“The Time of the Doves” by Mercè Rodoreda was a longer piece of literature compared to the previous readings in this course. Interestingly enough, it did not feel as if it was much longer, as I felt immersed in the story, and the author’s style of writing felt smooth for me. The overall impression I had while reading this novel was that I felt quite empathetic for the characters, especially Natalia.
Her first husband, Quimet, was definitely not a gentleman and mistreated her all throughout, until the war. I found his character to be highly toxic and disliked him for the first half of the story, sometimes questioning if he actually loved Natalia. However, afterwards, as he went to war, I was able to realize that love was present within their relationship. For instance, the way he tried to provide for the family during the difficult wartime period was an indication of responsibility and love, which both lacked before. I also found his reaction to the emptying of the dove cote to have shown his affection towards Natalia. Although it seemed like he was obsessed with the doves beforehand, once everything took a turn for the worse, it clearly showed that, after all, his priority was Natalia and the children. Also, I made the connection between Rita and Quimet within the theme of love. As mentioned in the novel, Rita is much like Quimet, as she resembles his appearance, but her personality may have resembled his as well. Her reaction to Vicenç, who she later marries, seemed to be quite cold, and her reasons for eventually marrying him sounded like love was nonexistent. Later during her wedding, she whispers to Natalia that she actually fell in love with Vicenç from the first day, but she simply did not want to show that to him. I thought this may have been true for Quimet as well. His violent and ignorant behaviour is nothing to be justified, but I do think he loved Quimet, especially as he often got jealous when Natalia was around other men. Another character I felt sorry for was Natalia’s son, Toni (Antoni). Although this may have been the cruel reality of wartime, it was heartbreaking to see him be left in the camp away from his family. This probably was a very traumatic event for both Natalia and Toni.
I believe the doves represent a major theme of this novel. I always thought doves symbolized peace, but in this story, I think they symbolized different things. The doves may have symbolized Natalia and her life full of difficulties. It felt like there was a very close connection between the changing life situations of Natalia and the doves. Eventually, the doves all fly away, die, and in the end, Natalia finally accepts Quimet’s death, finding a new life with Antoni. I truly hope her ending is different from her doves, and that time in the past only remains as “the time of the doves” so that she progresses past it.
Question: I wonder how Natalia’s life would have been different if she married Pere.
3 replies on “Rodoreda “The Time of the Doves””
“Rita is much like Quimet”
Indeed, Natalia actually says “Rita was Quimet” (170).
“I always thought doves symbolized peace”
Absolutely, but remember (as I suggest in my lecture) that the same word in Catalan could also be translated as “pigeon,” which in English has a very different connotation, no? In fact, this is how the word is translated in the other two published translations to English. Which translation do you feel is better?
Reading your post made me realize I had a harder time seeing love in Quimet than you did and that it made me think how how differently we can all interpret the same character. I found that to be very interesting because you picked up on things I hadn’t noticed.
Hi there I really appreciate your further understanding of this novel not only through it’s content but the way it is portrayed and the peculiar writing style that keeps you constantly feeling like you are in the book. I also agree with your analysis that the doves represent a lot in this novel and they are a way to demonstrate the story line that Natalia is facing, Great Blog!