Analysis of Garbriel Garcia Marquez

In the short story “ Artificial Roses” by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Marquez explores guilt, and its relationship with the church, as well as in the family structure. In the story there are two main characters. Mina, a young woman, who makes a living by creating roses, out of paper and wires, and her blind grandmother. The first thing you learn about the pair is that they share a room. There is an obvious sense from Mina that she feels her personal space is invaded by her blind grandmother. As noted in the film old women are the ones who tell the stories, and have “magical powers.” But Mina is unaware of her grandmothers power of perception, and in the story Mina learns that her grandmother is quite aware of Mina’s actions. The story is essentially a battle of wits, and undeniable guilt, between the two.
The story starts with Mina waking up, possibly late, looking for long sleeves to wear to Mass. She soon learns that her grandmother had washed them the night before, but they were still wet, and Mina fears she will not make it to Mass without wet sleeves. There is a mention of Father Angel not giving her Communion with bare shoulders. Mina is quite upset with her grandmother, the blind woman warns her “It’s a sacrilege to take Communion when one is angry”. This seems to make Mina move faster, and she is out the door soon after, without even washing her face. This is the first interaction where “God” is mentioned, along with a sense of guilt that the grandmother puts upon Mina, after Mina had put guilt onto the grandmother for washing the sleeves.
Mina comes back home only fifteen minutes later, crying. The grandmother is blamed once again for Mina’s actions. Mina reacts to her grandmothers questions of the tears by saying “ You m...

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...r left the house in the first place, that someone must have disappointed her on the way to church. The grandmother also points out that Mina went to the bathroom twice that morning, and that she notices that once she turns off the light at night, Mina turns on her flashlight, to write letters. Mina is once again feeling her space is invaded, and she swears at her grandmother, but because Mina never swears her grandmother knows it is coming from a place of guilt. The last sentence, which is a quote from the grandmother in which she says, “ I'm crazy...you haven't thought of sending me to the madhouse so long as I don't start throwing stones.” The ciche of not throwing stones in glass houses comes to mind, meaning that Mina’s grandmother is staying in her “place” as long as she is not revealing the injustice and sacrilege that is going on in the house, or in the world.