The chronicles of a death foretold by Gabriel Garcia Marquez (chapter 1 and 2)

Summary:

    On the day Santiago was eventually killed, he woke up at 5:30 a.m. to wait for the boat that was bringing the bishop. The night before he died, he dreamed about trees. Some people remember that the weather to be cloudy that morning, others say that it was fine, but all recall that Santiago was in a very good mood that day.In chapter 1, Nasar is described as slim and pale with Arab eyes, and curly hair. He is an only child. He inherited his sixth senses from his mother;s side, and he learned his love of horses, and falconry, from his father, Ibrahim. After the death of his father, Santiago quit his secondary school, and took over his families ranch. There were many rumors going around that Santiago Nasar was going to get killed, but no one knew if the rumors were true, or when his death was going to occur. Santiago's murderers were Pedro Vicario and Pablo Vicario.

    In chapter 2, the narrator tells the story of Bayardo San Roman. He is the groom of Angela Vicario. Bayardo looks young because he has a slim waist and golden eyes. He wanted to marry Angela Vicario at first sight. The Vicario family is described as "scant resources". The Vicario brothers murdered Santiago because he took away the virginity of their sister, Angela Vicario.

Quote:

    "Pedro Vicario, the more forceful of the brothers, picked her up by the waist and sat her on the dining room table. 'All right, girl,' he said to her, trembling with rage, 'tell us who it was.' She only took the time necessary to say the name. She looked for it in the shadows, she found it at first sight among the many, many easily confused names from this world and the other, and she nailed it to the wall with her well-aimed dart, like a butterfly with no will whose sentence has always been written. 'Santiago Nasar,' she said." (Marquez,)

Reaction:

      This quote is from the end of chapter 2.this scene is when Angela tells her brothers who took away her virginity. The image of the butterfly pinned to a wall is symbolic of both Santiago Nasar's situation and of Angela Vicario's. Once she has said that Santiago is the one who took away her virginity, his fate, like her own, becomes bounded by cultural morals. If Angela did not give her brothers the name of the person, they would have became furious at her for protecting the man who had dishonored her. She "pins" Santiago with her words, but she herself is "pinned" by the sexism of the culture. Its like following the rules of decorum.