It is clear to see the almost identical relation of the characters in the film Volver and that of the book House of Spirits. All of the women characters in Volver share and equal distrust towards males and carry the notion that “life continues without a man or not”. With this idea comes a sense of camaraderie between Irene, Sole and Raimunda. We also see this connection between Clara, Blanca, Alba, and Ferula throughout House of Spirits. During Volver, Raimunda’s daughter stabs her father for making sexual advances towards her and Raimanda shows little sympathy for her spouse. I see a slight parallel in The House of Spirits, due to the fact that Clara tolerates Esteban’s attitude but does not love him in the slightest. This creates a strong bond between Blanca and Clara, because neither of them show fondness of Esteban and avoid him especially in times where he throws tantrums and becomes violent. In both stories, the women are depicted as strong and independent, suffering from the trials and tribulations that life and men bring upon them. They both send the same message to feminist supporters, which is to persevere through these times of female oppression and disrespect. The male characters in the movie Volver differ rather drastically. Paco, Raimunda’s husband, is portrayed as the typical couch-bound bum who has recently been fired from his job. He is also depicted as a pervert for nearly forcing sex upon his wife (which she shows absolutely no interest in having) and sexually assaulting his daughter. These actions go hand in hand with the actions of Esteban Trueba while he is living at Tres Marias. They are both depicted as power hungry that only focus on their own interests. The store owner shows respect and trust towards Raimunda due to the fact that he asks her to take care of his shop while he travels abroad. The last male character that sticks out is the movie producer that asks Raimunda to feed him and his crew after they finish filming. This character is younger and shows hospitality and respectfulness as well. Since there are few male characters in Volver it is hard to argue that all the men depicted are anti-feminists, however I do notice a clear connection between Paco and Esteban. The magical realism displayed in Volver is much more literal compared to that of The House of Spirits. The only magic depicted in the movie, is the question that maybe Irene (the mother of Sole and Raimunda) is a ghost. Whereas in House of Spirits, the magic conducted by Clara is taken the the extreme when she is able to, at one point, float across a room in a chair. The two stories are large feminist statements, each with their own individuality. Thank you for your time and my work cited will be in the link below.
Works Cited
Scott, A. O. “The Darkest of Troubles in the Brightest of Colors.” The New York Times. The New York Times, 02 Nov. 2006. Web. 09 Sept. 2016.
Ebert, Roger. “Volver Movie Review & Film Summary (2006) | Roger Ebert.” All Content. N.p., 21 Nov. 2006. Web. 09 Sept. 2016.
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