Goldfish: The recurring image of the goldfish is associated with Colonel Aureliano Buendía. One use of the goldfish is as Christ-like imagery surrounding the Colonel. There are numerous Christ-like images surrounding Aureliano, one of them is the goldfish (from the bible, used to denote Christians. See Biblical Allusions below). Another function of the goldfish is that the changing functions of the goldfish, from a "mark of subversion," to "historic relics," to a method of "refugee" or solitude, reflect the Colonel’s constantly changing, yet important, role in Macondo. One of the first uses of the goldfish is during the war, on the edge of Macondo’s destruction, when one of the Colonel’s men presents a goldfish to verify his connection to the Colonel; this association of the fish with the Colonel’s war reflects the immense impact that the Colonel’s war has on Macondo. After the Colonel’s wars have ended, the public "buy[s]" the goldfish as "historic relics;" the image of the goldfish as "historic relics" reflects the fact that the government wants to celebrate the Colonel as a historical and benign war celebrity. After the Colonel’s indignation about his fish being "historic relics," he stops selling the fish and only creates, then melts and re-makes the fish; this endless process provides a means for the Colonel’s solitude, since he no longer takes part in Macondo’s activities.
Music: There are numerous images of music throughout this novel. This recurring image has is ironically associated with both the infusion of technology into Macondo and the also the more traditional, older and natural aspects of Macondo. Examples of the technological connections with music: One of the first sources of music in Macondo is "the music of the clocks," which replaces the birds. Later, Pietro Crespi brings the pianola, whose ability to play automatically astounds the people of Macondo. The music of "Francisco the Man" is referred to many times. In the beginning Francisco’s music was used to communicate and represents an old and traditional form of music. The fact that this style music is referred to throughout the novel suggests the continuation of tradition and the influence of the past in Macondo. The fact that Márquez chose the same image, music, to represent both technology and tradition supports the idea that society will always continue progress but it will also have connections to the past at the same time. In this novel music is also heavily associated with joy and festivals. Music is described as "making the house merry." Many times Márquez will describe either the presence or lack of music. Oftentimes, if music is present, the scene is "merry;" however, if music is lacking, the scene is usually bleak and depressing (For example, one specific time music is banned is during a period of mourning.). In this novel music is often used to support the description of a scene as either joyful or bleak.
Colors: Throughout this novel Márquez uses many different colors. (Red is the color of the liberals; blue is the color of the conservatives. Moscote demands all houses be painted blue. The Buendía house remains "white like a dove.") Since there are so many different colors which could all have many different interpretations, it might be a good idea to keep track of all the different references to color (with a high-lighter) and then go back and look at all the uses of color and draw a conclusion as to the color’s meaning. The most prevalent color in the novel is yellow; this color is used to describe many very different objects. Three of the most popular images of yellow are the "tiny yellow flowers" which "rain" on Macondo after José Arcadio Buendía’s death, "the innocent yellow train" which travels through Macondo and the little yellow butterflies which always "preceded the appearances of Mauricio Babilonia." One function of the use of yellow is to support Márquez’s style of "magic realism" (see Magic Realism, above). The color yellow produces a "magic" and surreal atmosphere two different ways. First, the images which are yellow are magical, for example the "rain" of yellow flowers and the fact that yellow butterflies always follow a man. Also, yellow is a bright almost magical color in itself. Since there are numerous yellow images throughout this novel, when the reader thinks of Macondo they think of a village streaked with images of yellow (especially the train, because trains are very rarely yellow). However, yellow is also associated with death. The yellow flowers "rain" after J.A.B.’s death, yellow butterflies follow Babilonia, who dies very young, and the yellow train is used to carry out thousands of dead bodies. Also, the train helps destroy Macondo; so in a way the train brings Macondo’s death.
Colombian History: There are references to Colombian history woven throughout this novel. For example, J.A.B. finds "a suit of fifteenth-century armor which had all of its pieces soldered together . . . inside [they found] a calcified skeleton with a copper locket containing a woman’s hair around its neck. Later, J.A.B. finds "an enormous Spanish galleon." There is also a reference to when "Sir Francis Drake attacked Riohacha in the sixteenth century." These are all references to Colombia’s past, especially the conquering of Colombia by explorers and the Spanish. These references to history support Márquez’s goal of recreating the progression of society in one novel. These historical references provide some of the very early history of Macondo. Also, history, and the idea that history is unreliable because it is dependent on one’s memories (see Obliteration of Memory, above), is an important theme throughout this novel. The references to Colombian history support this theme.
Biblical Allusions: This novel contains numerous biblical allusions. Two of the most dominant images are the goldfish (see Goldfish, above) and the many images of Eden. The history of this village, which started with a "youthful" couple (J.A.B. and Úrsula) with a vision, is very Edenic. Also, Colonel Aureliano is surrounded by many Christ-like images. In addition to the goldfish, "Aureliano" means "adorned with halo." Although Márquez uses much of his novel to satire religion there are still many biblical and Christian allusions embedded within the novel. These allusions imply Márquez’s acceptance of Christ and the bible, although his characters satirize organized religion. The fact that there are images of Christ and the Bible in this novel support the idea of natural religion (not organized), which is praised numerous times in this novel.