Active Reading Chapter 3

Chapter Three


Magical Realism: The first aspect of magical realism that I found was how one little orphan, Rebeca can have such an impact on a whole village. One little girl who has the power to make people forget things is magic to me because most females especially young ones do not have that kind of effect on anyone. Secondly, Melaquaides the gypsy comes back to life and yet again blesses the family with a picture thing. Also he is magical by how everyone is under some sort of spell until he comes back and just so happens to have the anecdote to cure them.

Character Development

Aureliano has become a man and yet has never seen or been with a girl. Also the family as a whole has developed economically by now having the ability to take pictures. Armanta begins to gather an interest in the opposite sex in the form of a man named Pietro Crespi.

Plot Summary

Macondo begins to get better when they find the route to civilization. It gets new people including Arcadio Jose the son's son and Rebeca an orphan whose past is unknown. Rebeca somehow gives the whole village insomnia and Jose the father and Aureliano put signs all over the village to remind them about what things are and they even have a sign reminding them that god exists. Melquiades then comes back from the dead and gives the town the cure they have been in desperate need of. Also Melaquiades brings the Buendia family a daguerreotype which gives them their1st family portrait. Now Melaquaides joins Jose the father in the lab as they try to find a way to take a picture of God. Meanwhile Aureliano learns how to be a silversmith. Ursula decided that she wants to re-model the house so that all her kids won't have to leave her once they get married. In the middle of it all she gets a letter from the government telling her that the house must be painted blue. Ursula must not like blue because she gets Jose the father to run the guy who told her the house had to be blue out of town. He gets denoted from his government position and comes back to settle in the town as a regular citizen. Aureliano becomes attracted to one of the guy's 9 year old daughters. Out of sexual frustration he sleeps with Pilar Ternera and tells her his secret. She helps Aureliano asks her to marry him and Remedios says yes. Also, Aramanta and rebeca become interested in the same guy, Pierto Crespi. He decides to marry Rebeca and Aramanta gets very angry. Melaquiades is the first person to die in Macondo and after they bury him, Aureliano teaches Remedios how to read but Pilar tells him that she is pregnant with his baby. Jose the father fails to get a picture of God and in turn messes up the lab and tries to burn down the house. Twenty men hold him down and tie him to a tree and Ursula built a shelter for him and leaves him there.

Quotes

1. "I'm thinking about Prudencio Aguilar again."- This quote sticks out to me because I don't understand why he's thinking about him again and I'm wondering whether or not he is going to be remembered throughout the whole book.

2. "The image of Remedios, the magistrate's younger daughter, paining him in some part of his body. "- This quote makes me wonder whether or not he really likes her or is he just attracted to her young personality.

Themes

Revelations seems to be the driving theme of this chapter. They find out many things in this chapter such as the arrival of a new family member and the symptom and cure for the insomnia that they all suffered. Lastly, Melaquiades has arisen from the dead.