Isabel Allendes The House of the Spirits Essay examples -- Isabel All

Isabel Allende's The House of the Spirits In many novels, relationships shape a character. Throughout Isabel Allende's The House of the Spirits dissimilar individuals constantly come together to form relationships that change or develop their disposition. While Allende uses relationships to build upon a character, she also depicts a character's living environment in order to confirm their true soul and lifestyle. Due to the observation of both relationships and environments, a character's true qualities are expressed to a reader. The relationship between two individuals, Ferula and Clara, proves itself a positive product of the union of differing people. Through analysis of Ferula's home and close observation of her bond with Clara, Allende reveals Ferula's true character as she illustrates Ferula's dramatic change from a desolate soul to the selfless and loving character that molds Clara into the confident woman she aspires to. Ferula's life story, the desolation of her soul, and the connection she eventually has with Clara all became evident in the mere description of her living environment. At one point in the novel, Clara wrote of her experience in the vicinity of Ferula?s home. Clara explained that ?The tenement was a long passageway of ruined houses, all exactly the same; small impoverished dwellings built of cement, each with a single door and two windows. They were painted in drab colors and their peeling walls were linked across the narrow passageway by wires hung from side to side. [She] walked deeper into the neighborhood, avoiding puddles of dirty water that overflowed from the gutters and dodging piles of garbage in which cats were digging like silent shadows. In the center of the little... ...ship with Clara, Ferula became one of the most dynamic characters within The House of the Spirits. From ?ruined houses? to a life giving ?fountain? Allende demonstrated the great transformation of Ferula?s soul from complete desolation to true love. The bond she shared with Clara proved itself as one that could not compare to any others within the novel. Clara ?always was thinking of [Ferula]?(152), demonstrating the great impression Ferula left with her. No other relationships developed such a transformation as did this one. Truly, Ferula?s love influenced Clara?s life and molded her heart with the love and confidence that forever remained in the Trueba household and its memories. Works Cited: Allende, Isabel. The House of the Spirits. Trans. Magda Bogin. New York: Bantam Books, 1986. Trans. of La casa de los espiritus. Barcelona: Plaza and James. 1982.