Ambiguity in Chronicle of a Death Foretold Essay

Through his novel Chronicle of a Death Foretold, the author, Gabriel Garca Mrquez, traced along the mysteries behind the brutal murder of Santiago Nasar and by incorporating a great portion of ambiguity, built up his emphasis of the complexity of humanity. Mrquez had created numerous moments in the novel for which there was more than one possible interpretation, ranging from why the mayor had such a casual attitude toward the brothers plan to why the Vicario brothers kept on revealing their intentions to everyone. Having two probable interpretations indicates the existence of subtle motives behind the characters behaviors and thoughts. Among these ambiguous moments, the one in which the mayor simply took the knives away from the brothers without arresting them and the scene of Santiago exclaiming at the very end did an especially significant job on highlighting the theme of the entire murder mystery. The depiction of the characters of the mayor and townspeople exhibits a most chaotic town full of disorder and its main cause - the residents selfishness and indifference for each other.

When the mayor heard about the intentions of the brothers and found them at a meat store, all he did was stopping them from killing Santiago. He did not interrogate them on their intention and by stating to Clotilde Armenta No one is arrested just on suspicion. Now its a matter of warning Santiago Nasar, and happy new year.(p 57), he revealed his lack of concern for the man in jeopardy and the laws of the town. The reason behind his nonchalant reaction to something so serious was fairly unclear. Either he thought that the brothers were only drunk or he really had no concern for the citizens of his own town. However, either of the possible explanations would suggest the bad quality of the mayor which would further imply the decadence of the town. Being ruled by such an irresponsible and inconsiderate mayor, the town citizens behaviors could be influenced and become the same way as the mayor. Lack of law restriction is also a highly possible cause of the townspeoples indifference.

At the very end of the novel, the author revealed that despite the hard blows the Vicario brothers struck on Santiago, he was able to stand up for the last moments of his life. Gasping Theyve killed me.(p 120), Santiago left an impression of being ill-treated and betrayed. While it may be obvious that they meant the Vicario brothers, he did not state directly the names of the murderers so he could have meant all the citizens of the town. It was probable that he was implying that no one had warned him about his murder, causing the tragedy of his death, which he did not understand. He exclaimed that the Vicario brothers were sons of bitches during his brutal murder which revealed his confusion. If he had known about his relationship with Angela Vicario he might have thought it reasonable for them to kill him. The reason why Angela Vicario chose his name when her brothers asked her who had an affair with her remains a mystery. On the surface it seems that Angela Vicario merely became unconscious from the beatings, but there exists a high chance that a dark intention lies within her. The cause might just be a simple one the development of a bad relationship. Nonetheless there is the possible occurrence of a series of complicated events that turned Angelas love into hatred. In the incidents of the mayor having an indifferent reaction and the protagonist not being able to comprehend the cause of his death, it had been divulged that both the ruler and townspeople did not do much about stopping the murder, the loss of a citizens precious life, which illuminates the lack of love, and hostility of the town.