Bombal “The Shrouded Woman”

“The Shrouded Woman” by Bombal was a very interesting piece of literature that made me internally gasp at multiple moments. The point of view of which the story is led by the dead protagonist was a unique perspective to read in. I also found this piece to be much easier to understand, as each chapter/part focused on the relationship between different characters and Ana Maria. Throughout, the theme “love” was very evidently seen, between the various relationships portrayed and by the shrouded woman’s reminiscence. I also got the impression that some scenes sounded somewhat poem-like, this aiding in making this reading experience more entertaining.

To reflect back on some of the key scenes that stood out for me, the first one was when Ana felt remorse for not being able to recognize that Ricardo had always been a part of her, stating, “must we die in order to know certain things?” (p.176). If she had realized, it could have kept her from the long days of loneliness. I was able to emphasize with her regretful feelings, reflecting back on the past, things that I wished I knew before but could only recognize later. Another scene that made me think and feel was when Ana stated she no longer felt hatred or love towards her husband, Antonio. I think this is a very essential scene of the novel, which shows Ana’s final step in embracing her “death of living”. This part of the story made me realize once again that love and hate are very contrasting emotions, yet things that only exist because we are alive. I was also touched by Ana’s reaction to her daughter’s cry while caressing her dead body. Her motherly love, not wanting her daughter to sink into sadness, and the phrase “perhaps you will yourself die before I become exhausted and die in you” made me quite emotional. I found this to be the saddest scene.

There were also multiple scenes that made me gasp in shock. For example, I was surprised by Silvia’s sudden death. I guess this shows how irrational a person can become over love, and that just because it is love, this does not necessarily mean it is always bright, happy, or healthy. Many of the other surprises came from the plot twists that occurred, mainly due to the “affairs” of the characters. As much as I felt empathy or sorrow for the characters throughout the story, I found many of them to be highly disloyal. Despite Fred stating that Silvia is his love, I was disgusted by him admiring Maria Griselda, even admitting that he could come to admire her more than Silvia if he stayed longer. Antonio is honestly just a piece of…styrofoam (aka. unrecyclable). If he had done the MBTI personality test, it would come out as TTTT for toxic, toxic, toxic, and toxic.

To end with a question, I wonder what the phrase “The day burns hours, minutes, seconds” appearing repeatedly throughout the story signifies. Does it carry more meanings than what the words directly imply?