Reading Hour of the Star kind of made me wish that I, too, was hit by a Mercedes.
The narrator’s incessant yapping in the beginning made it really hard for me to get into this book, which is honestly kind of an achievement given how short this story is. And then, when we finally get going… it’s just the tale of how Macabéa gets shit on her entire life until she’s run over by a car and dies. The worst part? This is almost seen as a fortunate situation for her — the privilege of being hit by such a luxurious vehicle.
Don’t get me wrong, the girl wasn’t the sharpest tool in the shed. But would I go as far as to call her retarded? Probably not. And she likes hot dogs so really, she got something right. Now despite my annoyance at her daftness, one thing I can get on board with is hating on a man who thinks he’s all that. Enter… Olímpico de Jesus. First of all, if a guy told me my name sounded like a skin disease I’d probably run the other way. But that honestly feels like a compliment compared to how he treats Macabéa throughout the rest of the story. I’ll rank the top ones for your convenience:
1. “Are you just pretending to be an idiot or are you actually an idiot?” (47)
2. “You sound like a mute trying to sing.” (43)
3. “You didn’t cost me much, just a coffee. I won’t spend another cent on you, okay?” (47)
I’ve hated myself a fair share in my life, but I don’t think I’ve ever hated myself enough to take shit from a guy like this brother-looking little bitch.
But in actual news, something that really stood out to me in this book was the narrator’s, or Macabéa, sense of God. We’re told that “she didn’t think about God, God didn’t think about her” (18), and yet she seems to spend quite a lot of time thinking about God. She’s presented as a saint, and “she repented entirely and for everything” (29), but also doesn’t really seem to have a strong sense of religion. It isn’t until she thinks that her luck is finally starting to turn around that “Jesus was finally taking some interest in her” (67), and then of course she dies so… yeah. I guess we ended with a bang (explosion!).
To be fair, I don’t think I was in the mood to read this book (if that’s even a thing that someone could be in the mood for). But I feel like I just didn’t really get it. Why spend so much time creating this sob story of Macabéa’s life, just to end it all so abruptly? And that is why I shall now go watch the lecture videos in hopes of gaining a profound insight into the depth and nuance of this novel. Will I have a fonder view of this novel by the time we discuss this work in class… guess you’ll have to wait and find out!
6 replies on “uh oh, we’ve got a yapper”
I, too, am a hater of Olimpico that prick of a boy. But I kind of see how Macabea could represent more than just a girl, and moreso, marginalized groups. But the way this story was started just REALLY took it out of me to push through to finish reading it. But yeah, just a sad sad ending to her life which is ironically pictured as the best part of her life. which kind of makes sense after how badly she was insulted throughout this entire literary diss track.
Love your title haha! I could totally relate as I was thinking of when he would finally start the story during the entire introduction. Even during the story, he kept “barging” in. Thank you for sharing!
Melissa:
Hello, I agree with your point on how messy the writing was in the beginning. The abrupt ending was also to me some degree strange and distasteful.
I think the abrupt ending made sense for the book, as the narrator does basically keep saying “let’s get this over with” but yeah I definitely agree that his descriptions of Macabéa were flat out mean.
I think the abrupt ending made sense for the book, as the narrator does basically keep saying “let’s get this over with” but yeah I definitely agree that his descriptions of Macabéa were flat out mean.
That was me, Sofia Rocha Zandbergen!
“But I feel like I just didn’t really get it. Why spend so much time creating this sob story of Macabéa’s life, just to end it all so abruptly?” I think you got it! Probably the point is just showing the limits and contradictions of literature itself.
We can discuss it on Wednesday.
Julián.