The Influence of Violent Cultural Traditions on the...

â€Å"Violence has been a prominent social response to the application of structural adjustment policies throughout Latin America. There are societies in which, things fall apart; the center cannot hold. Violence is a shared disease that seems to arise in all societies where there are profound social differences and exploitation†¦Many Latin American societies are condemned to bloodletting by the precedents of violence and gross injustice that characterize their culture and their history.† – LeMoyne James, ‘Children of Cain’ 1991 Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s text depicts the cultural life and setting of Latin America. His inclusion of conventional values portrayed in the novel such as pride and honor influences specific characters such as Pedro†¦show more content†¦The author’s understanding of violence is extended beyond the text and into the political history of Latin America, full of neo-colonial repression, racial discrimination and struggles. Taking the location of the story into consideration we are able to understand that it is set in a small, isolated, confined community that is somewhat abandoned by the outside world. It is understandable that this isolation of the community has allowed it to maintain obsolete traditions which remain implanted in their society. Traditions such as the â€Å"honor killing† of Santiago Nasar or the â€Å"cult of death,† that the Vicario daughters practiced, as well as the custom of superstition and of course the essential concept of pride and honor. The traditions in Chronicle of a Death Foretold are revealed to be very important in this Latin American society. From arranged marriages, to greeting the bishop, we see tradition affecting the lives of many of the people in the river village. However we can also see this through the roles of women in this society. Purisima del Carmen, Angela Vicario’s mother, has raised her four fine daughters to be good wives. The girls do not marry until later in their lives, and only seldom socialize beyond the confinements of their home. The women spend their