The Handsomest Drowned Man Analysis

The Handsomest Drowned Man in the World can be analysed as a parable for humankind’s need for meaning and the ability of ideas to transform the world. Written in 1968 by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, the short story follows a small village’s reaction as a drowned man washed up on their shore, where they proceed to create meaning within the man, effectively also evoking meaning within themselves. The readers are immersed by vivid imagery which, through magical realism, describes the absurd through a matter-of-fact tone. This dominant reading is enhanced through the presentation of the village, using conventions of point-of-view and setting, the attitude of the villagers towards the man, through pathetic fallacy and foreshadowing, the villager’s need to give
Marquez’s short story can be read to present man’s reliance on meaning and their ability for transformation through their ideas.
The Handsomest Drowned Man in the World uses the bleak description of the villagers to enhance the importance of the drowned man. In continuation, Marquez utilizes the conventions of point-of-view and the setting to reinforce this understanding. The village is introduced to readers as “twenty off wooden houses that had stone courtyards with no flowers,” where the dismal setting challenges the magical aspects of the drowned man. Readers are equally shocked by the start setting of the village, especially through the arrival of the man where the village is read as mundane in comparison. The setting never specifies an exact location,