Examples of Greed in "A Very Old Man With Enormous Wings" by Gabriel García Márquez

Essay by ateyfourCollege, UndergraduateA, April 2003

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When Pelayo was coming back to his house, he found an old man face down in the mud, with a pair of enormous wings. The neighbor told them he was an angel, and must have been knocked down by the rain. In the short story, "A Very Old Man With Enormous Wings", Gabriel García Márquez reveals some of his ideas of human nature. He shows how pessimistic humanity can be, through an experience with a fallen angel.

One portrayal found in the story was the idea of human greed and selfishness. Most people are interested in what is best for them, or how they can take advantage of something for their own good. In the story, the Pelayo and Elisenda, husband and wife, had an angel fall into their yard. At first they were going to put the angel on a raft and free him from their chicken coop prison.

Instead, they decided to charge admission to see the fallen angel that they held captive in their courtyard (6). They knew that people would come from everywhere to see this spectacle, and took advantage of the situation. By keeping this angel locked up in the chicken coop, they were profiting off of his misery. The people that came complained of their many problems, and were looking for the angel to help them. They were all concerned with themselves, and their own problems, rather than the angel's well being. This selfishness is just part of human nature. The human race will always look for the best options to benefit themselves.

Humans seem to have a very short attention span. The smallest things can be amusing, and keep our attention, but generally only for a short time. The human race is always looking for the new best thing, whether it...