How Does Isabel Allonese Shape Eva Luna

“Eva Luna”, by Isabel Allende, entails the story of the protagonist with the same name, in which she lives through life and meets Rolf Carle. While the story mainly focuses on Eva’s life’s journey in South America, the novel also tells the story of Rolf Carle from his childhood in Austria to his meeting with Eva. In this novel, I noticed a variety of elements that can be explored by the well-known literary critic Northrop Frye. I will be using his “Hero from across the sea” theory to demonstrate how men influenced and shaped Eva Luna. According to Northrop Frye, the theory of “hero from across the sea” consists of a wasteland that is ruled by the impotent old king, whose land is being destroyed by a sea monster whose only goal is to demand

Huberto Naranjo, just like Riad encouraged Eva’s education, but unlike Riad, he did not succeed at said task. Nevertheless, he shaped her differently - he awakened in her something she had never felt with Riad or Kamal. He awakened the deepest sexual desires she held inside her. Previously, Naranjo had always been a hero-like figure to Eva, due to all the times he saved her. When they first met, and she ran away from the “patrona’s” house, she saw him as someone that could protect her in a world unknown to her. In this scenario, Naranjo would be the hero from across the sea that saves her in a moment of despair, when she has nowhere to go. Also, the streets would be the wasteland, and the “madrina” the impotent king that exposes her to the sea monster which would be the “patrona”. That image of Naranjo stuck with Eva throughout her life, after all, he had been her “childhood hero and the protagonist of [her] first amourous fantasies” (Allende, 249). A couple of years after Eva left Agua Santa, Eva was distraught with the memory of Riad Habali and was troubled by her active romantic affection towards him. However, when she reunited with Naranjo, she was swept away by the new feelings that she started to have feelings towards him. In fact, when they met, Eva says that she “felt a longuid warmth in my knees, and my heart was pounding; a long

Riad Habali serving as the “hero from across the sea”, taught her the importance of education and its benefits, so she could, later on, become a free educated woman and a writer. She saved her from both poverty and illiteracy and gave her a pathway to learning the basics of reading and writing, which were skills that she took all through the journey. Huberto Naranjo also served as a “hero from across the sea”, allowing her to forget about her unnatural passion towards Riad and direct it towards him instead; he awakened her sexually and open her eyes to a healthier and more exciting relationship. Finally, the Lieutenant, as the “sea monster” opened her eyes to the injustice and the overuse of authority from some men in inform, making her want to participate in the guerilla's mission, to prove her gained bravery from the time he tortured her. Overall, all of the masculine figures, inspired and shaped the woman that is Eva