Namus in Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s Chronicle of a Death Foretold Essay Example

Namus in Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s Chronicle of a Death Foretold Essay Example Namus in Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s Chronicle of a Death Foretold Essay Namus in Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s Chronicle of a Death Foretold Essay Essay Topic: Chronicle Of a Death foretold ?Namus is an Arabic word which means law, custom, and honor. Namus is a fundamental concept, which defines the role of men and women in society, and when violated, it could have severe consequences. Namus plays a significant role in Marquez’s Chronicle of a Death Foretold. It not only defines clear roles for the men and women in the society, but it also is the dominant reason leading to the assassination of Santiago Nasar. The concept of Namus in women is rooted in faithfulness, modesty, and obedience, and in men, it requires protecting the integrity of the women in the house and the society. ‘The brothers were brought up to be men. The girls had been reared to get married’. Especially the virginity of the women plays a significant role in showing the clear role of Namus in defining the life of women in the Columbian society. Angela Vicario was â€Å"reared† by the Vicario family to be â€Å"perfect,† she was â€Å"raised to suffer.† Angela Vicario thus was prepared to be dominated and suppressed by the traditional elements in the society. This is emphasized when Bayardo San Roman, a man of influence, wealth and power chooses to marry Angela Vicario. It is a deal which â€Å"a family dignified by modest means had no right to disdain that price of destiny.† She does not have the option to accept or reject the proposal. The women too are conscious of Namus. When Angela Vicario confides her fears to two of her most trustworthy female confidantes, they say nonchalantly, â€Å"all women† lose â€Å"their virginity in childhood incidents.† They convince her to pretend to be a virgin so that the Namus can be honored. She had to â€Å"put on the veil and the orange blossoms† so that she could pretend she’s a virgin. Angela Vicario’s supposed lack of virginity plays a major role in the events in the novel. The split between Bayardo San Roman and Angela Vicario over the issue of virginity clearly means that Namus has been violated, and