Nonlinear Narrative and the Murder of Santiago Nasar

Interior Monologue and Nonlinear Structure

This work incorporates the subconscious through an interior monologue. The structure is not linear, but time is reconstructed by the narrator, who realizes what happened long ago, replaying testimonies, dialogues, and events that occur to the characters, even foreshadowing events that will occur later. The narrator moves back and forth at will in his account.

This is a brief summary of developments in each of the five chapters that divide the novel.

Chapter 1 — Wedding and Dishonor

This chapter is organized around two events: the wedding and dishonor. Santiago Nasar is murdered the day after the wedding of some friends. The bride, Ángela Vicario, was not a virgin, so the groom returns her to her parents. The news spreads rapidly throughout the village. Everyone knows that Santiago Nasar is going to die, but nobody helps.

Chapter 2 — Repudiation and Promise of Revenge

Again, there are two events: the repudiation and the promise of revenge. The bridegroom, Bayardo San Román, had come to town six months earlier. He was attractive and very rich, and he decided to marry Ángela Vicario in the town. After the wedding, the bride is discovered not to be a virgin and is returned to her mother. Her twin brothers investigate to identify who is responsible for the disgrace, and she accuses Santiago Nasar.

Chapter 3 — News, Revenge, and Passivity

This chapter focuses on the dissemination of news of Santiago Nasar's impending death, the desire for revenge, and the passivity of the townspeople. The Vicario twins went throughout town announcing their intention to kill Santiago Nasar. The news travels from mouth to mouth, but nobody tries to prevent the crime.

Chapter 4 — Funeral, Flight, and Reconciliation

Now there are three events that constitute the core story of this chapter: the funeral, flight, and reconciliation. Santiago is buried, and Bayardo's family as well as the Vicario family leave the village. Ángela is sent to a remote village, and there she writes letters to Bayardo for seventeen years. Finally, he returns to her.

Chapter 5 — The Death of Santiago Nasar

The event here is unique: the death of Santiago Nasar. On the day of the crime, after seeing the bishop, Santiago enters the house of his girlfriend, Flora Miguel. There he receives the news that the twins want him. Stunned, he hides in his home, but fate causes the twins to find him and kill him at the door of his house.