Pedro - Choice 2
How does the chapter "The Terror of Death" relate to the novel Pedro Paramo and/or its characters?
posted by Mrzhire at
1:46 PM
Thursday, January 10, 2008
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I think that this passage from "The Terror of Death" relates to Pedro Páramo as a whole in that it highlights the psychological disbelief in death that has been found throughout the history of humanity. Although all of the characters in Pedro Páramo are dead during the "present time" in the novel, they see death as a minor characteristic of a person. Much the same, I think, in "The Terror of Death", the author of the passage cites psychologists and philosophers that believe humans are aware of death and its implications (as well as its imminence), but choose to live their lives as they want no less. The author of "The Terror of Death" also makes the case that young children have no awareness of death. I find that this is paralleled in Pedro Páramo in that the childhood of the characters (or at least Pedro) has little to do with death, or at least much less than later in the novel.
I think the entire chapter related to many of the themes and motifs seen in "Pedro Paramo." (death, sleep, the unkown, denial, etc.) It discussed the fear we have of death. We might all have different views on it but in the end, it is inevitable, like Eduviges says in "Pedro." It also somewhat discusses what happens after death, which is what "Pedro Paramo" is all about; the two worlds. The title of "The Denial of Death" also relates to the novel. All of the characters seem to deny that they are dead as well as deny that others are alive.The entire novel seems to be about the denial of the inevitable, which is what "The Denial of Death" is all about.
I thought that “The Terror of Death” related to Pedro Paramo in the sense that a lot of the characters are in denial that they are dead or perhaps don’t know that they are, such as Abundio. The chapter “The Terror of Death,” also talks about how we fear death which I think is opposite of what the characters feel in Pedro Paramo. Throughout the novel so far, I have gotten the vibe that the afterlife is much more important than life itself seeing that so many of the characters are dead and one of the main motifs is death. Plus death has never really been talked about in a negative light, at least in my opinion. Even though many of the characters may be in denial they all seem to embrace death as another journey and don’t look down upon it. This is emphasized through events such as Miguel Paramo’s horse seeming to suffer more than the main, human characters about the death of Miguel.
I think it's weird that Rulfo sets up his novel with Juan as the potential "hero." (he's going back to Comala as sort of revenge to "make Pedro pay..." The chapter talked about how this idea of a hero has evolved and how it stems from the brave man who faces his own death or can overcome death. In Comala, everyone is already dead...and characters speak about death so nonchalantly, it's just like another characteristic of their personality. Will Juan ever "make Pedro pay"? Are there any hero's in Comala? I see the denial of death in this town...but not so much the terror of death yet. Once we get to Susana's childhood...I see more of the terror of death. Her childhood was kind of creepy. Pedro experiences his grandfather and father's deaths...and isn't too shook up about them. (he's so focused on Susana) I wonder if their reactions (Pedro & Susana) has to do with their upbringing...as the chapter states "the child who has good maternal influences will develop a sense of basic security..." I'm jumping ahead in the novel, sorry, but poor Susana.
The passage we read from "The Terror of Death" discusses the fear of death and the unknown. To many death is looked at as the the ultimate unknown and consequently as the ultimate fear or terror. Anything that helps explain or ignores death as a problem is viewed as cult-like, Pedro Páramo pushes the boundaries of living and death. In this novel, the inhabitants of Comala are unaware or unacknowledged of their death. This ignorance of their current state allows them to avoid the fear of death.
I agree with Mrs. Hire that Rulfo sets Juan Preciado up to be the hero within the novel. It is he who narrates much of the novel, and his progression and quest that is tracked throughout the novel's present. The chapter "The Terror of Death" does state that heroes have often been regarded as those who face death without fear. However, I disagree with Mrs.Hire in that I think that, in a way, Juan faces death without fear. He goes willingly into Comala, a town filled with the dead and filled with death. Juan faces death directly through his interaction with those in the town who are dead. Indeed, Juan's quest is one of vengeance, but many heroic quests throughout mythology and fiction have been quests of vengeance. In "Jason and the Argonauts," Jason avenges the murder of his family. In Shakespeare's Hamlet, Hamlet's "heroic" quest is one of vengeance. Juan's heroism is to him and his mother, just as Jason's was to his family and Hamlet's was to his father.
Hmmm...Hugh that's interesting...especially b/c of what happens in oh I don't know around pgs 56-58... There are many interpretations as to whether Juan is dead before he enters Comala or dies upon entering or even why he dies at all...
I think that this passage from "Terror of Death" relates very well to Pedro Paramo for a number of reasons. First many of the characters in Pedro Paramo do not disclose whether they are alive or dead, and in almost every case so far that character has been dead. It seems that when a character is dead they are still so afraid of the concept of death that they do not accept it. They then either enter purgatory or stay on Earth by their own will. This avoidance of death, and later upsession on the part of Juan are interesting because its almost as if they deny deaths existance at all. This is true of Juan especially, he begins questioning other characters if they are dead, but he has not once question if he himself is dead as well. Perphaps this is just his way of manifesting his fear of death.
The passage from "The Terror of Death" relates to Pedro Paramo as it discusses the human reactions and physiologically interpretations of death. The passage illustrates how humans are terrified of death and where this fear comes from. Pedro is about beings perhaps so afraid of death that they are caught between the earth and the afterlife, life and death, the known and the unknown. The characters in Pedro are horrified of death. this is perhaps why the "dead" do not know they are dead, they don't want to know. Humans are afraid of what they don't know. Perhaps humans invent after lives, heaven and hell ect, to make the unknown a bit more known, to lessen the fear.
The passage from "The Terror of Death" relates to Pedro Paramo in a few obvious reasons. The denial of death, as many have stated prior to my comment, seems to be a fairly obvious comparison. However ultimately I think the author of "The Terror of Death" is in many ways attempting to capture the feeling of death. That is to say giving a death a feeling of living. Of course, most of like to deny the immediacy of death, to run from the emotional heart ache of not knowing, and in many respects perhaps most of these authors are only trying to define something that cannot be defined, but ultimately it is this fear that propels characters in Pedro Paramo to create direction in a directionless life. Ultimately I think it is just that. The authors of both these works attempt to convey that real death is to live in the Terror of Death.
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