getting pressured, he loses all happiness. Xius has no more meaning in his life, hence having nothing more to live for. Dying from a weeping heart, as Marquez articulates, demonstrates the value Xius’ wife had to his life. Hence, Xius’ life is his wife. The quality of caring for his wife shows the beneficial quality of machismo many Latin- American cultures have. Marquez shows, in Latin- American culture, whoever has the masculine figure in the family, also holds
Xius has the positive qualities of machismo, because he is the husband who would die for his wife- in any instance. Xius is a widower, who lives in a home which symbolizes his wife. All of the items in the home have value to Xius and his wife because, as the narrator states, “the objects in the house had been bought by his wife over a whole lifetime of sacrifice and that for him they were still a part of her” (Marques 35-36). Bayardo, Angela’s finance, pressures Xius to sell the house to him; to show the lust Bayardo has for Angela. Xius continuously refuses multiple times to Bayardo’s tempting offers, but soon Xius finally gives in; he had no choice due to the amount of pressure put on the bargains. Two months after selling the house, Xius dies from a shattered heart. Dr. Dionisio Iguaran affirms, after the death, ‘“He was healthier than the rest of us, but when you listened with the stethoscope you could hear the tears bubbling inside his heart”’ (Marquez 37). Marquez depicts Xius as having positive characteristics of machismo to represent the valuable aspect machismo can bring to a relationship, which contains true love. Xius’ house means a great deal to him, which is why he stays in the house to remember memories from his marriage. The house keeps Xius peaceful, because he believes he is still living with his wife. Once Xius sells the house, after getting pressured, he loses all happiness. Xius has no more meaning in his life, hence having nothing more to live for. Dying from a weeping heart, as Marquez articulates, demonstrates the value Xius’ wife had to his life. Hence, Xius’ life is his wife. The quality of caring for his wife shows the beneficial quality of machismo many Latin- American cultures have. Marquez shows, in Latin- American culture, whoever has the masculine figure in the family, also holds