Discussion Chapters 5 & 6

Throughout chapters five and six, we see a few instances where an altered physical appearance is present. For example, madrina gives birth to a monstrous baby with two heads.

"…I learned my marina had given birth to a monser."

"The great curiosity was that one head was white by race, and the other black."

We also meet a man named Riad Halabí, who suffered a cleft lip. He was a very sweet man and treats Eva well.

"He loved others so much that he tried to spare them the unpleasantness of his cleft lip: he always carried a handkerchief in his hand to conceal it; he never ate or drank in public; he rarely smiled; and he tried always to stand either with his back to the light or in the shadow, to hide his defect."

What importance do these physical traits have to the story? What is the significance of these defects?



Our author uses extremely descriptive language to paint a great picture for the reader. This language also helps to shape our characters.

"Her home was a showroom for the possibilities of this miraculous material: a Coromandel screen in the entry; four musketeers dressed in velvet and lace, swords unsheathed, presiding over the living room; an elephant decorated in the Indian manner serving as a telephone table; a Roman frieze at the head of her bed."

"In my eyes Huberto Naranjo was elegant: dark sideburns, oily pompadour, tight pants, cowboy boots, and metal-studded belt. His expression was vaguely arrogant, but in his eyes danced the spark of mischief that nothing in his storm life could erase. He was barely fifteen, but he looked older because of the way he stood: legs apart, knees slightly bent, head thrown back, a cigarette dangling from his lower lip."

What is your reaction to the descriptive language that our author uses to portray Eva's story? How does the language shape the physical bodies that exist within this story?

Eva is an extremely strong character. She makes some bold steps throughout her story. One of these is running away by herself. 

"With absolute aplomb, as if it were something I did every day, I lifted the receptacle high and emptied it over the head of the Minister of State--with a single motion of the wrist liberating myself from humiliation."

"I turned on my heel, hurried from the room--in passing bidding farewell to the figures sleeping behind locked doors--dashed down the stairs, darted past the chauffeurs and bodyguards, ran through the park, and made my escape before the victim could recover from his shock."

How do you respond to this bold move by Eva? Would you say that we are seeing her grow up throughout the story so far?