Jorge Luis Borges - Use of Ambiguity

Through a qualitative comparative literature analysis, this research will look into the influence that Reyna Grande’s personal experience depicted on her memoir influences her novel Across a Hundred Mountains while paying close attention to the role that liminality plays on the identity construction of both Grande and her fictional character

To begin with, E.E. Cummings and Pablo Neruda in a similar way have their speakers’ feelings expressed by addressing the women they love. In this way the theme of the poems is presented properly and the speaker’s feelings are emphasized. For instance, the phrases “you of my heart” (10) in Cummings’s poem and “Bring them all/ to where I am waiting for you;” (11-12) in Neruda’s poem indicate that the speakers address their lovers in order to express their feelings in a more lively way. Another similarity in the way the two speakers cope with the possibility of a future change is the fact that they both make thoughts about the women they love related to other men either it is in the past or in the future. To illustrate, Cummings makes a hypothesis using the word ‘if’ to show the possibility of his lover’s unfaithfulness in the future and thinks about it continuously. The repetition of the word ‘if’ and also the phrase “if this should be, i say if this should be-” (9) show the intense thoughts the speaker makes referred to the probability of mistrust by his lover. In the same manner, Neruda’s speaker talks about his woman’s past, and although he says that “[He] is not jealous/of what came before [him]”(1-2) and concludes saying that “[they] shall always be

Aura by Carlos Fuentes explores the ideas of fantasy and imagination against the backdrop of Mexico City in the 1960s, coinciding with the Latin American Boom. This was a time of literary experimentation as the Latin American novel gained increasing popularity amongst wider audiences. As such, Fuentes uses Aura to redefine narrative norms by incorporating genuine historical events into fantastical situations and through the use of symbolism to heighten the feelings of the uncanny and the unknown which linger throughout the novel.

In Gabriel Garcia-Marquez’s Chronicle of a Death Foretold, the concept of appearance versus reality is manifested in three of the major characters around whom the novel revolves. The surface impressions of Santiago Nasar, Angela Vicario, and Bayardo San Roman are deeply rooted in Latin culture; underneath the layer of tradition, however, lies a host of paradoxical traits which indicate the true complexity of human nature.

Of the many literary devices used by writers to make their work more powerful and layered, symbolism is one of the most effective, and Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s Chronicle of a Death Foretold is a text that relies heavily on its use to develop its narrative. The novella recounts, in the form of a pseudo-journalistic reconstruction, the murder of Santiago Nasar in a small Colombian town in the mid 1900’s. Through the course of the novel, Marquez employs various symbols to reinforce key ideas, themes and techniques. This helps the novella break the monotony of a linear storyline and unfolds the plot in a unique way that compounds both effect and meaning.

Helmholtz is “a powerfully built man” (59). His physicality’s as the case of Bernard do not inflame his resent. “A mental excess” (60) produced in Helmholtz’s brain causes him a “sense of apartness” (60) from all other members of the global organization. This excess brings him to feel clearly aware of the differences he shares with the citizens around him. As a result of this he feels “uncomfortably aware of being himself” (60) and alone at that. This intellectual overindulgence produced in Helmholtz’s case give him a “queer feeling” (62) in his works of writing hypnopaedia phrases. Watson feels as if he has “something important to say and the power to say it, only [he] doesn’t know that it is and… can’t make use of the power”

The resources of the soul are immense and go far beyond our highest imagination. We do not know our soul’s potential, however, we do know that it is almost immeasurable.Finally, both men believe that the imagination can uplift and change our lives.

Characters are made to present certain ideas that the author believes in. In Gabriel García Márquez’s Chronicle of a Death Foretold there are many characters included that range from bold, boisterous characters to minuscule, quiet characters but one thing they all have in common is that they all represent ideas. Characters in the novel convey aspects of Marquez’s Colombian culture.

Knowledge is the information in which we perceive to be the truth of the world around us. However, all knowledge is susceptible to change depending of the bias of the character. Gabriel García Márquez demonstrates this issue in the novel Chronicle of a Death Foretold by exploiting the understanding of knowledge through fabula and syuzhet.

Readers whom employs one of Foster’s most repeated lessons: “there is no always, no correct answer, and no absolute” will take the most out of the novel because highly unlikely and seemingly impractical connections or symbols won’t be disregarded by them. The context that is unrelated to one reader might resonate with another one and therefore have a different interpretation.

In the novel Chronicle of a Death Foretold by Gabriel Garcia Marquez symbols are used throughout the plot to develop characterization, foreshadowing and irony. Two of the most important symbols are weather and dreams. Weather is used to develop the perspective of the

Rulfo’s stories achieve exceptional symmetry between form and content, compelling the reader to be absorbed by their inexhaustible depth that is created by the desolation that marks intricate human landscapes. These stories are truly artistic representations, for the word choices never seem so casual, and the powerful images weave the scenes into an organic, effortless whole. Rulfo infuses the reader with a sense of inevitability reflected in his fated word choices that seal the characters in their inescapable destinies, which transitively traps the reader into Rulfo’s fictional world where loneliness, violence, and despondency are the focal points of society.

Borges makes allusions in both Book of Sand and Guayaquil to let the reader think about outside influences. Book of Sand contains light allusions that

Two circumstances gave me the correct solution of the problem. One: the curious legend that Ts` ui Pen had planned to create a labyrinth which would be strictly infinite. The other: a fragment of a letter I discovered’”] (59). Although a labyrinth is a real place, the author uses it symbolically to represent the book, garden of forking paths. By incorporating a different culture, historical details, and a unique storyline Borges includes both realistic text and ficitional work. In John King`s essay, “The Argentinean Context of Borges’ Fantastic Fiction,” critical author Bioy concludes that Borges`s manipulates standard writing styles for the short story because “in attacking the psychological novel, Borges reminded novelists that they had forgotten how to tell a story. He has often remarked that if one reads detective stories and then takes up a novel afterwards, the latter appears shapeless”

In the poems “The Wanderer” and “The Dream of the Rood,” anonymous authors give way to the idea that an Almighty God will solve every problem a person has by doing two things: 1) drawing upon the memories of a warrior who has lost everything near and dear to him due to war, and 2) entering the dream of a man who has been exiled and isolated. Each piece takes its reader through the trials and tribulations that one may not relate to in this era, yet the reader is still there alongside the character wanting them to find peace with their world and themselves. Initially, it is believed that the characters will overcome their hardships and achieve the happiness they seek. However, as the reader delves deeper into the character’s story, there is an overwhelming sense of incompleteness. What actually happens at the end of each piece is not written in stone - telling us the story is not whole - nor has a conclusion been reached. The intrapersonal thoughts being shared with the reader reveal the obstacles that keep an overall wholeness from occurring.