The Shadow of the Wind-Week 5, Post B

I am convinced that Daniel has a weakness for women who are not his own age. There have been three instances when Daniel has fallen for a woman beyond his years. The first was Clara, the second was Bea, and the third was Nuria. The author has yet to write about Daniel falling for someone his own age. I do however support Daniel and Bea’s relationship if she chooses him. Bea is currently engaged to a man serving time in the military and they have planned to get married once he has finished his service. I have no doubt in my mind that Daniel would make a better fit than her fiancé. Bea has displayed clear signs that she is not truly in love with her fiancé and she also displayed quite an interest in Daniel. While I believe they should be together, there is a problem. Bea is Daniel’s best friend Tomas’s older sister. When Tomas came in to see Daniel the day after Bea came home late from being out with Daniel, Tomas discussed his father’s rage at Bea when she arrived home so late and he claimed that he would rip the limbs off the guy she was with. This obviously made Daniel extremely nervous and he guilt himself into telling Tomas that the mystery guy was him. Tomas did not seem pleased to hear this, but he did not protest against the relationship. He simply said “Don’t hurt my sister,” and got up and left. I have reason to believe that Daniel’s interest in Bea goes beyond infatuation, as opposed to his previous interests.

The Shadow of the Wind-Week 5, Post A

It may be because of the time period that this novel takes place, but I noticed a higher degree of Anti-Semitism in the novel which takes place in Barcelona. The novel takes place during the 1940s, right after the Spanish Civil War. I'm sure the only reason I noticed this is because of the time period the novel is set in. There was a large amount of Anti-Semitism during the 1940s due to the rise of the Nazi party and of Hitler. I am not very knowlegeable about the level of Anti-Semitism in Spain at the time, but I am quite aware of how the countries around Spain felt in terms of Anti-Semitism. I am currently taking a course in A.P. European History. The quote that stuck out the most to me was this: "'The man is going to get you into trouble one of these days, mark my words. He's an anarchist, a Mason, or a Jew at the very least. With that great big nose of his-'" A woman in the novel made this statement about a man who spent his days as a polite watchmaker, and his nights as a transvestite. It is safe to say that there was a lot of intoleration to the homosexuals of the time as well.