AP English Literature and Composition
A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings
Consider the following as you annotate the short story. Don’t limit yourself to these ideas, but
use them as a guide while you read and consider the implications, tone, significance of the text.
1a. Define tone in your own words:
1b. Describe the tone of this story. Use examples from the text to support what you are saying.
2. How do the time of year and geographical area in which the story occurs factor into your
reading of the story?
3. What is the relationship between the enormous and the ordinary in the story? Take the
etymological meaning of enormous into account.
4. In your opinion, is A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings a fairy tale, a myth, or an allegory?
5. How does García Márquez make you believe in his angel?
6. What is the basis of the appeal of A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings?
7. How would you compare the representation of the supernatural in A Very Old Man with Enormous
Wings to that of your own ideas about the supernatural?