“Sex, power, and the pursuit of happiness” seems
to be the triumphant slogan for the characters of Gabriel García Marquez’s
novel, or at least for most of its men. It pervades most of the (first half of
the) book.
Take for example the first character we are
introduced to, the patriarch of the Buendía family, José Arcadio Buendía. Poppa
Bear seems to take charge in every area of his life, dominating not only his
children and wife but also the village he founded. His domestic and political
power go unquestioned, even when he shuts himself away (twice), obsessed with
instruments he has bartered with travelling gypsies for.
Much to his wife Ursula’s dismay, José Arcadio
Buendía sells family heirloom coins for things that to her are meaningless: a
pair of strong magnets, a burning-glass-turned-army-weapon (or so he tried),
and astronomical tools with which JAB thinks he will understand the skies. A
scientist? A dreamer? Ursula tries to be practical with him, but there isn’t
much she can do.
José Arcadio: here’s your star player. Jose
Junior is the type to be captain of the football team—an overachiever in the
realm of the masculine. He has a crazy sex drive and a lot of fans. Junior
wastes almost no time in fathering a child with the much older Pilar, who’s
interested in him for, um, physical reasons, then runs away from home to
chase a gypsy girl he falls for. Unlike his father, he is not afraid to be
sexually aggressive to appear superior.
By contrast, little brother Aureliano is a
thinker: he’s quiet, unaggressive, and seemingly uninterested in women until
Remedios pops up into his life. After Poppa Bear has a showdown with Remedios’
daddy, Aureliano discovers love.
To round out the character summaries, another
child in the Buendias family is daughter Amaranta, who
very much resembles an Emily-Dickinson-type character: she’s virtually afraid
of men, is lonely, and rejects suitors, even when they seem to have good intentions
(ie: Pietro).
Sexuality seems to be a good indication of power
in 100 Years of Solitude, and men who express their power more forcefully are
better respected. JAB’s complete disregard for his wife’s financial and
sentimental interests, and Junior’s phallus-driven pursuits are clear examples
of this theme.
[Nicknames assigned by The Great and Powerful Emily Withers, not by the author. No
offense meant, Mr. Marquez.]
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