Forgiving his spontaneous waterfall sequence in the previous chapter, I have to say that of all the characters, Arcangel is my favorite. Not only is he my favorite, but I think he is by far the most significant in telling what is happening in the grand scheme of the story.
He is an ethereal character, able to change form and bend reality. Yet still, he has a consistent appearance described to us as an old man. His old yet unchanging age is symbolic of his cosmic nature. He knows things, he knows the future, and he is much wiser than others. He represents an ultimate truth. We see him take different roles and shapes; in the latest chapter he becomes El Gran Mojado, the man moving north. But what Arcangel represents in this context is perhaps one of the key motifs for the novel, as far as I can understand this early on: southern ideas moving north.
Arcangel’s chapter is rife with symbolism. He is literally surrounded by “Misery and Hunger” in a traditional Mexican cantina. The significant detail with this is that the cantina is filled with American foods, American beverages, and American names. Arcangel is the only one who retains a tradition by cooking the cactus leaves with his meal.
Strangely, the waiter recognizes Arcangel, apparently from his own birth. How could this be? In the magical realist genre, the details don’t matter, and therefore this detail is significant. This Mexican waiter recognizes what Arcangel represents: the lost values of self-made culture. The waiter was born in a cornfield, heavily suggesting roots in a simpler agrarian culture. Since he is now a waiter in an americanized cantina, this surely suggests a cultural decay and a departure from the values he was born into.
And so this recognition of cultural decay prompts Arcangel to disrupt the cockfight. When Arcangel becomes El Gran Mojado, he even admits his own ethereal nature:
“I […] am a vision in your very minds!” (133)
His nemesis, Supernafta, is ethereal and symbolic as well. He is able to “duplicate, even triplicate, himself,” similar to how Arcangel can become multiple people (132-133). His posters and his influence are seen throughout the towns, but no one has physically seen him. Like Arcangel, Supernafta is an idea.
The most obvious symbol that Supernafta stands for is NAFTA; the North American Free Trade Agreement, which caused American business to invest in Mexico, slowly americanizing the land and shifting focus from homegrown culture towards American materialism. Arcangel remarks on this on page 132: “for the moment the North has come South,” foreshadowing the challenge that he will ignite. He criticizes NAFTA:
“He is only concerned with the
commerce of money and things.
What is this compared to the great
commerce of humankind? (133)
El Gran Mojado is taking the reigns in this scene. He is advocating for a reversal; for the spirit of humanity once found in Mexican tradition to rise up and influence America instead. Not only will El Gran Mojado fight Supernafta, but all will be decided in this battle. Heroes and villains representing many issues will join the fight as well: Super-Ilegal (illegal immigration), Super-Gringo (American stereotypes), Super-Chicano (Mexican-American stereotypes), La Raza Còsmica (racial superiority), and so on.
Arcangel is the catalyst for the uprising of cultural conflict in this story, and his chapters will be largely significant through the rest of the book.
Buzzworm: surviving vs living
Great post — and I like your approximation of what SUPERNAFTA might look like! Great overview / introduction to Arcangel’s character here as he quite literally takes the reigns (or the tropic of cancer) and heads north to make this seemingly abstract conflict more than real.