Resumo de A Very Old Man With Enormous Wings

A Very Old Angel
?A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings? is a short story written by Gabriel Garcia Marquez in 1955. Magical realism plays a major part in this story by the use of fantasy of an old man being portrayed as an angel who has come to perform miracles to a family with a sick child as well as other believers. Some will believe and others will ridicule the old man and treat him as an animal. Mr. Marquez combines realism with fantasy to create a world of fact, fiction and illusion in order to demonstrate how people can be cruel to one another just because someone may be different. This story is definitely for children and the fascination of their thinking.
The ?fact? that Pelayo is trying to clear out his house from the dead crabs that were left behind from the bad weather is what could be causing his newborn child to be suffering from a temperature from the stench that is in the house from the crabs (Marquez 472). In the courtyard, Pelayo sees an old man lying face down in the mud, in spite of his efforts couldn?t get up, because of his enormous wings. Pelayo went in the house to get his wife, Elisenda, to view the old man. They thought that this old man might have been a castaway from a foreign ship wrecked from the storm (473).
Elisenda is caught off guard and then realizes that the old man has wings like an angel. To make sure she wasn?t going crazy she ask her neighbor, who knew about life and death to view the old man with wings. ?He?s an angel,? she told them. ?He must have been coming for the child, but the poor fellow is so old that the rain knocked him down? (473). After they lock the angel in the chicken coop, they realize how he is attracting a great deal of attention. So Elisenda decides to charge the people to view the old man with the enormous wings. Some wish to torment the angel because he?s an outsider while some seek healing from the old angel. As more and more people starts coming by Elisenda thought it would be a good idea to charge the people to view the angel (474). Then the carnival comes to town, stealing the angel?s glory. The sexy mysterious Spiderwoman turn the people away from the old angel to her outlandish shape and details of her misfortune. Father Gonzaga is also skeptical of the angel because he doesn?t understand his language (475).
According to Marie Rose Napierkowski, the setting is no ordinary town, and its visitor is no ordinary angel. He seems disappointingly ordinary and human, despite his extraordinary appearance. Because he contradicts their expectations, the characters we meet seem thoroughly incapable of understanding him; their conventional wisdom and superstitious beliefs lead them into absurd explanations for his sudden visit, and they treat him in a manner that seems cruel, unjust, and ignorant (Napierkowski).
According to an Anonymous writer, he states that Mr. Marquez takes an essentially negative view of human nature. People not only lack logic, they demonstrate ignorance. What is far worse is the human characters? cruelty. The townspeople mistreat the angel simply because he?s different. He also state that Mr. Marquez?s worst indictment of humanity is reflected in their stubborn refusal to appreciate the miraculous (Anonymous).
I believe that the old angel is sent to show how people really feel about others and themselves. Because we are different doesn?t mean that we should be treated differently. People should treat one another as one would like to be treated. The people ridicule and made fun of the old angel. The old angel is not in good shape and definitely needs attention. The kind of attention that will encourage him, not belittle him. Even Father Gonzaga tries to prove he?s a fake. Father Gonzaga is waiting for the final judgement on the captive angel just because he didn?t speak his language. What people need to realize is that even though we are different we all can learn from one another and show love for one another just because we are all human beings anddeserve to be treated with respect regardless of our backgrounds or nationality. The old angel finally got the strength to fly away. Maybe the people will realize that he is a blessing in disguise.

Anonymous. ?A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings? Essay:

Marquez Gabriel Garcia. ?A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings? Literature:
Reading, Reacting, Writing. Laurie G. Kirszner and Stephen
R. Mandell. 5th edition. Boston: Wadsworth 2004. 472- 477.

Napierkowski Marie Rose. ?A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings:
Introduction.? Short Stories for Students. Ed. Vol. 6 Detroit

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