Unjustifiable measures taken by the Spanish toward Native Americans, like the Mayans, was a prominent part of history that negatively affected a large portion of Native Americans and surviving Natives began to lash back at the Spanish in multiple ways – one being through the power of literature. So, “Three Dirges” presents a conflicting situation between a Spanish military force that controls a Mayan tribe in its potential development and education.
The author, Marshall Bennett Connelly, writes of the situation in three different scenes that correlate with each other, but, as an acknowledgement in ton to develop theme, the story line does not follow a chronological order. Analyzing the irregular chronology, each of the three scene’s individual tones and insights and then formulating an overall tone reveal the theme of harsh Spanish treatment toward Native American villages and the emotional tragedy at hand that the underdog party cannot control or manage.
Firstly, the lack of chronology in the beginning seven divisions of the excerpt fully submerges the reader directly into the story. Henceforth, there is little to no rising action or precedence of reason for the scenes that follow. By structuring the excerpt as three different scenes intertwined to present one whole story and situation, creates a sort of tense, quick-paced and stressful tone.
Furthermore, Connelly purposely jumps from Don Lazaro Emilio Cardenas, the mayor of the Mayan city: San Martin Comitan, and his opening scene of his frantic recollection of the hostile treatment given to him by the Spanish Colonel Julio Alfredo Guzman, to the solemn execution scene of the five catechist boys and then, the excerpt proceeds to Don Lazaro’s actual interaction with the colonel. Connelly follows the same pattern of intertwining scenes throughout the excerpt.
The abrupt shift in scene and tone provides subtle yet evident regards to one situation and the layered effect of emotion this style of scene-manipulation it creates. So, by acknowledging each scene’s individual tonal structure and then converging and layering each with the others, it provides an important understanding as to why Connelly strategizes this excerpt as it is given. Inserting the scene of Don Lazaro’s frenzied state first acknowledges and gives a hierarchal importance to the side and them in which Connelly proceeds with the excerpt.
For example, beginning the passage with the mayor’s rhetorical question of: ‘What can a man say to something like that, and what’s a man supposed to do,” already sets an initial tone that is inevitably unoptimistic. (Connelly). Support for this statement include: Rolando Semitosa recalling “what the militaries did in Cuarto Pueblo,” Josue Vallez additionally acknowledging “the massacre of Puente Alto” where the women and girls were trapped inside a school that the military proceeded to bomb, the men taken to a church to be clubbed to death and the younger boys left to die in the outhouse. Connelly).
Following the horrific recollections, it is felt by the whole group – consisting of mothers, fathers, the five catechists and Don Lazaro – that the military force will not be one to break consistency in their acts of brutality. Seeing that there is an undeniable and completely evident conclusion to the situation at hand, this scene, as it is introduced first, already foretells what and how this situation will conclude to – there is no happy ending for the Mayan citizens of this time.
Don Lazaro firstly opens the scene with a question of desperation and closing this scene, the five catechists also desperately seek an answer to the growing issue that threatens their existence in the world – the catechists vaguely “search about the room for even a margin of hope” (Connelly). Regardless, Don Lazaro, the five catechist and any other Mayan citizen lack the optimism to resolve the situation without the death of these five catechist boys.
By the same token, the birds’ crows, flutters, escapes from the city and village women’s cries Connelly presents in the second scene easily show the emotional deterioration among the Mayan citizens. The sounds Connelly presents travel quickly fill the whole city with solemn news. Unfortunately, no actual positive resolution arises rather what the group decides to do is a sacrificial attempt by the Mayan citizens and the affiliates of the Catholic Church to delay the Spanish army brutality. The Mayan people are unable to help diminish, alleviate or even slightly veer off the daunting task forcibly given to them.
So, reasoning that “it is better for [them] to die than for thousands to die” proves the legitimacy in the efforts pressed by both the Mayans and catechists (Lernoux). This decision also shows the amount of fear of the Spanish regime have tactically implemented into the Mayan people’s minds. Representation of such solemn emotions lingering among the citizens can be found through the birds and cries that Connelly presents in this second scene. He firstly presents to a rooster that crows and, following, another rooster answers a short while after.
This second rooster, from “the opposite side of the village” responds to the crow and just as the crows communicate across a whole entire village, the wails and cries of women travel throughout the village simultaneous to the execution of the five brave, dutiful catechists (Connelly). The scene communicates that of the tragic advances taken by the Mayans is an obligatory force into submission where it is an intentional practice by the Spanish military to “[demean] their race, religion, and traditions” (Lernoux).
Manipulation and alienation of potential improvement of the Mayan civilization at this time lacked because of such factors that the Spanish military withheld against them. Of the three events occurring in this excerpt, the last scene that Connelly presents provides more of the cause of events than a representation of tone for the purpose of theme development. Though it reads as a past recollection, the tone given by the harsh Spanish colonel, Colonel Julio Alfredo Guzman, characterizes him.
The harsh and hostile treatment given to the Mayan mayor, Don Lazaro, then sets the panic and fear stricken emotions that trickles down from him to the Mayan citizens. Colonel Guzman uses assertiveness as a fear tactic to manipulate Don Lazaro’s power among the Mayan citizens. Exemplification of it is: his demeanor when Don Lazaro fails to comply with his order to sit down in the designated chair. Colonel Guzman becomes increasingly impatient to Don Lazaro’s timid behavior, so, description of this command begin as “something between a greeting and an order” to him “[rising] from behind his desk with measured formality” (Connelly).
A fear-ridden reaction to Colonel Guzman’s forceful assertions causes Don Lazaro to be unable to speak and defend himself. Seeing that it is highly “subversive” for an Indian to have the opportunity and gain that education provides, the Spanish regime use such tactics to maintain a certain power over them (Connelly). What Connelly sets forth with this scene acknowledges that, from outside factors, that is the source of the Mayans’ fear-ridden mindsets. Throughout the excerpt, there are negative tones. Bad, unfortunate events occur in a dynamic way in which Connelly prescribes to the reader in a solemn point of view.
Connelly empathizes with “the little village of San Martin Comitan” and with that, the development of them is set under tones of frantic hopelessness, depressed acceptance, and harsh and hostile treatment. These layering of scenes reiterate a story in which steadfast the tonal margin of unfortunate events and unhappy emotions. This story holds a whirlwind of events; it is fast-paced due to means of time-constraints and force. The level of intensity given to the Mayan people and given off by their reactions also holds a huge factor to the reasoning behind such events and how and why they are completed.
The threat of a potential massacre given by Colonel Guzman fails to allow the Mayans any sort of leverage to control the situation therefore that is their biggest and most detrimental downfall. The Mayan people are working under means of fear and lack of experience for such events so they unfortunately oblige. Once again stating, this is a utility that the Spanish military use to control the Mayans that, without it, occurrences of situations like so would not be likely to go as favorably to the Spanish.
In conclusion, Connnelly’s manipulation of scenes presents an unfortunately typical situation between the involvement of foreign westerners and Native Americans in the early time periods of European, westward integration. Unique representation of an interaction like “The Three Dirges” connects the events to form one situation. The tonal structure leans toward the intensity that the Mayan citizens experience from unjustifiable directions under the Spanish military. Furthermore, Connelly directs the attention to emotions developed and felt rather than what is evident and factually present in this type of situation.
