Making the Ordinary Extraordinary: Magical Realism in Latin American Literature

Lesson 2
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ELA

Unit 4

10th Grade

Lesson 2 of 22

Objective


Analyze how the villagers' response to the drowned man reveals the symbolism of his character.

Readings and Materials


  • Book: Collected Stories by Gabriel Garcia Marquez  — "The Handsomest Drowned Man in the World"

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Target Task


Discussion & Writing Prompt

What does the drowned man symbolize? Provide specific evidence from the text to support your ideas and carefully explain your thinking.

Sample Response

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Key Thinking


Close Read Questions

How does García Márquez's descriptions of the drowned man exemplify the magical realism genre?

What diction does García Márquez use to describe the village on page 248, and what does that reveal about the lives of the villagers?

Compare how men and women initially react to the drowned man. By the end of the story, how do both the men and women perceive him, and what is the significance of that to the story's meaning?

How does the spirit of the villagers change as a result of their experience with Esteban? In what way do their plans for the village reflect this change?

Vocabulary


Literary Terms

symbol

a character, setting, object, or event that represents a larger, more complex concept or idea

Text-based

frivolity

n.

(p. 251)

lack of seriousness, lightheartedness

desolation

n.

(p. 253)

state of complete emptiness or destruction

Homework


  • Book: Collected Stories by Gabriel Garcia Marquez  — "A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings"

While reading, answer the following questions.

  • What does Pelayo find in his yard?

  • Describe what the old man looks like.

  • What does the neighbor woman say he is?

  • How does the whole neighborhood react to the old man?

  • What does Father Gonzaga think of the old man? Why?

  • What idea does Elisenda have when people from all over arrive to view the old man?

  • What attraction arrives in town that takes attention away from the old man?

  • What are Pelayo and Elisenda able to buy with the money they save?

  • What happens to the old man at the end of the story?

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Standards


  • RL.9-10.3 — Analyze how complex characters (e.g., those with multiple or conflicting motivations) develop over the course of a text, interact with other characters, and advance the plot or develop the theme.
  • RL.9-10.4 — Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in the text, including figurative and connotative meanings; analyze the cumulative impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone (e.g., how the language evokes a sense of time and place; how it sets a formal or informal tone).

Supporting Standards

L.9-10.1
L.9-10.6
RL.9-10.1
RL.9-10.2
RL.9-10.6
SL.9-10.1
SL.9-10.6
W.9-10.9.a
W.9-10.10

Next

Analyze how García Márquez uses characterization to convey a theme.

Lesson 3
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