Chronicle of a Death Foretold
Girl with a Flute by Johannes Vermeer
7 7/8 inches x 7 inches
The Human Brain:
approximately 3 lbs.
approximately 5.5” wide, 3.6” high, 6.5’ long
This is a “writer’s novel.”
As you read, use two sets of eyes:
read for plot
observe how Gabriel Garcia
Marquez crafts the story
Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Photograph by Katherine Riley, inspired by Chronicle of a Death Foretold
How is CDF analogous to a
detective novel?
•
•
•
•
•
a collection of episodes
a collection of viewpoints
a piecing together
jumbled chronology
must determine who is
reliable and who isn’t
•MARQUEZ SLOWLY UNPACKS THE STORY;
•WHAT IS THE EFFECT OF THIS STRUCTURE?
The main event of the story is
dramatic, but…
…the narrator’s tone is
neutral / journalistic.
Next slides are for later…
Chronicle of a Death Foretold
Student Choice
Discussion Topics
Anyone
confused
???
Got
QUESTIONS
??
•
•
•
•
•
•
the elasticity of time
the POV; the narrator
bystander effect
what is the climax?
did Angela tell the truth?
Cultural mores:
–
–
–
–
Gender expectations
Honor code
The role of class and race
Tradition
• why doesn’t anyone warn
Santiago??
BYSTANDER EFFECT
elasticity
of time
Chronicle of a Death Foretold is
told in a non-linear fashion,
moving freely from past to present
and back again.
In Slaughterhouse Five, Billy
Pilgrim becomes “unstuck in
time.” He travels between periods
of his life, unable to control which
period he lands in.
• The non-chronological
time telling of a tale;
when a writer moves plot
and characters around in
time; past, present, and
future.
• Think Einstein’s theory of
relativity – the claim that
space and time are elastic
and can be warped and
stretched like taffy.
MAGICAL REALISM
characteristics
• a rational view of reality with an acceptance for the
supernatural
• real but with fictitious, mythical, dreamlike or
primitive elements ; symbols abound!
• may involve dreams, visions, angels,
demons, time may be skewed; people
may not be what they seem or act as
they should
• “tension of opposites”
The Persistence of Memory
Salvador Dali
Dream by Henri Rousseau
Timed Writing Essay – Question #3
CHRONICLE OF A DEATH FORETOLD
theme / meaning
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Ritual
Honor
Denial
Revenge
Gender
Class
Violence
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Responsibility
Fate
Family
Gossip
Machismo
Vengeance
Pride
Conflict
• Redemption
• Regret
• Betrayal
• Assumptions
• Memory
• Shame
• Reputation
• Duty
• Religion
theme / meaning
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Ritual
Honor
Denial
Revenge
Gender
Class
Violence
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Responsibility
Fate
Family
Gossip
Machismo
Vengeance
Pride
Conflict
• Redemption
• Regret
• Betrayal
• Assumptions
• Memory
• Shame
• Reputation
• Duty
• Religion
Write thematic statements for three of the above on word
themes. You must use “betrayal” and “honor”; then select
one more of your own choosing.
MEMORY
BETRAYAL
VIOLENCE
If you like Gabriel Garcia Marquez,
you might also enjoy….
Ben Okri (Niger)
Isabel Allende (Chile)
Syl Cheney-Coker (Sierra Leone)
Kojo Laing (Ghana)
Allejo Carpentier (Cuba)
Toni Morrison (USA)
Mario Vargas Llosa (Peru)
Individual Writing: Pre-Discussion
(this will go in your Study Log)
• Your personal reaction to the novella, thus far.
• 3 things that you think merit group
discussion.
• Locate an except to read aloud. Write it down,
MLA style.
• Look at the list of themes/meaning in your PPT
notes; highlight 3-5 that seem most prevalent to
you at this point in your reading.
Individual Writing: Pre-Discussion
(this will go in your Study Log)
• Your personal reaction to the entire novella.
• 3 things you think merit group discussion.
• Locate an except to read aloud. Write it down, MLA
style.
• Look at the list of themes/meaning in your PPT
notes; highlight 3-5 that seem most significant to the
novella as a whole.
The Metamorphosis
• Franz Kafka expresses
his views on the
importance of life in
his novel The
Metamorphosis by
illuminating the idea
that a person has no
value once he is unable
to contribute to the
greater whole.
• The
Metamorphosis by
Franz Kafka is a
story about
alienation and
how it can
negatively effect
the human psyche.
Something to consider….
To what extent
can we know
the truth
about the past?