SEEING THROUGH THE EYES OF OTHERS: MORE CREATIVE WRITING

Another Perspective of Luisa Valenzuela's "The Verb to Kill" (1975)
By Alexandra Saldarriaga

Who is he?

The killer? Is he the killer or the killed?

He has been living on that part of the beach since he was a child. He is now 47 years old. That brilliant morning he went out to look for pebbles as he used to do every day. But he was surprised because those girls that he has been seeing this summer almost every day were looking at him in a strange way, mainly the bigger one. She has the strangest look that he has ever seen in a child, so that he felt a current in his body like when you feel a premonition of some bad thing that could hapen. But then he thought, "Oh no, they are just kidding girls."

That day was the first day for them having a rifle. They told their mother they were going to hunt rabbits. Their mother was happy because probably she was going to have rabbit to eat in a stew that night. Anyway the hermit felt that it was a different morning, because the girls were walking on the beach too early. He didn't even realize that she, the bigger one, had something hidden in her hand just behind her body, and suddenly when the “hermit” tried to ask them something, as if they needed some help today, the girl who had the rifle hidden took it out and shot him in a crazy way. But he is an athletic man so he was able to jump and just his leg got injured, so the girls ran away frightened when they saw that he was alive, and they had not killed him.

In a minute many people around came and also a newspaper reporter , so you can imagine the story that the girls' mother began to tell, crying….


A Newspaper Reporter's Perspective
Inspired by Luisa Valenzuela's "The Verb to Kill" (1975)
by Andrea Rangel

April 28th 1975
ARE WE SAFE?

As a result of the latest crime committed, astonishment is the most popular feeling in Argentina. A 35-year-old man was found almost dead after somebody tried to kill him. The police said that the man is a hippie from Canada who had never gotten into any problem before. The man said he was taking care of his garden when he felt something in his arm and then he woke up in the hospital. “I cannot imagine who could possibly be able to shoot somebody; I am lucky,” said the man later in the hospital. People from all over the area were interrogated - even children. The most incredible story has happened in our country.

April 29th 1975
FRUSTRATED CRIME ON THE BEACH MIGHT BE WORSE THAN WHAT WE THOUGHT

A 12-year-old little girl was asked to draw a picture of what she thought about the man. She drew nothing but a black and red ball. When the policeman asked her about it she only said, “He has been killed.” Later, her sister a 10-year-old little girl was asked to draw a picture of him too. She drew a “man” but with big teeth, an angry face, and a rifle. Their parents were interrogated too. The policeman was extremely concerned about the idea that the little girls had about the man. He started questioning about their daily life, the habits of the girls, school, even free time. The answers were pretty normal until the mother mentioned that a week ago the girls were at the beach digging for clams, when they found a seagull that became dinner, and the girls asked for the rifle to hunt rabbits. The father opened his eyes as if something had come to his mind. The policeman asked him about the location of the rifle. The father had no answer for it. “I’m sorry, Sir, I have no idea; I have not seen it since last week,” replied the father. The police had found a rifle near the crime scene; it was an old one - one of those old hunting rifles. The policeman asked the father if he could describe it. After all, it was the same rifle.

April 30th 1975
WHAT HAS HAPPENED WITH OUR CHILDREN?

The girls were interrogated once again. The only thing they said was, “He has been killed.” The policeman asked who? And the girls said the weird man that speaks with plants and is always walking on the beach to see who he can do… The policeman argued nobody has been killed. The younger sister replied, “He has been killed, I shot him.” The court is deliberating about the case; however, how would a farm father ever think about his children killing somebody with his hunting rifle? Now he will probably have to go to jail for a lack of responsibility.

From The Father's Perspective
Inspired by Luisa Valenzuela's "The Verb to Kill" (1975)
by Olga Golysheva

News has come. I woke up and smelled that a new breakfast was ready. Like every morning my wife came to the bedroom and said horrible news. The news that a hermit man who lived on the beach was killed. He was shot. No witnesses.

It's a scary time in our country, I thought. Immediately after this news I asked my wife, "Where are my girls?" Ohh… My two lovely daughters, my two beautiful little princesses. I realized that every day I worry more and more about them. And… OOO my God if something would happen with them? If someone who killed that man could shoot my daughters? Definitely, I would find and kill him. It's a strange time that I have to think about such disgusting things.

My wife said that the girls were in school. “Dear,” I asked her, “Where were the girls yesterday?” She said that they were on the beach like every day and were fishing.

"You have to look after them! It is too dangerous now to let them go there!” Yes, of course, how could I be so irresponsible?! “Look” I said my wife “I just realized that something could happen with our girls on the beach!” My wife looked at me and just cried.

Well, women always can only cry and do nothing really but my daughter they are so different. My princesses are so good and smart. Even God keeps them. He keeps them when I’m not near! Now I can see that! Yesterday the girls asked me for a gun for hunting and if something would happen with them they could protect themselves. “Thank you God that you help me and my family!” Today! Yes today! I must take my girls with me and teach them to shoot. To shoot as well as I can. It's a crazy time and I have to protect them especially when GOD gave me a sign.


The Legacy Of Those Lopes: A Son's Perspective in Repsonse to Guimaraes Rosa's "Those Lopes" (1967)
By Ivete dos Santos

Three boys. Three timid, fearful and unloved boys. This is my memory of my childhood. Although, financially, we always lived in good shape, I have few reasons to miss those days. I am the oldest child of a powerful man who did not get married with my mother, whose name is Flausina, even though she would like to have been called Mary Miss. She was the prettiest and one of the poorest women in her region , which captured the attention of those Lopes - brothers and cousins; my father, at first, and after his unexpected early death, the others . Nonetheless, this is their story that, perhaps, I will tell you about later. Now, let me continue with the story of my own destiny.

In those days, I was always sick, or, at least, I always felt like I had some illness, for I wanted my mother to notice me. However, it never worked, because she was very busy with “those Lopes” as she used to say. Oh, those Lopes, how I dreamed to be one of them, just to have my mother’s love. My mother… how beautiful and fragile she was! My youngest brother did not agree with me. He insisted on saying that my mother had never liked us and she only had time and love for her Lopes. He became very stubborn and belligerent. The second one pretended to be a happy boy, but I knew it was only a façade. In fact, I used to see him crying when he thought he was alone. Definitely, three timid, fearful and unloved boys. Different behavior and appearance but the same solitude and darkness for those three boys.

How different might our life have been without those Lopes in my mother’s life! Had she had time for her children, all of us would have been happy and confident people. But they were there, always, between us. I have to confess to you one thing that had come to my mind, although I knew it was an unforgivable sin: sometimes, I desired that those Lopes would disappear from the earth, just to have my mother take care of her unloved children. I think that I am a very bad person, like my mother used to say about those Lopes: “a bad breed, who make for bad peace.” Actually, now, I am very sure that it was me… believe me… I am the one responsible for those Lopes’ deaths! The more I think, the more I am convinced that I am guilty. What could be the explanation for all those deaths, even though my mother had put all her attention, love, and care on them! That is the reason she sent us far away from her. She was afraid if we stayed close to her, something bad could happen with us too! Poor woman! And I am the person that has to be punished! I killed those Lopes with my thoughts! I am a killer!

This is the whole truth! I can’t carry this cruel reality anymore! Therefore, priest, give me my punishment, after this terrible confession. I disgraced my whole family. I don’t know what to do! I would like to have my mother’s love! I would like to tell her that, at least, she has one genuine and real love!

How Can I Trust in Women? Xia's Perspective, Inspired by Xi Xi's "A Woman Like Me"
by Yumi Lee

I have known a woman who is a mortician. Although she had that job, her face was pretty natural. It was nothing short of a miracle. I thought if I were a cosmetician, I would do make-up well. At that time, I really didn't know who she was except her name and appearance.

Nevertheless, it was likely that I would fall in love with her. I was curious to know who she is. I didn't have to spend much time on it. Anyway, as the first step, I asked her to let me in her workplace. She seemed that she thought about the request considerately. Finally, she said yes.
One day I was scheduled to go to her workplace. Before we went there, we met at a coffee shop. She was seated at the shadowy corner not suitably. I brought a bunch of flowers. I handed over the bouquet to her with eternal summer like my name. I indeed wanted to do so because I loved her. But once I gave it, she blushed up to the roots of her hair. At the moment, I thought she flushed with shame. Who knows why she acted so. The truth was revealed later. We had a chat for a while. After that we began to move on.

felt she was so nervous but that she also enjoyed that situation. When she acted like that, I was jumpy, too. My nerves were on edge. By the time I reached her workplace, I was shocked at the horrible scene. How disgusting it was. It was a terrible sight that I had never seen. There were skeletal bones and dimmed space. In a nutshell, there was in a mess with frightful things which made me startled. Since I saw the chamber of horrors, I fell out of love with her. I never thought she would do that and had that profession. I shudder at the very thought of it.

Since then I cannot fall in love with any woman who has a job as a cosmetician. I lack courage about loving. What should I do?

Bertha's Diary: Inspired by Heinrich Boell's "Like a Bad Dream" by Petra Heidl

February 25th, 1956
Finally, the Zumpens agreed to accept our invitation. How lucky I am now! Of course they had to; my father offered Mr. Zumpen some very attractive deals in the past, so he couldn’t refuse it. And now the ball is rolling and hopefully Thomas is doing the right thing and recognizes how the deals are working these days. Times are difficult, for sure, but everybody has to get the best profit out of it. After so many years of suffering, everybody wants to have more and enough money and satisfying conditions of life. Even the baker Kamps has gotten involved in a deal with the miller Degen to get his corn for the best price. We all know that the daughter of the miller Degen, Uta, got married to the son of our thoughtful agriculture minister who had and surely still has heavy influence on the quote of corn in the first years after the war ended. Degen is quite smart for a miller. But we all have our crosses to bear and get the best out of it.However, after we all suffered in the war, everybody now wants to change poor life circumstances into the wealthy ones that the Americans showed us.

Sometimes I think of the Nun Isolde, who taught me the value of the belief in God. There is no doubt in the belief in God, but we all don’t have to forget the times right now! We suffered so much…. We have the right now to live, to enjoy….

Now is the time to start a new and better life, and if the times have forced us to be smarter than others, why shouldn’t we do that? What is the matter with giving some money away, which we couldn’t have gotten anyway? It doesn’t hurt anybody and everybody is lucky and satisfied. That is how the machinery works. Not even respectable but not really dishonest, just a little playing around. When you look closer in history, honesty was never the major purpose of leading people. World War II was not honest at all, not every single century was honest, not even the leaders of the ancient world like pharaohs, not the kings and emperors, no president and no other people who are situated higher in the society. Isn’t it an unwritten rule that one has to help one’s destiny on the run? Why should we suffer, just because we want to be respected and be honorable? I cannot buy myself things for that. Therefore we want to be successful in developing our business and we want to get in the upper class, of course.

Thomas, my honorable husband, also wants to be established there in high society, I know and knew that and I can feel it right now. First when we met I felt that he really is a lovely man. He seems to be like a sheep; he trusted everybody and could never imagine a hidden purpose behind several happenings or behind the surface of people. On the other hand he likes money and the possibility to get higher in the society, certainly without being corrupt but based on the regular rules businesses should follow.

Nevertheless this will keep him from overdoing it in the future; he will have always qualms. This is very important not to risk the attention of the revenue authorities. Otherwise they will observe us and also the business of father. This must not happen at all.
His family is already so proud of him getting settled in such a great business these days, he will not want to disappoint his parents. He is such an honorable person. That is why father thought he would be the best husband and also business partner. We are going to teach him and he will learn our way to do it and sooner or later he will accept this way as the only reasonable one. And was it not always very profitable using smart marriages politically so that the powerful ones could get more power in such a way? It is slightly different with my marriage but also father says he is smart enough to recognize the rules and also to estimate the skills of his wife. Me!

February, 26th, 1956
10.30 a.m.
Today is the test, and I really hope he will pass it! It is time now, he is ready to learn. I have to get some cognac, I hope I will not forget it, I still have a lot of things to do today!
And it was good to talk this morning again to Mom to get some more advice for his clothes and the dinner. She is a big pillar for me. I am so thankful she gave me the chance to visit the housekeeping school. Oh, I also have to get the recipe for the chicken for dinner…..

11.00 p.m.
It is over! And he did great, so great that I cannot believe it! He learned so fast and I think he had liked his very new “ME” I would guess! Of course I did my job also very cleverly. I still have to smile when I think of Mr. Zumpen’s face recognizing that I had raised the price even ten more pfennigs! This is very funny! But – Thomas had found his way (what he thinks HIS way is…) and that was so satisfying and I felt relieved. I thought of staying with him downstairs, that maybe it is better to talk with him, but he needs to figure out for himself the understanding of business nowadays.

He must have the feeling of being strong and confident concerning his business, he needs the time to find himself in “his” role that he will play in the upcoming years together with me and my family. My role was, is and will be the one of the – invisible supporting- housewife, in to which I will merge.