An Archetypal Study of Pedro Paramo

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With its complex structure, following the characters of Pedro Paramo is no easy feat. Its heterglossic nature requires readers to attentively channel all of their focus into the narrator, making it difficult to follow individual character development or relationships. However, using the archetypes of Mexican men and women, as revealed in Octavio Paz’s “The Labyrinth of Solitude,” helps aid in the understanding of Pedro’s relationships formed between men and women as he both subscribes the archetypes and breaks them down.
In order to understand these relationships, a basic understanding of Paz’s analysis of Mexican men and women must be reviewed. According to Paz, Mexican men must always be unyielding figures who are “never to ‘crack,’ never to back down” as “opening oneself is a weakness” (Paz 30). For this reason, the Mexican man must always put up a hard exterior, often becoming “closed up in himself” (Paz 31). As the man becomes more “manly” he becomes more powerful by excluding himself from those around him and protecting himself. The Mexican woman is traditionally a submissive creature because women “open themselves up” (Paz 30) which is, as stated, a weakness. She becomes a “reflection of masculine will and desire” as she has no power and often must exercise “feminine modesty” (Paz 35). Women are “domesticated wild animal[s]” and their “’place is in the home’” (Paz 36). With this basic understanding of the archetypes, an analysis of Pedro’s relations can be conducted, starting with his relations with other men.
As one of the richest and most powerful men in Comala, Pedro works above many of the other men in the novel. He sets himself up as the “head honcho” and doesn’t allow other men to become his equal. This is evident ...

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...tionships, with characters such as Fulgor and Susana, that he deems particularly important. While it is understood that, when compared to other men, Pedro will always be the boss, with women Pedro struggles to maintain a steady relationship due to this persona. Due to his expectation of women to be submissive, his two marriages with Dolores and Susana fail. By closely following these character archetypes, many of Pedro’s relationships are strained in some way.

Works Cited

Paz, Octavio. "Mexican Masks." The Labyrinth of Solitude. Trans. Lysander Kemp, Yara Milos, and Rachel Phillips Belash. New York City: Grove, 1985. 29-46. JSTOR. Web. 10 Jan.
2014.

02/assets4/1311/8862/OP_The_Labyrinth_of_Solitude.pdf>.
Rulfo, Juan. Pedro Paramo. Trans. Susan Sontag. New York City: Grove, 1994. Print.

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