Plot Summary
At the beginning, it had been raining for 3 days and crabs were everywhere. Pelayo and Elisenda's child was supposedly sick because of the crabs' stench. The couple find a very old man with enormous wings stuck in the mud. When the couple attempts to communicate with the old man, his incomprehensible language (which is never identified) leads the couple to believe he is a castaway. A neighbor woman who knew everything about life and death tells the couple he is an angel and he was coming for the child (either for good or bad reasons) but was so old he was knocked down. Pelayo decides to lock the angel in a chicken coop overnight and then send him on a raft to his fate. Early the next morning the local priest, Father Gonzaga, comes to the home, followed by the rest of the community, to test the old man and determine whether or not he truly is an angel. Ultimately, Father Gonzaga finds many reasons why the man cannot be an angel, such as the fact that the old man cannot understand Latin, and also because he has too many mortal characteristics. Elisenda, tired of cleaning up the visitors' messes, decides to charge an entrance fee of 5 cents to see the angel.
The crowd soon loses interest in the angel because another freak has risen to fame. The new attraction is a woman who disobeyed her parents when she was young, and has since been transformed into a tarantula. In order for her to continue telling her story, the people of the town toss meatballs into her mouth, which was "her only means of nourishment." Though the people of the town no longer see the angel, the family had saved up enough money to build a mansion with balconies and gardens and nets. The Old Man then lives with the family in the chicken coop for many years to come. The angel's health declines, and it seems he is on the verge of death. When his last winter in the chicken coop is over, he suddenly becomes more healthy, grows a few new feathers, and is able to get out of his cage. At first, he roams around the house, but Elisenda keeps shooing him out of the rooms with a broom. One day he leaves the house, and begins to attempt to fly. After much effort, he is able to fly off into the distance, and Elisenda is relieved to have the "annoyance" gone from her life.
Read more about this topic: A Very Old Man With Enormous Wings
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