The story is a combination of reality and fantasy which reflects many aspects of society. The author shed a light over the different components of humanity which deal with daily life activities. Human beings are so concerned about their own benefit. At first the villages plucked and prodded the old man to testify whether he was an angel or not; however, when the old man did not meet their expectations, they treated him as some freak of nature. Pelayo was the first to notice the presence of the old men with the enormous wings. He used the old man for his benefit and never returned his favor. With the help of his money he created a big mansion and his wife bought jewelry and clothes for herself. They did not show any respect to him.
The town people did not care that much about the angel either because they had doubts about him being an angel. Nobody has ever seen an angel but still people believe that they are supposed to be young, with beautiful feathers and clothes. The old man did not speak their language, he Smells, he cannot fly, he is bold, and almost toothless. To them he lacked the qualification for being an angel; he was just a weird human with wings.
The author presents the reaction of people towards individuals who are different to the majority of people. The town people’s attitude towards innocence and helpless creatures reflects that being different can raise several questions for an individual. The town people spent their time figuring out how much he related to an angel by making judgments about his appearance. This old man with wings represents an outsider, anybody who can be different such us people with different religious beliefs, and different sexual orientation. Instead of the villages trying to understand the old ma and appreciating his unique presence, they projected bad things and treated him cruelly. People tend to do that with people who are outside from our normal experience. They try to impose on them how they should be instead of appreciating and accepting who they are.
The lack of respect towards the old man reflects another part of humanity. Nobody in the whole town tried to figure out the reason of the old man’s condition and his pain; all they were concerned about was making judgments and drawing conclusions about his appearance. They burned his feathers and did not even try to console him when he stayed motionless because of a fever. The old man who brought happiness in Pelayo’s life suffered from physical and emotional pain but nobody took care of him.
The town people were full of superstition which made them believe that the old man was a devil because of his odd appearance. People in the town just wanted entertainment because after the presence of spider girl, they reflected more interest in her story and avoided the angel. The old man’s presence in the story reflects the behavior and attitude of humans toward inhuman creatures.
The man comes from the sea and was able to rescue himself and he leaves on the sea wind. The sea is usually the symbol of possibilities and endless boundless nature that is both crucial and given. He probably went back where he came from, when there is no judgment on others whether they are sim
This is a tale for children just because of the fantasy and magic in it. Also, this story teaches many aspects of humanity which humans are losing nowadays. The main focus of the tale is to make readers curious about what humanity is. This tale raised many questions about the humanity which wants an answer from human beings. Cruelty, selfishness, and racism are taking place in society while avoiding that every living creature feels pain and has many common aspects of life.
As a reader this story made me think out of the box . We usually judge others who seem to be different than us and try to understand why they do not think, or look like us. I feel like that I am not supposed to be the villages but instead I am supposed to appreciate creatures and people for who they are and not trying to impose my standards on them.
