Characterization, Symbolism, and Repetition in a Hundred Years of Solitude Character names often suggest something about their personalities, either directly or ironically. In Garcia Marquez's One Hundred Years of Solitude, Prudencio Aguilar is neither "cautious" nor "eagle-like" (aguila means "eagle" in Spanish). Repetition of names and behaviors is another characterization technique. Certain character types, for example the contemplative and stubborn man, or the impetuous and energetic man, the patient and attentive woman, etc., are represented by more than one individual in the different generations of the Buendia family. All José Arcadios, for example, are assumed to have at least some of the traits of the original José Arcadio Buendia (impetuous and energetic), and all Aurelianos have something in common with Colonel Aureliano Buendia (tendency toward solitude and contemplation ). Repetitions are not exact, but using similar names is a way of suggesting more about a character than is actually said. There are also repetitions of particular behaviors, such as locking oneself in a room to experiment or study. Some characters have characteristic signs to identify them. Examples include Pilar Ternera's laughter, Colonel Aureliano Buendia's lonely gaze, Aureliano Segundo's extravagance, Fernanda's continuous mumbling, etc. Physical descriptions are used sparingly, leaving the reader to fill in details beyond generalities such as "skinny" or "fat." beautiful", "huge". An exception is made for Colonel Aureliano Buendia, who seems to be taken from a particularly clear mental image of the author, as if he had been copied from a photograph. Some of the most spectacular are... middle of paper... ... wears out the axle", until the whole system, including the constant attempts at renewal of Macondo and the reproduction of the Buendia clan, collapses. Works Cited Bell-Villada, Gene H. Garcia Marquez: The Man and His Work. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1990. Griffin, Clive. “The Humor of One Hundred Years of Solitude.” In McGuirk and Cardwell, 81-94. James, Regina Gabriel Garcia Marquez: Revolutions in Wonderland: University of Missouri Press, 1981. McGuirk, Bernard and Richard Cardwell, edd. Gabriel Garcia Marquez: Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1987). Williams, Raymond L. Gabriel Garcia Marquez Boston: Twayne, 1984.Wood, Michael "Review of One Hundred Years of Solitude." In Critical Essays on Gabriel Garcia Marquez. McMurray, George R., ed. Boston: GK Hall, 1987.