Essay Questions

Why is Eva Luna compared to Scheherazade?

The comparison to Scheherazade is a reference to Eva’s gifted use of storytelling as a means of coping with the repressive environment she lives in as well as the horrors brought about by the Second World War. Like the legendary story teller she is able to imbue her dark, dreary world with a sense of wonder and hope that allows not just her but those that hear her story to endure their plight a bit better. Eva’s stories, similar to Scheherazade’s, also allow her to build relationships with those around her more easily as her stories not only entertain but endear her to her audiences.

How is the theme of gender inequality discussed in the novel?

The author presents women as objectified, second-class citizens, often oppressed in the most severe manner. The eponymous Eva is clearly the protagonist of the narrative and yet she endures all manner of indignities heaped upon her by the male dominated society that she moves in. Eva is the embodiment of all women and her harsh personal experiences at the hands of the men that she encounters is a microcosmic reflection of the harrowing experiences that many women all over the Hispanosphere.

What is the significance of the novel’s title?

The novel is named after the titular character who herself in an in-novel representation of the plight of women all over Latin America. The protagonist’s name is barely veiled double allusion to the Biblical Eve, the first woman, and Luna, the Greco-Roman goddess of the moon. Both these characters have been associated with femininity as well as the many sub-themes associated with it such as misogyny and the madonna/harpy archetype.