Enormous Wings

The essay, “A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings,” by Gabriel Garcia Marquez describes a transcendent experience between an angel, Pelayo, and Elisenda. Although an angel has a positive connotation, the tale depicts this creature as repulsive and bothersome. Through narration of the struggle between the angel and the house owners, Marquez emphasizes faith and morality by symbolically addressing the humility of God’s work, the mockery made of faith, and annoyance elicited by morals. At the start of the essay, the angel’s humble aura reveals itself. Marquez describes the older gentlemen with wings as looking “like a ragpicker [whose] pitiful condition of a drenched great grand-father took away a sense of grandeur he might have had.” Marquez

Although Elisenda sees the angel as a nightmare, she uses his otherworldly existence for herself and “[charges] five cents admission to see the angel.” Like so many people do today with their faith, Elisenda used the angel for her own benefit and profit. If the angel didn’t draw so many onlookers with money to spend, Elisenda would have abandoned the angel due to its uselessness. Sadly, many people do the same within churches because if faith or religion doesn’t elicit benefits, then people see no need for it. Also, Marquez explains how the “curious came from faraway,” but became less interested in the angel when a spider woman came into town, who “not only [cost less], but [permitted] people to ask her questions.” Faith, like the angel, draws people from far and wide when it pays off and stimulates miracles. But believers fade away due to a new pledge to the “next best thing,” which the spider woman represents. The mockery made of faith comes out through people always wanting more and demanding immediate

The angel started to go in the house and torment Elisenda by being “in so many places at the same time, [as if] he was reproducing himself.” The omnipresence of the angel mimics that of God, who is always watching. The pressure to always practice good morals takes a toll on one, and like Elisenda says, creates a “hell full of angels.” Elisenda’s irritation with the angel ceases when he flies off and she believe “he was no longer an annoyance in her life.” The angel symbolizes the annoyance of doing the right thing and morality. Doing the “good” thing all the time can become difficult and tedious. Life would probably be simpler if one did not have to distinguish what is right and wrong, but that annoyance helps maintain goodness in