The Manuscript in Saragossa- Part 2

The last time that I wrote I spoke about how everything is interconnected within The Manuscript Found in Saragossa, which is completely true, but I did not touch on the Sheikh's story. One part of the story that appealed to me was his chronicling of his family tree. Now most of us would just skim that part but it is significant in multiple ways.

The first of which is that it leads us back  to the oral tradition, specifically that seen in the Bible. As most of the names came from the Bible and we should have all recognized at least some of them, this is a very obvious connection. However, we need to remember that this book was written to be read in the oral tradition. The Manuscript wasn't published as a whole until after Potocki's death. It was disbursed in days and so very similar to daily columns we now enjoy in our newspapers. I am taking a stab in the dark here but I would guess that this book was read aloud in days at night before families went to be and if it wasn't that was its intended use. We have seen themes of family, honor, loyalty, religion, as well as adventure so I am sure that this would capture and hold the attention if told aloud as a story.

The second thing that the genealogy brings to mind, at least to me, is destiny. I know that several of my classmates are using this as they jumping point for their projects. But by invoking the use of Biblical names from centuries past, it made me think that Alfonso was destined to come and impregnate the Sheikh's daughters.  We have seen how it was destined through the recent events but by now we have the evidence that this was preordained from generations back. When the Sheikh was explaining all of this, it almost seemed like a ritual. He could have just said who he was in lesser terms but the importance of who he was would have been significantly diminished. So to me, at first this ending section seemed almost anticlimactic. But I was wrong. I had just traveled through all of the hardships and stories to be able to reach the right ending. I had the knowledge to understand the importance of the names of ancestors and that destiny does not just start when one is born. Alfonso, the Sheikh, and Velasquez had their destiny determined for them centuries before they were even a mere thought.

These are just a few more thoughts that I had when considering The Manuscript Found in Saragossa. I'm sure that I could go on for much longer. However, I just wanted to bring up a few things that I am not likely to go into too much detail, if at all, in my paper/project.