Introduction
In any social setting, authority is exercised in some way as some individuals, groups, beliefs, or institutions tend to control, give orders, enforce obedience, or make decisions. By definition, authority is the right to make decisions, enforce obedience, give orders, or control. Such powers can be vested in individuals, groups, or organizations (Canning, 2021). Authority is one of the themes that appear when one reads the story “An Old Man with Enormous Wings” by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. Even though religious and government institutions have formal authority over the community, informal and non-institutional gossip and networks exert more power over the people.
Discussion
When the man with wings appears, government authorities and the church should determine his nature, intention to arrive, how to treat him, and fate. The people consult Father Gonzaga, the local representative of the bishop and the Catholic Church (Márquez, 2014). However, he cannot make decisions because the church is highly bureaucratic and has to write to the bishop, who will then write to the Pope to give directions. As a result, people use local gossip networks as the source of authority, eventually arriving at a decision that the man is an angel whose mission is to take away the soul of Pelayo and Elisenda’s sickly baby.
As the formal and legal sources of power are less effective due to bureaucracy and incompetency, the locals use their informal networks to decide what to do with the strange character. Pelayo and Elisenda see an opportunity to make money by asking for fees from the vast number of people arriving to see the strange man. Eventually, it becomes a business venture, and the couple makes enough money that Pelayo quits his underpaying government job and establishes a new, modern family house (Márquez, 2014). The idea of quitting a government job for a strange business venture indicates that the government’s authority is less effective and highly incompetent than the local networks.
Conclusion
To counter the incompetency of the formal authorities, the locals establish their own authorities that make decisions and give orders. These power sources are based on a mixture of consultation with each other, superstition, opportunism, and worldviews. Even before the church and the authorities can determine the nature of the man, locals have arrived at the decision that he is an angel of death and should be treated like an animal.
References
Canning, J. (2021). Justifications of authority and power: Justifications of authority and power. Cambridge University Press.
Márquez, G. G. (2014). A very old man with enormous wings. Penguin Books.