Chronicle of a Death Foretold

1. Whom do most of the people conclude is the only victim of all that has happened in their village? Why? What is your reaction to this option ?

1. Whom do most of the people conclude is the only victim of all that has happened in their village? Why? What is your reaction to this option ?

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No one in Chronicle of a Death Foretold is purely guilty; Marquez makes every character in the story a partial victim. Angela Vicario, though she names Santiago as her lover and thus condemns him, is a victim of the double standard between the genders in her society; she is persecuted for having premarital sex, returned to her family and beaten, whereas men are expected to go to brothels and have as much premarital sex as they want. She is required to name a lover, and name she could have given would have been a death sentence for that man. Bayardo San Roman is also a victim of deceit, as he married Angela under the pretext that she was a virgin. While we may think that Angela's virginity or lack thereof shouldn't concern him, Bayardo, as a product of his culture, cannot help but return her. Santiago Nasar is obviously a victim as well; he is killed for taking Angela's virginity, an act that he likely did not commit. Finally, the Vicario twins are also victims of societal expectations: they are bound by honor to try to kill the man whom Angela cites as her lover. If they hadn't made this attempt, they would have been seen as weak and unmanly. Prudencia Cotes, for instance, told the narrator that she wouldn't have married Pablo Vicario if he hadn't been a man and killed Santiago.

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http://www.gradesaver.com/chronicle-of-a-death-foretold/study-guide/major-themes/