"Úrsula was [the children’s] most amusing plaything. They looked upon her as a big, broken-down doll that they carried back and forth from one corner to another… she was gradually losing her sense of reality and confusing present time with remote periods in her life" (Page 327-328).
This passage shows how Úrsula represents the state of Macondo, and how the cycle of time is repeating again. Úrsula is shown here as a plaything for the children. It is similar to how Mr. Brown and the gringos have came in and used the bananas here: by founding a banana company. Macondo is not an independent society at this point but instead a resource that the people in power (gringos) use. Úrsula’s image as a “broken-down doll” shows how Macondo is in decline as well, and is worn-down from its use (the banana company, the slaughter, the flood). The second point in this passage is that things are starting to repeat themselves here in Macondo. Úrsula is the live only person in Macondo to have lived through the first cycle, so she is confusing the present with the past. She is the first person to have noticed that time is not finite, but moves forward over and over again, as she mixes up the present with the past, causing her to lose her sense of reality.
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7 comments:
As talked about in class today, I also noticed the parallel between Ursula and the village of Macondo. As Ursula is engulfed further into her decrepitude, Macondo also shows visible signs of deterioration. Ursula is now no longer the elder of the village, or the respected matriarch of Macondo, rather she is dehumanized to the point of an “amusing plaything”. I believe this deterioration corresponds with the destruction of Macondo following the four-year rains. As the rains have finally stopped, and Macondo might finally be returning to its primitive state, I find it ironic that the only remaining original settler is now being treated as a plaything. However, while I feel the relationship between Macondo and Ursula is apparent, I think that your connection between the banana company and Mr. Brown is a really strong one. For that, Good Job J.P.
good job J.P. i like your ideas in your explication and i agree with john that the connections you have made are powerful and significant
i might also add that Ursula is falling into her own solitude to a further extent than every before. And yes, as said by many, i believe this also relates to the state of Macondo. Ursula, because she has been around for so long has been seen as a mediator, a mother, and really a symbol of stability and strength of culture/traditions throughout the novel. Now, as she and macondo are falling into solitude because of deaths, flood, the rain, and deterioration from the banana company/gringos, she is no longer able to fulfill her previous status and becomes merely a "plaything," ultimately useless. Her desolation began when she became blind but she was still able to function very well, now though it has gotten to a point where she is not able to recover she is only "waiting to die" whenever the rain stops. And so it poses the question:will Macondo be able to recover from its destruction and from its deterioration into solitude as Ursula is also experiencing... I think it is very possible that it wont.
I agree with John and Bryn in the sense that Macondo and Ursula are parallel. Something I noticed in the passage is that time seems to be going in a circular pattern. Like JP said, Ursula mixes up the present with the past causing her to lose her sense of reality. I believe this happens because of the repetition of time. She is the first to notice this because she has seen all of these actions before when she was younger since time is repeating itself. Good job JP.
i strongly agree with your argument. ursula has been a part of macondo since the beginning, so it makes sense that she would be physically and mentally in the same situation as macondo. she is being used just as macondo and the surrounding land was being used by the banana company. unfortunately, her insanity foreshadows her eventual death, meaning macondo will soon die as well.
I agree with your arguement paralleling Ursula and Macondo. Ursula has gone from a fully functional, respectable women to a "plaything" the way Macondo has gone from a state of independence and stability to acting as a mere resource to the banana company. I also agree with your explication of repitition. The repitition increases every time, and now Ursula's solitude is deeper and darker than ever before. The matriach of Macondo has been lost and the lack of Ursula's vital influence is taking its toll on Macondo. The town was on a downward spiral, losing sense of its soul along the way. Hopefully the rain has washed away some of the modernized influence brought on by the banana comapny and maybe readers will get a glimpse of the old Macondo again. Unfortunately I personally do not think there is much hope left for Macondo's rescue.
As J.P. stated, Ursula symbolizes the state Macondo is currently in. Lke the government trying to conceal the truth of the slaughter, Ursula is also trying to pretend like everything is how it was in the past. As events keep circulating through the Buendias life, Ursula grows confused and cannot identify the past to the present. As Macondo falls deeper into solitude, so does Ursula. They are equally as old, and therefore, are expiriencing the same changes. Ursula has no more "life" left in her, being the last of the first generation, which traps her in an eternal state of solitude. Macando is no longer the technological-deprived town it used to be, being corrupted by the banana company and the new facilities, causing Macondo to become chaotic.
Well like most people have said in previous comments, Ursula is a parallel to Macondo in a sense that her status compares to the physical status os the city. She is now finally aging like a regular human being and Macondo has been taken taking a beating as the book progresses. Although she parallels with the city itself, she is fading away with time,whereas the city seems to slowly be rebuilding itself. If the book continues to repeat itself in a cycle, then Macondo will recover and become the succuessful city it once was with a new generation of characters. Like john said it seems a bit odd that someone who should be highly regarded as an elder in Macondo is being treated like a toy. She is the only remaining villager in Macondo and she shoulf be treated better then the way she is, especially because of her condition. I think you picked a good explication JP becuase it covers a major theme in the story as well as giving an outlook on to what is coming next
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