Imagery and Metaphor as Resistance in Miguel Asturias...

Imagery and Metaphor as Resistance in Miguel Asturias The President In The President, Miguel Angel Asturias uses madness as his initial tool to launch a social examination of evil versus good under the strains of a terrifying dictatorship. To paint a vivid picture of the political and social atmosphere under the regime of The President, Asturias wields rich and abstract imagery, repetition and metaphors throughout his novel to punctuate, foreshadow, and illuminate. Wind is one of these recurring metaphors, and is used as a representation of a storm brewing, a constant reminder (premonition of) that what is to come. Like the weather, acts of political tyranny cannot be foreseen with much clarity. The underlying corruption of†¦show more content†¦le golpeaban y arrancaban las ropas a pedazaos. (p9). After such subjugation, and in a state of utter exhaustion, el Pelele can finally withstand no more and falls asleep at the Portal de Seà ±or. When he was rudely startled from his sleep by someone yelling mother, the lunatic viciously attacked his tormentor, Colonel Josà © Parrales Sonriente (known as the man with the little mule), to death (p11). This incident occurred `just before dawn, and is in fact the dawn of all of the events that followed. As the catalyst of gigantic storms brewing, el Pelele fled from the attack on Colonel Sonriente, and found respite in a rubbish pile outside the city. There, in keeping with the misfortune that was his life, he was viciously attacked by turkey buzzards and while trying to fight the birds off, he fell down an escarpment of garbage and broke his leg (p 22). Injured, el Pelele is rescued by a wood-cutter, and between the wood-cutters dog and el Pelele palpitaciones formaban grà ¡ficas de angutia a travà ©s de sus gritos y los ladridos del can, como el viento cuando entretela la lluvia. (p29- my emphasis). Wind as metaphor of a storm brewing, hints at what lies ahead for el Pelele. The wood-cutter is joined by Miguel Angel Face to help el Pelele off the rubbish pile, Angel Face puts some money in the madmans pocket, and both men leave the injured man to fend for himself. Terrorized and hurt, el PeleleShow MoreRelatedOne Significant Change That Has Occurred in the World Between 1900 and 2005. Explain the Impact This Change Has Made on Our Lives and Why It Is an Important Change.163893 Words   |  656 Pageswhich they labored to expand the career opportunities available to them at different times and in diverse settings. She places special emphasis on the important but often overlooked roles they played in politics, particularly those associated with resistance movements, and their contributions to arts and letters worldwide. Drawing on the essay collections and series on women in world history that she has edited over the past decade, Smith’s fully global perspectives make clear that even though gender