Lineage,+Repetition+in+the+Family+Generations

Genealogy
**"Genealogy** (from [|Greek]: γενεά, //genea//, "descent"; and λόγος, //logos//, "knowledge") is the study of families and the tracing of their lineages and history." - Wikipedia, the "father" of wikispaces (And that's genealogy)

In the book, the genealogy of the del Valle and Trueba families forms a base for their characterisation. The Characters either inherit traits from their ancestors, or fight to counter this inheritance of destiny.

Although genealogy is a subtle theme in the novel, it is ultimately the source of the denouement. Almost all of the characters in the story belong to either the del Valle-Trueba family, or else to the Garcia family. The family name or genealogy to which each character belongs determines her or his class position. Genealogy does not, however, follow simply from biological parenting. In fact, the bloodlines of the Trueba and Garcia families cross repeatedly, but Esteban Trueba works hard to assure that their family names and their genealogies do not. In the novel, it is less whose genes you share and more the last name you carry that determines genealogy. At the birth of each child, the question of last name is raised. In addition, at each point that a character wishes to mark a drastic shift in alliances away from their father or family, they change their last name. Despite Esteban's efforts to make genealogy by name the only type of genealogy that matters, his refusal to acknowledge some of his biological children ultimately comes back to haunt him. //Source: sparknotes.com// Above is a comprehensive family tree. The dotted lines represent "affairs" or relations, and the dotted lines yielding children represent illegitimate children (born out of wedlock). The lines in grey represent rape/ non-consensual relations. The bold lines represent LEGAL union, except for the one between Amanda and Miguel. The serrated line between Rosa and Esteban represents their engagement.

NB: The left side of the diagram has been cut due to an error whilst uploading. The name in the top left reads "del Valles" and the name below that reads "Nana" who is not a part of the family tree but merits a mention as a major character.

From the diagram, what is evident is that a lot of intertwining occurs between these 3 families. By raping Pancha, Esteban established a connection between the Truebas and the Garcias. It is this connection that drives the plot forward (see: 1st paragraph)  INHERITANCE** 
 * SIGNIFICANCE OF FAMILY TREE**
 * In Chapters 1-3, the bases of these inheritances and connections are explored-- the implications are only reflected later on in the novel.**
 * Rosa’s beauty”- p7. sheds light on the members of the del Valle family—they are far from normal, and it is this tendency towards eccentricity that prompts most of the untoward events that happen later on in the book.
 *  Allende makes it clear that '**Clara…had inherited the runaway imagination of all the women in the family'** (p3) thus insinuating that the family was similar.
 * Severo del Valle and esteban are very similar. Both worry only about their goals, their successes: (p9) “And the liberal party will go to hell”- Severo. This is reflected in his son-in-law. Though the tradition isn't a genealogical passing down of traits, it shows that most women of the del Valle family face the same fate of their husband/partner being involved in politics, and them facing the reprecussions of it. (Blanca--Pedro, Alba--Michael)
 * Uncle Marcos--> Nicolas (p13) "Forty years later his great nephew Nicholas… desire to fly… men of his lineage”. Clues like this litter the text
 * Nicolas inherited ‘**the adventurous spirit of his great uncle Marcos and his mother’s propensity for making up astrological charts and reading the future**.’ (p.136)
 * Pedro Tercero Garcia resembled his father physically and hence it can be said he had inherited physical features like ‘**big sad eyes, and the same dark stiff hair**’ (p.138).
 * Similarly, Blanca inherited physical features like a ‘**haughty grin, and the olive skin and dark eyes**’ (p.143)
 * Although it is said that the family thought that Blanca was the only normal person, she seems to faintly resemble Rosa. This can be seen specially when she starts making her own crèches, creating ‘**imaginary animals’** (p.174), just as Rosa had sown imaginary animals on her tablecloth. Apart from this, she had also inherited Esteban’s stubbornness.
 * Esteban Garcia was the grandson of Esteban Trueba and in a way resembled him. This is evident when ET refuses to give EG the promised reward for telling him where Pedro Tercero was. Both grandfather and grandson experienced a similar kind of rage – EG on not getting his reward and ET because Pedro had escaped from him and had thus escaped death.

Mother-Daughter Relationships
<span style="display: block; font-size: 12pt; color: rgb(12,14,12); font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Nivea/Rosa > <span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="display: block; font-size: 12pt; color: rgb(12,14,12); font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: left;"> Nivea/ Clara <span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> Clara/Blanca
 * <span style="display: block; font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Nivea sees Rosa in her dreams- this is an indicator of Nivea's partial clairvoyance, which is passed on to Clara, and the **transcendental** nature of the relationship between mother and daughter.
 * <span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Nivea takes Clara along with her to the suffragette events- therefore sharing her life with her- in Clara the Clairvoyant. When Clara takes her "vow of silence" Nivea accepts it, and spends her time telling her family stories, thus preventing their relationship from becoming frigid and forced.
 * <span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">//“In vain her mother .... somewhat in advance”(p.37)// Shows how her mother was compassionate and tried to understand and lessen her grief and guilt. Brings out the contrast between their relationship as compared to that of Tita’s and Mama Elena’s in LWFC.
 * <span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Though Nana is the governess, and cares for Clara physically, it is never indicated that Clara prizes them equally. In fact, Nana is secondary in Clara's life whereas Nivea is the primary figure.
 * There is a similarity in this relationship and that of Clara and her mother. Just like Nivea left Clara’s physical upbringing to Nana, Clara left tasks like “**braiding Blanca’s hair**’ (p.127) to Ferula. However, just as Clara and Nivea shared a special bond, Blanca and Clara too, shared a special bond. She had a ‘**wonderful relationship**’ (p.127) with her and they spent time together discussing magic, the family and stories. This could also be an example of the cyclical nature of the novel.
 * Also Blanca accompanies Clara to her meetings just as Clara had accompanied Nivea.

Dona Ester/ Ferula
 * <span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">In The Three Marias, when Esteban comes to the house, Ferula issues several statements in which she says that she would have left had she had the chance. This is indicative of the fact that she is staying behind with her mother because
 * <span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">she has to, by compulsion, for there is noone to care for the woman
 * <span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">the act enforces her qualities of self-sacrifice, thus satisfying her religious and pious demands
 * <span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">All the same, ferula cares for her mother extremely well.

<span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> <span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">**THE IMPORTANCE OF ESTEBAN’S PERSPECTIVE** · Esteban is the protagonist- and at times the narrator. His perspective is crucial as he has witnessed all 4 generations of the del Valles, and is strongly affiliated to them. Thus the story is less about Esteban and more about how he was affected by Rosa-Clara-Blanca-Alba. · Esteban’s father was a profligate who spent his mothers’ money. “This would quickly be their ruin…the Trueba that sired them” (p92). Thus the concept of destiny and names applies directly to him

<span style="display: block; font-size: 12pt; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Importance of Names
<span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; display: block; text-align: left;">Names in the text are indicative of the fate of the characters. In Chapters 1-3 the scope of this aspect is fairly limited, but the most major point is Esteban's rejection of his family name and lineage.“It wasn’t enough to have a respectable last name”- Esteban, (p24). He rejects the concept of inherited superiority- thus following and contradicting the concept of lineage. Men such as Esteban can defeat destiny through sheer determination.

Esteban gives his illegitimate son with Pancha Garcia his first name, so the child is called "Esteban Garcia" and has the right to inherit Tres Marias. This act returns to haunt the Truebas in the future- with his half-name Esteban has endowed the child with a share of his destiny, yet denying him his full right- a painful half-fulfilled situation that causes great imbalance. In the novel, it is seen that the sons are usually named after their fathers, the purpose of this being to carry on the name of the family. This is evident as Esteban wishes to have a boy so that ‘**(they) can give him (his) name**’ (p.115) The irony of the situation lies in the fact that none of Esteban’s legitimate sons is called Esteban. Instead his illegitimate son is given his name and ultimately this son’s son brings about certain havoc in the family.

It is seen that Esteban Garcia has a son and his name is kept Esteban Garcia too. Esteban’s illegitimate son probably hated his father for not accepting him as a legitimate son and letting him live with him. The significance of repeating the name probably lies in the fact that this hatred was to be carried forward. This is proved later in he novel as Esteban Garcia avenges his father, Esteban Garcia by raping and mistreating Esteban Trueba’s grand-daughter, Alba. Thus the hatred and feeling of vengeance had been carried on through the generations.

Alongside Esteban Garcia, Esteban sires numerous countless children. The disaster Trueba wreaks on the world by turning away women "asking for a name" is gigantic: he is denying his progeny of their birthright, the right to an inheritance,a father and a destiny. In this book, names are closely linked to identities, and therefore Esteban is effectively generating insignificant identity-less proliteriat children.
 * Illegitimate Children of Esteban**

<span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">//“ That was why he decided.... might just as well have not been born”(p.66)// None Esteban Trueba's bastard children are allowed to bear his name, save the first one from Pancha. This allows only him to inherit his estate. Also, he wanted a woman of his status to marry. This showed how important the social setup was then. · Clara – clear · Blanca – white · Alba – light
 * NAMES in the del Valle family**

The names literally follow a similar pattern, that is light and brightess. All are synonymous with truth.

<span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">**HISTORY repeats itself (more prominent in following chapters):<span style="color: rgb(232,104,104);"> ** · Rosa died due to Severo’s political ambitions. Alba suffered due to Esteban’s follies. <span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> · P32: “the shadow of vengeance continued to hang over succeeding generations…family” · <span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> //P.57// the raping & passivity of the women · Clara talks to the peasants about the exact same thing as her mother did. ·  Nivea protective of Clara from her father. Same way Clara to Blanca

** Relationship between Esteban and Ferula **
 * As children, Ferula had ‘**adored**’ (p.42) her brother, and had taken care of him.
 * However, as Esteban grew up, he began distancing himself from her because he considered her a burden on his freedom.
 * Later, Esteban used Ferula – first to finalise his engagement with Rosa, and later to accompany him and his family to the Tres Marias so that she could take care of domestic chores, something which his own wife was unable to do.
 * It was during this time at the Tres Marias that the hatred between brother and sister really began coming through. Ferula began to love Clara and this probably soon became more than “sisterly” love because for the first time in her life, her love for someone had been requited. She began envying her brother and began to ‘**love Clara with a jealous passion**’ (p.126). At the same time, Esteban grew jealous of his sister because of the closeness she shared with Clara.
 * This built up jealousy and anger finally came out when Esteban found Ferula sleeping in the same bed as Clara when he was away. Livid, he threw Ferula out of their house, and ‘**forbade her to come near his wife and children**’ (p.132). Thus this marked the destruction of the relationship between brother and sister.


 * __ Family Traditions and Lineage: __** // chapters 7,8,9 //

In Alba, all of the disparate characters in the novel come together. She embodies the intricate family ties that knit the story together. Alba is, either biologically or symbolically, Severo, Nivea, and Pedro Garcia's great-grand-daughter; Clara, Esteban, and Pedro Segundo's grand-daughter; Blanca, Pedro Tercero, and Jean de Satigny's daughter; Jaime, Nicolas, and Amanda's niece; Esteban Garcia's cousin; and Miguel's partner. Alba learns from and shares a loving relationship with all of her living relatives, with the possible exception of Esteban Garcia. –taken from : [] Inheritance: <span style="font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; color: #333333; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> 1. 1.  (Pg 162) - “She will also have a good complexion, because that is inherited” : Clara to Blanca. <span style="font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; color: #333333; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> 2. 2.  Her name (pg 162/3) – “Her mother wanted to call her Clara, cut her grandmother did not believe in repeating names…Years later, Alba tormented herself with the thought that when she had a daughter there would be no other word with the same meaning to use…a wide choice” [shows the significance of passing on names in this fictional society] <span style="font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; color: #333333; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> 3. 3.  (Pg 268/9)- her greenish hair: “…to mitigate the dark=green hue it had when she was born; this despite the fact that Senator Trueba thought it should…had inherited something from Rosa the Beautiful, even if, unfortunately it was only the maritime color of her hair.” [can foreshadow good relationship with grandfather, Senator Trueba, as he and Rosa shared a good relationship] <span style="font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; color: #333333; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> 4. 4.  Imagination: (pg 268): “At six, she had discovered the magic cooks in the enchanted trunks of her legendary Great-Uncle Marcos and had fully entered the world without return of imagination” [note: Imagination is a family trait-Uncle Marcos, Jamie, and Nicolas, who’ve all tried funny stunts] <span style="font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; color: #333333; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> 5. 5.  House on the Corner (pg 266 and 269): “When Clara was alive and Alba was still a child, the big house on the corner was cloistered world in which she grew up protected even from her own nightmares.” [foreshadows that when she leaves the house, and once Clara dies, something bad will happen]. “Alba used these things to build houses in the corners” <span style="font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; color: #333333; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> 6.6. Influence of other family members: (pg 267-268) “Alba’s childhood was a mixture of vegetarian diets, Japanese martial arts, Tibetan dance….Mora Sisters”. [this shows the reader, and foreshadows the way Alba links the large family together, as her life consisted of elements from everyone.]