This dissertation examines the origin of myth in Garcia Marquez's novel, Cien anos de soledad. While the major critics of the novel have noted a strong dependence thereof on Biblical intertextualities, the present study focuses on possible Indigenous sources of what has already been defined as cosmogonical. In addition, several motifs which have been defined previously as "mythified" are examined and compared to Indigenous Colombian rituals. The work of explorer Alexander von Humboldt is also addressed herein as applicable to the wider comprehension of the novel. While this work is not necessarily an Indigenous source, the vast references to such cultures justify its inclusion in this study. Likewise, the Popol Vuh is examined as a potential source of myth within the novel. The main Colombian sources indicated in this study are as follows: Chibcha (Muisca); Tairona (Kogi); and Guajiro (Wayu). Although the Guajiros are the only indigenous group specifically mentioned in the novel, the role of the Tairona and Chibcha were so potent in the framework of the chronicles that their inclusion in this work is inevitable. The cosmogonies which particularly parallel the action of the novel are the Chibcha and Guajiro. Religious rituals of the Chibcha and Guajiro are also examined here are possible antecedents of certain of the actions, the origins of which have as yet been unidentified. Meanwhile, the philosophical origins of the novel's "death within death" motif are juxtaposed to documentation of certain Kogi beliefs, which bear striking similarities. On account of the large number of nearly exact parallels between the novel and various Indigenous elements, the mythical content of the novel is viewed as intertextualized Indigenous, rather than Biblical, myth. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 56-04, Section: A, page: 1377. / Major Professor: Roberto G. Fernandez. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1995.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_77398 |
| Contributors | Corwin, Jay A., Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Language | Spanish |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text |
| Format | 140 p. |
| Rights | On campus use only. |
| Relation | Dissertation Abstracts International |
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