A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings by Gabriel Garcia Marquez

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"A Vcry O!d Man with Ennrmnus Wings: A Ta!c Inr Chi!drcn"

GabrieI Garcia Marquez
On lhe lhird day of rain lhey had kiIIed so many crabs inside lhe house lhal IeIayo had lo cross his
drenched courlyard and lhrov lhem inlo lhe sea, because lhe nevborn chiId had a lemeralure aII nighl
and lhey lhoughl il vas due lo lhe slench. The vorId had been sad since Tuesday. Sea and sky vere a
singIe ash-gray lhing and lhe sands of lhe beach, vhich on March nighls gIimmered Iike ovdered Iighl,
had become a slev of mud and rollen sheIIfish. The Iighl vas so veak al noon lhal vhen IeIayo vas
coming back lo lhe house afler lhroving avay lhe crabs, il vas hard for him lo see vhal il vas lhal vas
moving and groaning in lhe rear of lhe courlyard. He had lo go very cIose lo see lhal il vas an oId man,
a very oId man, Iying face dovn in lhe mud, vho, in sile of his lremendous efforls, couIdn'l gel u,
imeded by his enormous vings.
Irighlened by lhal nighlmare, IeIayo ran lo gel IIisenda, his vife, vho vas ulling comresses on
lhe sick chiId, and he look her lo lhe rear of lhe courlyard. They bolh Iooked al lhe faIIen body vilh a
mule sluor. He vas dressed Iike a ragicker. There vere onIy a fev faded hairs Iefl on his baId skuII
and very fev leelh in his moulh, and his ilifuI condilion of a drenched greal-grandfalher look avay
and sense of grandeur he mighl have had. His huge buzzard vings, dirly and haIf-Iucked vere forever
enlangIed in lhe mud. They Iooked al him so Iong and so cIoseIy lhal IeIayo and IIisenda very soon
overcame lheir surrise and in lhe end found him famiIiar. Then lhey dared seak lo him, and he
ansvered in an incomrehensibIe diaIecl vilh a slrong saiIor's voice. Thal vas hov lhey skied over
lhe inconvenience of lhe vings and quile inleIIigenlIy concIuded lhal he vas a IoneIy caslavay from
some foreign shi vrecked by lhe slorm. And yel, lhey caIIed in a neighbor voman vho knev
everylhing aboul Iife and dealh lo see him, and aII she needed vas one Iook lo shov lhem lheir mislake.
"He's an angeI," she loId lhem. "He musl have been coming for lhe chiId, bul lhe oor feIIov is so
oId lhal lhe rain knocked him dovn."
On lhe foIIoving day everyone knev lhal a fIesh-and-bIood angeI vas heId calive in IeIayo's
house. Againsl lhe |udgmenl of lhe vise neighbor voman, for vhom angeIs in lhose limes vere lhe
fugilive survivors of a siriluaI consiracy, lhey did nol have lhe hearl lo cIub him lo dealh. IeIayo
valched over him aII aflernoon from lhe kilchen, armed vilh his baiIiff's cIub, and before going lo bed
he dragged him oul of lhe mud and Iocked him u vilh lhe hens in lhe vire chicken coo. In lhe middIe
of lhe nighl, vhen lhe rain sloed, IeIayo and IIisenda vere sliII kiIIing crabs. A shorl lime aflervard
lhe chiId voke u vilhoul a fever and vilh a desire lo eal. Then lhey feIl magnanimous and decided lo
ul lhe angeI on a rafl vilh fresh valer and rovisions for lhree days and Ieave him lo his fale on lhe
high seas. ul vhen lhey venl oul inlo lhe courlyard vilh lhe firsl Iighl of davn, lhey found lhe vhoIe
neighborhood in fronl of lhe chicken coo having fun vilh lhe angeI, vilhoul lhe sIighlesl reverence,
lossing him lhings lo eal lhrough lhe oenings in lhe vire as if veren'l a suernaluraI crealure bul a
circus animaI.
Ialher Gonzaga arrived before seven o'cIock, aIarmed al lhe slrange nevs. y lhal lime onIookers
Iess frivoIous lhan lhose al davn had aIready arrived and lhey vere making aII kinds of con|eclures
concerning lhe calive's fulure. The simIesl among lhem lhoughl lhal he shouId be named mayor of lhe
vorId. Olhers of slerner mind feIl lhal he shouId be romoled lo lhe rank of five-slar generaI in order lo
vin aII vars. Some visionaries hoed lhal he couId be ul lo slud in order lo imIanl lhe earlh a race of
A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
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vinged vise men vho couId lake charge of lhe universe. ul Ialher Gonzaga, before becoming a riesl,
had been a robusl voodculler. Slanding by lhe vire, he revieved his calechism in an inslanl and asked
lhem lo oen lhe door so lhal he couId lake a cIose Iook al lhal ilifuI man vho Iooked more Iike a huge
decreil hen among lhe fascinaled chickens. He vas Iying in lhe corner drying his oen vings in lhe
sunIighl among lhe fruil eeIs and breakfasl Ieflovers lhal lhe earIy risers had lhrovn him. AIien lo lhe
imerlinences of lhe vorId, he onIy Iifled his anliquarian eyes and murmured somelhing in his diaIecl
vhen Ialher Gonzaga venl inlo lhe chicken coo and said good morning lo him in Lalin. The arish
riesl had his firsl susicion of an imosler vhen he sav lhal he did nol undersland lhe Ianguage of
God or knov hov lo greel His minislers. Then he noliced lhal seen cIose u he vas much loo human: he
had an unbearabIe smeII of lhe ouldoors, lhe back side of his vings vas slrevn vilh arasiles and his
main fealhers had been mislrealed by lerreslriaI vinds, and nolhing aboul him measured u lo lhe
roud dignily of angeIs. The he came oul of lhe chicken coo and in a brief sermon varned lhe curious
againsl lhe risks of being ingenuous. He reminded lhem lhal lhe deviI had lhe bad habil of making use
of carnivaI lricks in order lo confuse lhe unvary. He argued lhal if vings vere nol lhe essenliaI eIemenl
in delermining lhe differenl belveen a havk and an airIane, lhey vere even Iess so in lhe recognilion of
angeIs. NeverlheIess, he romised lo vrile a Ieller lo his bisho so lhal lhe Ialler vouId vrile his rimale
so lhal lhe Ialler vouId vrile lo lhe Sureme Ionliff in order lo gel lhe finaI verdicl from lhe highesl
courls.
His rudence feII on sleriIe hearls. The nevs of lhe calive angeI sread vilh such raidily lhal
afler a fev hours lhe courlyard had lhe buslIe of a markelIace and lhey had lo caII in lroos vilh fixed
bayonels lo diserse lhe mob lhal vas aboul lo knock lhe house dovn. IIisenda, her sine aII lvisled
from sveeing u so much markelIace lrash, lhen gol lhe idea of fencing in lhe yard and charging five
cenls admission lo see lhe angeI.
The curious came from far avay. A lraveIing carnivaI arrived vilh a fIying acrobal vho buzzed
over lhe crovd severaI limes, bul no one aid any allenlion lo him because his vings vere nol lhose of
an angeI bul, ralher, lhose of a sidereaI bal. The mosl unforlunale invaIids on earlh came in search of
heaIlh: a oor voman vho since chiIdhood has been counling her hearlbeals and had run oul of
numbers, a Iorluguese man vho couIdn'l sIee because lhe noise of lhe slars dislurbed him, a
sIeevaIker vho gol u al nighl lo undo lhe lhings he had done vhiIe avake, and many olhers vilh Iess
serious aiImenls. In lhe midsl of lhal shivreck disorder lhal made lhe earlh lrembIe, IeIayo and
IIisenda vere hay vilh faligue, for in Iess lhan a veek lhey had crammed lheir rooms vilh money
and lhe Iine of iIgrims vailing lheir lurn lo enler sliII reached beyond lhe horizon.
The angeI vas lhe onIy one vho look no arl in his ovn acl. He senl his lime lrying lo gel
comforlabIe in his borroved nesl, befuddIed by lhe heIIish heal of lhe oiI Iams and sacramenlaI candIes
lhal had been Iaced aIong lhe vire. Al firsl lhey lried lo make him eal some molhbaIIs, vhich,
according lo lhe visdom of lhe vise neighbor voman, vere lhe food rescribed for angeIs. ul he
lurned lhem dovn, |usl as he lurned dovn lhe aaI Iunches lhal lhe enlinenls broughl him, and lhey
never found oul vhelher il vas because he vas an angeI or because he vas an oId man lhal in lhe end
ale nolhing bul eggIanl mush. His onIy suernaluraI virlue seemed lo be alience. IseciaIIy during
lhe firsl days, vhen lhe hens ecked al him, searching for lhe sleIIar arasiles lhal roIiferaled in his
vings, and lhe criIes uIIed oul fealhers lo louch lheir defeclive arls vilh, and even lhe mosl
mercifuI lhrev slones al him, lrying lo gel him lo rise so lhey couId see him slanding. The onIy lime lhey
succeeded in arousing him vas vhen lhey burned his side vilh an iron for branding sleers, for he had
been molionIess for so many hours lhal lhey lhoughl he vas dead. He avoke vilh a slarl, ranling in his
A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
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hermelic Ianguage and vilh lears in his eyes, and he fIaed his vings a couIe of limes, vhich broughl
on a vhirIvind of chicken dung and Iunar dusl and a gaIe of anic lhal did nol seem lo be of lhis vorId.
AIlhough many lhoughl lhal his reaclion had nol been one of rage bul of ain, from lhen on lhey vere
carefuI nol lo annoy him, because lhe ma|orily underslood lhal his assivily vas nol lhal of a her laking
his ease bul lhal of a calacIysm in reose.
Ialher Gonzaga heId back lhe crovd's frivoIily vilh formuIas of maidservanl insiralion vhiIe
availing lhe arrivaI of a finaI |udgmenl on lhe nalure of lhe calive. ul lhe maiI from Rome shoved no
sense of urgency. They senl lheir lime finding oul in lhe risoner had a naveI, if his diaIecl had any
conneclion vilh Aramaic, hov many limes he couId fil on lhe head of a in, or vhelher he vasn'l |usl a
Norvegian vilh vings. Those meager Iellers mighl have come and gone unliI lhe end of lime if a
rovidenliaI evenl had nol ul and end lo lhe riesl's lribuIalions.
Il so haened lhal during lhose days, among so many olher carnivaI allraclions, lhere arrived in
lhe lovn lhe lraveIing shov of lhe voman vho had been changed inlo a sider for having disobeyed her
arenls. The admission lo see her vas nol onIy Iess lhan lhe admission lo see lhe angeI, bul eoIe vere
ermilled lo ask her aII manner of queslions aboul her absurd slale and lo examine her u and dovn so
lhal no one vouId ever doubl lhe lrulh of her horror. She vas a frighlfuI laranluIa lhe size of a ram and
vilh lhe head of a sad maiden. Whal vas mosl hearlrending, hovever, vas nol her oulIandish shae bul
lhe sincere affIiclion vilh vhich she recounled lhe delaiIs of her misforlune. WhiIe sliII raclicaIIy a
chiId she had sneaked oul of her arenls' house lo go lo a dance, and vhiIe she vas coming back
lhrough lhe voods afler having danced aII nighl vilhoul ermission, a fearfuI lhundercIa renl lhe sky
in lov and lhrough lhe crack came lhe Iighlning boIl of brimslone lhal changed her inlo a sider. Her
onIy nourishmenl came from lhe mealbaIIs lhal charilabIe souIs chose lo loss inlo her moulh. A seclacIe
Iike lhal, fuII of so much human lrulh and vilh such a fearfuI Iesson, vas bound lo defeal vilhoul even
lrying lhal of a haughly angeI vho scarceIy deigned lo Iook al morlaIs. esides, lhe fev miracIes
allribuled lo lhe angeI shoved a cerlain menlaI disorder, Iike lhe bIind man vho didn'l recover his sighl
bul grev lhree nev leelh, or lhe araIylic vho didn'l gel lo vaIk bul aImosl von lhe Iollery, and lhe
Ieer vhose sores srouled sunfIovers. Those consoIalion miracIes, vhich vere more Iike mocking fun,
had aIready ruined lhe angeI's reulalion vhen lhe voman vho had been changed inlo a sider finaIIy
crushed him comIeleIy. Thal vas hov Ialher Gonzaga vas cured forever of his insomnia and IeIayo's
courlyard venl back lo being as emly as during lhe lime il had rained for lhree days and crabs vaIked
lhrough lhe bedrooms.
The ovners of lhe house had no reason lo Iamenl. Wilh lhe money lhey saved lhey buiIl a lvo-slory
mansion vilh baIconies and gardens and high nelling so lhal crabs vouIdn'l gel in during lhe vinler,
and vilh iron bars on lhe vindovs so lhal angeIs vouIdn'l gel in. IeIayo aIso sel u a rabbil varren
cIose lo lovn and have u his |ob as a baiIiff for good, and IIisenda boughl some salin ums vilh high
heeIs and many dresses of iridescenl siIk, lhe kind vorn on Sunday by lhe mosl desirabIe vomen in
lhose limes. The chicken coo vas lhe onIy lhing lhal didn'l receive any allenlion. If lhey vashed il
dovn vilh creoIin and burned lears of myrrh inside il every so oflen, il vas nol in homage lo lhe angeI
bul lo drive avay lhe dunghea slench lhal sliII hung everyvhere Iike a ghosl and vas lurning lhe nev
house inlo an oId one. Al firsl, vhen lhe chiId Iearned lo vaIk, lhey vere carefuI lhal he nol gel loo cIose
lo lhe chicken coo. ul lhen lhey began lo Iose lheir fears and gol used lo lhe smeII, and before lhey
chiId gol his second leelh he'd gone inside lhe chicken coo lo Iay, vhere lhe vires vere faIIing aarl.
The angeI vas no Iess slandoffish vilh him lhan vilh lhe olher morlaIs, bul he loIeraled lhe mosl
ingenious infamies vilh lhe alience of a dog vho had no iIIusions. They bolh came dovn vilh lhe
A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
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chicken ox al lhe same lime. The doclor vho look care of lhe chiId couIdn'l resisl lhe lemlalion lo
Iislen lo lhe angeI's hearl, and he found so much vhislIing in lhe hearl and so many sounds in his
kidneys lhal il seemed imossibIe for him lo be aIive. Whal surrised him mosl, hovever, vas lhe Iogic
of his vings. They seemed so naluraI on lhal comIeleIy human organism lhal he couIdn'l undersland
vhy olher men didn'l have lhem loo.
When lhe chiId began schooI il had been some lime since lhe sun and rain had caused lhe coIIase
of lhe chicken coo. The angeI venl dragging himseIf aboul here and lhere Iike a slray dying man. They
vouId drive him oul of lhe bedroom vilh a broom and a momenl Ialer find him in lhe kilchen. He
seemed lo be in so many Iaces al lhe same lime lhal lhey grev lo lhink lhal he'd be duIicaled, lhal he
vas reroducing himseIf aII lhrough lhe house, and lhe exaseraled and unhinged IIisenda shouled lhal
il vas avfuI Iiving in lhal heII fuII of angeIs. He couId scarceIy eal and his anliquarian eyes had aIso
become so foggy lhal he venl aboul buming inlo osls. AII he had Iefl vere lhe bare cannuIae of his
Iasl fealhers. IeIayo lhrev a bIankel over him and exlended him lhe charily of Ielling him sIee in lhe
shed, and onIy lhen did lhey nolice lhal he had a lemeralure al nighl, and vas deIirious vilh lhe
longue lvislers of an oId Norvegian. Thal vas one of lhe fev limes lhey became aIarmed, for lhey
lhoughl he vas going lo die and nol even lhe vise neighbor voman had been abIe lo leII lhem vhal lo
do vilh dead angeIs.
And yel he nol onIy survived his vorsl vinler, bul seemed imroved vilh lhe firsl sunny days. He
remained molionIess for severaI days in lhe farlhesl corner of lhe courlyard, vhere no one vouId see
him, and al lhe beginning of December some Iarge, sliff fealhers began lo grov on his vings, lhe fealhers
of a scarecrov, vhich Iooked more Iike anolher misforlune of decrelilude. ul he musl have knovn lhe
reason for lhose changes, for he vas quile carefuI lhal no one shouId nolice lhem, lhal no one shouId
hear lhe sea chanleys lhal he somelimes sang under lhe slars. One morning IIisenda vas culling some
bunches of onions for Iunch vhen a vind lhal seemed lo come from lhe high seas bIev inlo lhe kilchen.
Then she venl lo lhe vindov and caughl lhe angeI in his firsl allemls al fIighl. They vere so cIumsy
lhal his fingernaiIs oened a furrov in lhe vegelabIe alch and he vas on lhe oinl of knocking lhe shed
dovn vilh lhe ungainIy fIaing lhal sIied on lhe Iighl and couIdn'l gel a gri on lhe air. ul he did
manage lo gain aIlilude. IIisenda Iel oul a sigh of reIief, for herseIf and for him, vhen she valched him
ass over lhe Iasl houses, hoIding himseIf u in some vay vilh lhe risky fIaing of a seniIe vuIlure. She
kel valching him even vhen she vas lhrough culling lhe onions and she kel on valching unliI il vas
no Ionger ossibIe for her lo see him, because lhen he vas no Ionger an annoyance in her Iife bul an
imaginary dol on lhe horizon of lhe sea.
A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
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Rea di ng Gui de

|cspcn! ic inc prcnpis cj inc rca!ing gui!c cn a scparaic sncci cj papcr.

1. Diagram lhe Iol of lhe shorl slory. IIemenls for incIusion:
a. Ixosilion, confIicl, lvo ieces of rising aclion, cIimax, faIIing aclion, resoIulion

2. Define lhe narralive oinl of viev.

3. This oinl of viev is one ve viII see frequenlIy in Lalin American Iileralure. ased on vhal
ve knov aboul magicaI reaIism, vhy vouId lhis IOV be convenienl for aulhors lo use`

4. Locale lvo secific evenls lhal quaIify lhis shorl slory as magicaI reaIism. Irovide age
numbers.

5. The secondary lilIe of lhis shorl slory is A TaIe for ChiIdren. There are many exIanalions
for ils incIusion. Think aboul lhe execlalions of a chiIdren's slory (vhal do ve knov viII
mosl aIvays be resenl or haen`) and rovide lvo reasons for ils incIusion in lhis slory
(vhich, arguabIy, is nol secificaIIy for chiIdren).

6. We have |usl revieved lhe concel of lhemes in Iileralure. Choose lvo lhemes and describe
hov lhey are resenl in A Very OId Man.

7. Choose a iece of evidence lo heI suorl an ansver lo lhe UIQ (Hov does magicaI
reaIism reveaI nev erseclives of reaIily`).