Chapter 1- A closer look

Raymond Lu

      The chapter starts out with the words “I came to Comala”, and it also ends with the words “ I came to Comala”. The repetition of these words in the first chapter shows the revolutionary nature of the chapter: It starts with a phrase and comes a full cycle to end with the same phrase. The chapter is very vague; it seems as if the reader is peering into the foggy mind of Juan Preciado. Rulfo constantly uses flashback and flashforward: the chapter starts and ends at the same "time". The tone of the chapter is also sullen, gloomy( death is mentioned three times) , and obscure, Juan's only reason for making the trip is to satisfy a whimsical fancy, a dream, a hope. In fact, Juan constructs a "whole world" around a "hope" centered around a man he knows nothing about. This statement is the first instance in which an allusion to religion occurs- the entire basis of religion is hope: Hope centered around a god that nobody can see, hear, touch, etc. , in essence a god people know nothing about. Through the close reading, Rulfo's employment of various literary techniques is revealed.