Chronicle of a Death Foretold Author:Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Gregory Rabassa (Translator) A man returns to the town where a baffling murder took place 27 years earlier, determined to get to the bottom of the story. Just hours after marrying the beautiful Angela Vicario, everyone agrees, Bayardo San Roman returned his bride in disgrace to her parents. Her distraught family forced her to name her first lover; and her twin b... more »rothers announced their intention to murder Santiago Nasar for dishonoring their sister.
Yet if everyone knew the murder was going to happen, why did no one intervene to stop it? The more that is learned, the less is understood, and as the story races to its inexplicable conclusion, an entire society--not just a pair of murderers--is put on trial.« less
I recently enjoyed rereading this old favorite, in a new-to-me translation. It is a remarkable story -- simple, short, and yet one you can't forget, and can't completely figure out.
Everyone in town knows that the Vacario brothers are going to kill Santiago; in fact, they even announce it publically. So why do the entire town, his fiancé, and household members allow it to happen? The tale is pieced together by an acquaintance years later. This is a short but bittersweet novella with an unusual theme; easy to read except that there is much repetition. If it weren't so short, I would have thought that i were reading Zola.
I had trouble following 1st person story telling. Hard to believe gruesome details, but friend from Central America said could be factual. Graphic imagery and language.
I had to read this for a first-term English class. Though I didn't like it, I see why many people do. Marquez's narrative style in this story is quite unique, and I appreciated the idea of having everyone else tell a story without that omniscient narrator or a first-person narrative to explain exactly what happened to Santiago Nasar.