The Old Man with Enormous Wings (Argumetive Essay)
Katrina Murray
July 26, 2013
English 1101
Allyson Smith
An Angel Trapped On Earth Why are people so cruel and quick to judge others? Is it because of who we are? Is it because of how we look? Is life all about how we can benefit from others? This piece of work “A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings,” was written by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. It tells us about an angel who has fallen during a storm. Even though this creature had the same body structure and organs as a human, he was judged, locked up, and tortured because of what he was, how he looked, and how well he could benefit others. The people in this story see an old man in rags with wings and quickly start to judge his existence. “The parish priest had his first suspicion of an imposter when he saw that he did not understand the language of God or know how to greet His ministers.” The priest, Father Gonzaga, is the first to lay judgment upon the helpless creature, by calling him an imposter, because they did not speak the same language. This shows how quick we are to judge others just because they are different from us or because we are scared them, not knowing their situation or their background. “Then he came out of the chicken coop and in a brief sermon warned the curious against the risks of being ingenuous. He reminded them that the devil had the bad habit of making use of carnival tricks in order to confuse the unwary. He argued that if wings were not the essential element in determining the different between a hawk and an airplane, they were even less so in the recognition of angels.” Father Gonzaga confirms that this was no angel and warned the people that this may be the work of the devil. Being that father Gonzaga is a priest, this made the people believe everything he said, even though he was wrong. The narrator states “Pelayo watched over him all afternoon from the kitchen, armed with his bailiff’s club, and before going to bed he dragged him out of the mud and locked him up with the hens in
July 26, 2013
English 1101
Allyson Smith
An Angel Trapped On Earth Why are people so cruel and quick to judge others? Is it because of who we are? Is it because of how we look? Is life all about how we can benefit from others? This piece of work “A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings,” was written by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. It tells us about an angel who has fallen during a storm. Even though this creature had the same body structure and organs as a human, he was judged, locked up, and tortured because of what he was, how he looked, and how well he could benefit others. The people in this story see an old man in rags with wings and quickly start to judge his existence. “The parish priest had his first suspicion of an imposter when he saw that he did not understand the language of God or know how to greet His ministers.” The priest, Father Gonzaga, is the first to lay judgment upon the helpless creature, by calling him an imposter, because they did not speak the same language. This shows how quick we are to judge others just because they are different from us or because we are scared them, not knowing their situation or their background. “Then he came out of the chicken coop and in a brief sermon warned the curious against the risks of being ingenuous. He reminded them that the devil had the bad habit of making use of carnival tricks in order to confuse the unwary. He argued that if wings were not the essential element in determining the different between a hawk and an airplane, they were even less so in the recognition of angels.” Father Gonzaga confirms that this was no angel and warned the people that this may be the work of the devil. Being that father Gonzaga is a priest, this made the people believe everything he said, even though he was wrong. The narrator states “Pelayo watched over him all afternoon from the kitchen, armed with his bailiff’s club, and before going to bed he dragged him out of the mud and locked him up with the hens in