Summary
That night, the men of the village traveled to nearby villages to inquire whether the drowned man came from one of those communities.
Meanwhile, the women of the village cleaned the drowned man. They soon noticed that he was extraordinarily handsome, with a strong physique that made them all imagine he was a special man. They could not find clothes to fit him, so they made him some out of sails and bridal linen.
As they worked, the women thought that if the man had lived in their village, he would have had the largest and most beautiful house, as well as the happiest wife. They imagined that he could call fish from the water just by saying their names, and that he would have been able to plant flowers on the cliffs. One of the elderly women in the group announced that the man looked like he was named Esteban, and everyone agreed wholeheartedly that that was his name.
The clothing the women sewed for Esteban was still too small, and their hearts sunk when they saw that he had to be dragged on the ground because of his size. They then imagined that, in life, he was probably used to having to crouch and squeeze into spaces in order to fit, and they felt pity for him. They covered his face with a handkerchief so the light would not disturb him. All of the women began to sob, mourning Esteban and his magnificence, now reduced to destitution in death.
When the men returned, they informed the women that none of the neighboring villages could claim him. The women excitedly announced, "Praise the Lord... he's ours!" (6).
Analysis
As the story continues, the narrative depicts the village as a traditional one, establishing a gendered dynamic to the labor of the community: the men travel out, either to the sea (to fish), or in this case, to neighboring villages to inquire about the drowned man. Meanwhile, women remain on the cape with the children, performing domestic labor and in this case, cleaning the drowned man and preparing the body for burial.
The women of the village are therefore the first to be taken by the drowned man's appearance and physique, even comparing him to their own husbands and growing disappointed in their own men. Their interest in the drowned man is not, however, altogether erotic. On the contrary, the women who clean and dress the drowned man exude empathy and compassion for this intriguing stranger, thinking only that he must have been a truly majestic man in life.
The story suggests that the women are attracted to the drowned man precisely because he is a stranger; his uniqueness underscores his foreignness and energizes the women who, like the seafaring men, have been living rather mundane and predictable lives.
This part of the story is also where the narrative develops its central theme of community. Readers will note that the omniscient narrator describes the women as all thinking the same thoughts – they collectively imagine that the drowned man would have had a large house with a happy wife, and they collectively pity him as they think about how his towering physique may have affected him on a daily basis.
This collectivity is yet another example of Marquez's signature magical realism – it is unlikely and indeed impossible that every woman would be thinking the same things about the man – but it serves to underscore the village as a bonded community. The women who clean the body share the experience, some engaging with the corpse with romantic interest and others with maternal care. Nevertheless, the body of the drowned man brings the community closer together, so much so that even the men will become involved in the funeral arrangements once they are able to see his face.
