A Very Old Man With Enormous Wings, By Gabriel Garcia Marquez

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A Very Old Man With Enormous Wings “A Very Old Man With Enormous Wings”, by Gabriel Marquez is a classic short story with a clear alliteration of cruelty and compassion. The story begins with a guy named Pelayo discovering an old, disoriented, winged man while on his way home. After Pelayo informs his wife Elisenda of the sighting, they both decide to take pity upon the frail man by ironically caging him in their chicken coop. Soon enough, the decrepit old man attracts onlookers, and Elisenda takes the initiative to charge a viewing fee. Once the family gains plentiful income from the showing of the skeptical angel man, they rebuild their house into a two-story mansion, and begin to view the angel man as a nuisance. As the story progresses, the old man becomes weaker. Given this knowledge, Pelayo and Elisenda are convinced the old man’s death is near. However, his fate shifts entirely when the winged man attempts flight and succeeds. Suddenly, the mysterious man escapes the families lives just a quickly as he entered. Moving from this, the main characters demonstrate strong ties to the central idea of compassion and cruelty. Firstly, the author is exemplifying how the old man is…show more content…
Elisenda and Pelayo’s child show improvements from being sick due to the angel appearance in their lives. For instance, “the child woke up without a fever and with a desire to eat”, this illustrates the miracle the angel man is working through the family’s tough circumstance (Marquez). In comparison to modern society, we wouldn’t cage strange, or decrepit people. The cruelty the townspeople, and the household providers are demonstrating towards the old man is entirely inhumane. Alternatively, the angel shows godliness as he “tolerated the most ingenious infamies with the patience of a dog who had no illusions”

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