Reading Journal _ "The Handsomest Drowned Man in the World"

“Every single line… has a starting point in reality,” said Gabriel García Marquez. For him, the reality is his dough whereas his imagination is his toppings. That is, the fundamental plot is realistic, and its elements are what add an air of magic to it, somehow better revealing the truth hidden underneath.

A man drifts upon the shore of a village. The shape of his corpse is the only clue that points to him having been a human. Children, women, then men, upon discovering this unknown, drowned man, are surprised and left “breathless.” With only this, though, the plot is not that fantasy-like; it gets magical as he is characterized by the women cleaning his body to be Esteban, maybe even Lautaro, both who are mythical figures that were the pioneers and  the bravest in their fields. The man is also so huge that they cannot make him clothes of an adequate fit, not even with a sail. “Is this possible?” is what comes to one’s mind, if one gives much thought to every aspect of the story; some details do indeed seem irrational. However, when one reads it with a stream of consciousness, the story is not at all impossible.

Marquez said that “the sense of wonder and infinite strangeness which emerges from much Latin American writing is a true reflection of the complex realities of Latin American experience.” In fact, the oral story telling tradition, myths, and legends weaved into the realistic text come together to “create a cycle,” placing events and details in a manner that they “oscillate between the everyday and the impossible.” Magic realism, by extending and maybe even covering up the distinction between fantasy and reality, magnifies the intended message. As for Marquez, the merging of myth or mystery and reality recreates reality, functioning as a means of expressing “socio-political problems in which Latin Americans are submerged.” Focusing on the coexisting but completely opposite classes of the elite and the underprivileged, Marquez emphasizes that people, especially Latin Americans, are trapped in the misconception that there is a hierarchy, when there actually is no such thing. (Marquez quotes from: Maria Eugenia B. Rave, “Magical Realism and Latin America”) 

When the drowned man first appears, the women are busy admiring him, imagining how bold and marvelous he would have been when he was alive “secretly comparing him to their own men.” However, as the women dress and comb him, there is a sudden silence that is followed by pity that they are “unable to hold back.” They think of “how unhappy he must have been with that huge body since it bothered him even after death.” This can be seen as the villagers' epiphany, as they realize that size and physical qualities are not the standards deciding whether or not the normal are inferior, and that people are not of contrasting levels, but are just different. As the villagers exclaim that “he’s ours,” they become aware that everyone is worthy of what they experience, once they work for it.

The drowned man is a foil character, while the villagers are the protagonists. The man is dead; his existence itself and the impact it calls upon among the women and the men show that despite being silent, he is a mentor that leads the villagers to acknowledging their “narrowness” and motivating them to aim for higher goals, because they, together, need to become a town “worthy” of being called “Esteban’s village.”

If the seaside village with “only twenty-odd wooden houses that had stone courtyards with no flowers” was a white, blank canvas, the drowned man that approached the sea one day as a “dark and slinky bulge” was a swiftly-thrown paint ball. The sudden arrival of the drowned man brought liveliness to the village, giving some color to the originally dull area, and also guiding them to experience an epiphany. The drowned man, having both a magical entrance and exit, allows Marquez to convey his social critique. He criticizes outdated rules of the society and shed light on the infinite possibilities for change. The handsomest drowned man shows villagers that their ambitions are what allow them to live up to their potentials.

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Some Random Thoughts...

Why was it Wednesday when the drowned man drifted to the shore of the village? Is there some special meaning to Wednesday? Wednesday holds a connotation as a “hump day.” (Wikipedia) Being the middle of the week, once you get over it, the weekend awaits, so it is somewhat relieving. Maybe Marquez chose Wednesday specifically to show that the villagers overcome this "hump" of thoughts and meet their epiphany.

Also, among the numerous characteristics of the still vague (to me) genre “Magic Realism,” there is one called “hybridity.” (Wikipedia) This points to the belief that a story simultaneously occurring in inharmonious areas highlight a “more deep and true reality,” because the fact that both talk of the same aspect of reality merge the different planes as one. So in the case of “The Handsomest Drowned Man in the World,” Marquez underlines the reality of his interest by merging the stories of the sea and the village.