Literature Analysis Essay on La Virgen De Los Sicarios

Introduction

La Virgen de Los Sicarios (Our Lady of the Assassins) was a novel written by Fernando Vallejo in Spanish and published in 1998. It was translated to English in the year 2001, and it is about an author who returns to his homeland thirty years down the line. Medellin in Colombia is his hometown, and he finds that the place has changed so much and he could hardly recognize it. He is in his fifties based on age and finds an atmosphere full of violence, murder, homosexuality, as well as poor religious practices caused by drug cartel warfare. It was later acted into a film that was internationally recognized for example the Venice Film Festival (2000), Aware of the Italian Senate, etc. The paper, therefore, seeks to discuss three main thematic issues observed in the movie. They include; violence, religion and social decay (Fernando n.p). These issues run across the whole novel.

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Fernando wrote the novel during the 1990s which was a difficult time in Columbia after the death of Pablo Escobar, an infamous leader who lead mafias that declared war on Columbian institutions and the state. Pablo Escobar used young killers who lived in slums to carry out these terrorist attacks. He provided the people from the slums with schools, electricity, and housing, things which the government was unable to do. His deeds won the hearts of the people giving him power and popularity over the mafias. They guaranteed influence over the people through social injustices like killing those who did not comply (Jose n.p).

Violence

Violence consists of actions that are intended to cause destruction, pain or suffering. They lead to injustice as extreme forces are used on particular subjects. Violence is the main theme of the novel which is common in Latin American countries because political conflicts and social roots cause it. The novel talks about sicarios hired killers who killed any political opponents or any other individual who was against the cause of the cartel (Rebecca n.p). The sicarios consisted of young boys and a few girls who were ready to be turned into killing machines to serve the mafias. They rode motorcycles while settling gang conflicts and bystanders are unable to take any actions whereas the police are nowhere to be seen.

Fernando goes back to his hometown to die because death was the order of the day and he found himself to a point in life where he did not care. Alexis one of the sicarios was always armed and is introduced to the readers when he meets with Fernando in a gay brothel. The spree of murders begins when Fernando complains to Alexis, sicarios, of the loud music being played by his neighbor. Alexis who desires to please his new lover offers to finish him, and he spots him the following day and puts a bullet in his forehead (Juan n.p).

Alexis follows with the killing of three soldiers who had stopped them from searching them after an innocent passerby. Fernando found himself justifying all the murders sarcastically in the name of teaching them tolerance and to rid of hatred. The killings continue, and Alexis ends up killing Wilmar's brother who was in the opposing rivalry gangs as service to the mafia since he wronged them. Wilmar then ends up murdering Alexis in revenge for his brother's murder (Villasenor n.p). These hired killers were offered large amounts of money to kill police officers, and more than three hundred were killed as they were against the drug cartel business.

Through the violence there developed social chaos due to the works of the society, culture, and politics of a given state. Fernando demonstrated how the state was in social chaos due to the acts of the Medellin Cartel. The mafias acted as jury, judge and executioner. It comprised of lawlessness and free market economics where the murder was a common commodity. The killings of people were bought and sold since human life was not important because the mafias were not afraid to pull the trigger on anyone, a policeman, a child, or an adult. They thought that they were dispensing justice to the public as they are exterminating low-lives.

Social Decay

Social decay entails the rotting of social norms, beliefs, attitudes, customs, values that make us a community or society. The social decay is as a result of the drug cartels who eradicate the culture that people are used to. People are usually guided by the social laws in how they should behave, what they should follow, how to do things etc. when the culture of the society begins to decay then peace and harmony amongst the people is disrupted, how they relate to each other when interacting in society and the economy, social evils arise, etc. Social evils such as robbery, murder, rape, violence, etc.

Social decay in Medellin, Columbia rose due to the social evils being practiced by the drug cartels. There were numerous killings by the sicarios who were trained and paid to kill. This showed that human life is not as important as compared to the earlier customs of treasuring human life. Life was seen as just another commodity sold in the free market since the sicarios were paid to kill people (Roberto n.p). Also, the sicarios consisted of young children like Alexis was sixteen years old, who would openly fire on anyone who crossed paths with him. The case showed that human life was not significant since we are taught of forgiveness if one wrongs you.

Homosexuality is another expression of social decay. It is a taboo in this country, yet it is openly expressed through the characters. Fernando is an old adult who is a homosexual as he visits a gay brothel and is introduced to Alexis who is a gay prostitute. They continue to grow close as the plot continues and they both seek to please each other. Alexis kills Fernando's disturbing neighbor as he plays loud music that is not soothing to him (Keila n.p). He was an 'Exterminating Angel' to Fernando as he found himself justifying his killings. After the death of Alexis, Fernando meets with another boy who appears to have the same qualities as Alexis and begins yet another relationship with him. Wilmar is his name, and he is the one who killed Alexis in revenge for his brother's death by Alexis.

Poverty is seen in the novel as people received handouts from Pablo Escobar who was the leader of the drug cartel. The government is given the mandate of taking care of its subjects. The government should have facilitated Food, supplies, and housing. However, this was not the case. The setting of the story shows that people are living in the slums under poor housing without resources or their basic activities. For the mafia to gain power over the people under the command of Pablo Escobar, provided the people from the slums with schools, electricity, housing, food, money, and jobs as sicarios. The people thus praised the mafia for giving them a helping hand, and they were heroes to them.

The older men also used young people. Firstly, the young men were used as recruits for the drug cartels to be contracted killers, to go for war with rival drug gangs or as laborers for a small amount of money or food and drinks. Secondly, they were used for relationship gain like Fernando a sixty-year-old man was in a relationship with a sixteen-year-old boy. After the death of Alexis, Fernando found yet another young man to be in a relationship with, and he was a hired assassin just like his former lover. Older men are supposed to be mentors to the young to provide them with advice, guidance, and mentorship.

Religion

Colombia is widely known for their staunch belief in Catholicism. The belief rose due to the Spanish traditions of their ancestor's cultural heritage during the Spanish colonization, Afro-Colombian roots and Native American heritage in the Middle Ages who followed the Roman Catholic Church. They are greatly devoted to saints and worship the holy Virgin Mary. Colombia has a 90% Christian's percentage and the remaining 10% consisting of other religions and atheists. There is freedom of worship that says that all people are equal, born free and should not be discriminated due to religion.

In Medellin, religion was undermined after the rise of violence and hired killers that emerged due to the drug cartels. The main religious area was the Sanctuary of Sabaneta, a site where the mafias and sicarios took a religious journey. Mary Help of Christians was the inspiration of Fernando's novel. They sought protection from the evil of the enemy and to strengthen them even when they feared the hour of death. They prayed that she would receive their souls in paradise when they died. Deeper analysis of the novel also reveals the hypocrisy of religion in the country. It is seen when the sicarios wear the crucifix on their necks, pray for protection, blessings of their work as well as receiving their souls when they die. The action is hypocritical because they are murderers murdering the weak, innocent and law enforcers. They pretend to be Christians and go to their sicarios priest who is part of them (Oscar n.p)

The churches lacked priests. People took their worries and anxieties to be heard by a priest. The action is usually done in a confession booth. The priest listens to their anxieties, worries as well as a confession of their sins. The priest is then sworn to secrecy and cannot reveal what anyone has told him while in confession and takes these secrets to his grave. Fernando and Alexis were filled with anxieties and went to look for a priest to listen to them. However, they could not find one after going from church to church.

Also, the church is a place of worship, and it should be given its respect. In Medellin, the church ceased from being a place of worship to a place where beggars came to receive handouts of food like bread which they greatly received. The drug cartels also carried out their drug deals in the cathedrals. This showed a lack of the church being used for its rightful purpose since the social customs were decomposing (Maite n.p).

Conclusion

In summary, the novel brings to light many issues that are being faced in the present Columbia. It focuses on drug cartels, their social evils that have brought havoc in Medellin as well as poor morality. Through the three main issues of violence, social decay, and religion, the reader can have a full picture of what the writer was trying to portray his visit back to his hometown. Increased killing, homosexuality, loss of importance of life, older men using young men, hypocrisy are shown through the novel.

Work Cited

Fernando, Vallejo. La virgin de los sicarios. Penguin random house. Editorial Espania, 2010.

Jose, Antonio Jodar-Sanchez. The Morality of Violence in La Virgen de los Sicarios. Romance Studies.2017. Taylor & Francis.

Juan, Ramos. Homosexuality, Machismo and Violence in Barbet Schroder's La Virgen de los Sicarios. Citeseer, 2009.

Keila, Pena. Middle Atlantic review of Latin America studies. 2017.

Maite, Villoria. Colombia's drug trafficking subculture: it's literary Representation in La Virgen de los Sicarios and Rosario. Taylor & Francis. 2011.

Oscar, Osorio. La Virgen de los Sicarios: from Novel to Film. Despite all adversities. Spanish American Queer, 2015.

Rebecca, Biron. It's a Living Hitman in the Mexican Narco War. PMLA. 2012.

Roberto, Gonzalez. Roman law in the constitution of Macondo. The Yale review.2015.

Villasenor, Leticia Nini. Fernando Vallejo's La Virgen de los Sicarios: the inferno of bare life. 2013.