Death Constant Beyond Love & The Raven (Essay Sample)

Task 1: Death Constant Beyond Love & The Raven Student’s Name Institutional Affiliation Date * Analysis of Work from List 1 – Death Constant Beyond Love A1. Work Description Death Constant Beyond Love is a short narrative that creates the mood of loneliness as the narrator depicts the experience of death. Senator Sanchez, the protagonist in the story, continues with his reelection campaigns regardless of being aware that he is left with six months to die. Gabriel García Márquez depicts the theme of death as a major factor that disrupts Senator Sanchez's happy moments in life. The narrator states that Sanchez does not have friends and lives away from his family. The story takes place in Rosal del Virrey town, which is within senator Sanchez’s jurisdiction. It is reported that the majority of people in the region do not have any income-generating activity. They are always fooled by the senator, who does not fulfill any promise. The population is misled to be convinced that its life would improve after Sanchez's reelection. A2. Historical and Social Contexts Márquez was raised in Colombia by his maternal grandparents. His work is influenced by his childhood experiences and some of his grandparents' stories. His grandmother was a fantastic storyteller. However, she could skip some important details of the story development, which could be filled by the readers’ imagination. The story of a military veteran who is abused in various incidents resembles the character of Márquez’s grandfather, a colonel, who was among the liberals that participated in the Colombian Civil War. The battle stories influenced the author’s ideological and political views, which clarify his opposition to Colombian social issues. Márquez’s anti-imperialistic and socialist opinions dominate the story of Senator Sanchez, whose leadership portrays oppression against the nation. Darraji (2021) affirms that the essence of fantastic elements and reality in the story illustrates the writer’s Latin American society. A3. Historical, Social, and Artistic Analysis In Death Constant Beyond Love, Márquez uses magic realism to express Senator Sanchez's understanding of life and death. First, Sanchez’s election cohort that arrives in Rosal del Virrey municipality expresses illusions of wildlife, crowd, and water to persuade residents to vote. For instance, an illusion of money hovering in the air within Sanchez’s room seems to be real and artificial action. Second, the paper butterflies, particularly in their flights, act as metaphors that mimic real and living objects as they express freedom. Márquez narrates that the birds fall to the ground whenever they lose illusions of air. This explains the impossibilities that undermine freedom from death. Also, the disappearance of a butterfly without the crowd’s notice is an illusion that Márquez uses to explain the death of Senator Sanchez, which would surprise many people (Marquez, 1985). A4. Culture Analysis The story concerns the poverty-stricken inhabitants of Rosal del Virrey town who view Senator Sanchez as their potential redeemer. Sanchez's campaign speech includes changing people's life through several actions like providing the basic needs to orphans. He convinces individuals to have a common belief in achieving success after a long period of struggle in life. As a political leader, Sanchez belongs to a high economic and social class. He takes advantage of his leadership position by viewing all people around him as inferior elements that support his achievements. Márquez narrates that Sanchez’s economic prosperity results from corrupt and selfish operations against society. * Analysis of Work from List 2 – The Raven B1. Work Description The Raven is among the most important theater dances that were performed by Eiko and Koma in 2009. It was a multi-site project that included other performances, lectures, exhibitions, publications, and videos (Ryan, 2009). According to Candelario (2011), the Raven was designed to be performed without stage lighting to a group of audience. The Raven is flexible in its performance duration and is also configurable for diverse venues, such as outdoor sites, proscenium stages, and black boxes. For instance, the Raven was once performed at the Lynden Sculpture Garden during the Alverno Presents of October 2008 (Pickford and Brown, 2006). Eiko and Koma perform their Raven project as they emphasize the theme of hunger. They claim that the mentioned issue does not only affect humans but land, animals, and spirits also experience the hunger for intimacy and nourishment. Raven deliberates on how animals are recognized in some cultures as a basis for supernatural powers (Candelario, 2011). B2. Historical and Social Context The primary idea of the Raven originated from Eiko and Koma’s creative work of 1991, where they imagined that their archaic landscape was ‘feeling’ the performance. Eiko and Koma aimed at showing their audience that land is often assaulted by humans and animals but it perseveres and remembers its past without complaints. Eiko and Koma are Japanese-born choreographers who have been working as a team since 1972 (Beaman, 2017). In collaboration, they create unique theater movements based on humanistic messages. Also, they have worked on several occasions as co-choreographers, artistic directors, and performers who create drama movements out of light, sound, time, shape, and stillness. Eiko and Koma have been residents of the U.S. since 1976. They are popular for presenting their works in galleries, museums, and theaters. B3. Historical, Social, and Artistic Analysis The iconoclastic work of Eiko and Koma utilizes nuanced and slow-movement dance styles with bold dramaturgical designs. In all performances, Eiko and Koma often display moves that seem to be impossible for humans. Their actions evoke emotions from the audience in a paradoxical manner. Eiko and Koma’s choreography and movements often progress on a unique scale that has never been witnessed in other artists. Many of Eiko and Koma’s works contain nudity that accentuates human vulnerability. Also, nudity is meant to make the artists appear like animals rather than humans. Eiko asserts that individuals should also be naked like fish and stones (Ryan, 2014). Eiko and Koma aim at attracting the audience’s empathy through the vulnerability of their bodies (Acocella, 2016). B4. Culture Analysis For the Raven dance, Eiko and Koma mimic the name and image of a bird that is recognized by several cultures as a source of supernatural power and myth (Schneider, 2013). The symbolism suggests how Eiko and Koma wanted their work to appear different from the popular performances that existed in the 1970s. Eiko and Koma’s work incorporated the community and democratic aspects of life that existed in America by 1960. They were attracted to the American culture after becoming permanent residents of the U.S. The early influencing factors of their work were the teachings of Kazuo Ohno and Tatsumi Hijikata, who were the founders of Butoh, the Japanese dance-theater design (Acocella, 2016). Also, Eiko and Koma practiced Neue Tanz, which was the old movement that existed in Germany by 1970 (Senf, 2005). * How the Two Works Reach Beyond Cultures C1. Global Impact There is a significant global impact of Death Constant beyond Love and the Raven. First, magic realism, as portrayed in Death Constant beyond Love, was a new trend in painting established in Germany by Franz Roh. It involved paintings that were characterized by images of objects and figures that were depicted in a surrealistic manner. Later on, Márquez adopted and incorporated the theme of m...