Literary Analysis: Buero Vallejo and García Márquez

Analysis of La Fundación by Antonio Buero Vallejo

The Argument: The argument shall be deemed correct with any summary setting out the basic facts of the work to demonstrate a thorough reading. It may present the argument itself; for example: "Tom is a political prisoner sentenced to death who shares a cell with four fellow prisoners awaiting execution. Arrested and tortured, he betrayed other members. Unable to forgive himself, he wanted to commit suicide, but his partner Asel avoided this by becoming, in Tom's imaginary world, a doctor, etc." Alternatively, one can follow the thread of dramatic development, proceeding frame by frame and act by act. In this case, the consciousness of Thomas, who eventually realizes what reality is, is only reached halfway through the play.

Main Topics and Themes

Any explanation of the issues will be correct if it is well-reasoned, provided that it makes the tragic nature of Buero’s theater writing clear. A possible list would include:

• Fact-fiction dichotomy: The struggle between reality and illusion.
• The status and meaning of human existence.
• The lie and the need to seek the truth.
• Freedom: The pursuit of liberty.
• The violence and cruelty.
• The need for action: The fight against alienation.
• The dialectic of victims and executioners.

Character Personality and Relations

You should name all characters, provide features which characterize each, and concern the relations between them. For example, Thomas is the star, always on stage, whose vision is shared by the spectators and who evolves as he is cured. Berta is the only female character, representing his voice of consciousness and a creation of Thomas, etc.

Chronicle of a Death Foretold: Narrative Elements

Narrative Point of View

The crux of the narrative point of view is its complexity: Gabriel García Márquez’s own alter-ego alternates his status with his role as a chronicler, witness, and someone privy to the facts, which combines 1st and 3rd person narrative. His voice breaks through those of the characters, giving the play its characteristic narrative polyphony.

Treatment of Time

The most important aspect is to highlight the wide temporal space that separates the events from the moment they are narrated (twenty years). This is incurred through continued progress and setbacks in the narrative, ending exactly with the final description of the protagonist's death announced at the beginning, which allows one to speak of an enclosed structure.

Setting and Space

It should be emphasized that the facts happen in a nameless town, which is important for the collective participation of its inhabitants. They are involved as a collective or as individuals affected by the events. However, there are specific places and routes within the town, such as the home of Santiago and its two doors (decisive in the fatal outcome), the widower Xius's house, or the port.

Evaluation Criteria

The study should be graded with a maximum of one point for the analysis of the proper perspective of the narrative and another point for the explanation of the main features regarding the treatment of time and space. To speak of an omniscient narrator is a mistake, but a less severe one, because the narrator knows many things—in many cases exceeding what a mere participant, witness, or reporter would know.