100 Years of Solitude, day 1

The character of Ursula is the matriarch of the family and displays the maternal drive to keep her family thriving despite difficulties. She takes care of her family by making and selling candy and pastries when her husband is no longer functioning as a leader. By doing this, traditional gender roles are reversed. She takes in Rebeca, who just appears out of nowhere. She searches for months for her son Jose Arcadio when he runs off with the gypsies. On page 54, the author relates that Ursula took note of her family and expanded the house to be sure they all stayed together.

Ursula also rules the household with a no-nonsense approach. She demonstrates this with her severity in dealing with Rebeca's problem of eating only dirt (page 42).

I think that Ursula is portrayed in this way to reverse the traditional gender roles. She is portrayed as a central character that will run as a thread through the family saga as it unfolds.

The theme of a Utopian society is already prevalent in the novel. The young families who founded the town of Macando travelled together under the leadership of Ursula's son, Jose Arcadio Buendia. They built a town near a clear river, where duties were distributed and every house was to be made to be equal to the next. "No one would enjoy privileges that everyone did not have" (p. 38). This is a clear example of the author's intent on creating a Utopian, socialist society through literature.

When an officer of the government arrives in Ch. 3 and ordered all houses to be painted blue, Jose Arcadio Buendia confronted him regarding his right to give orders. " 'In this town we do not give orders with pieces of paper,' he said without losing his calm. 'And so that you know it once and for all, we don't need any judges here because there's nothing that needs judging.' " (p.56).

The fact that no one has died yet in Macando seems to be a symbol of a Utopian and ideal society, and that all could live peacefully and in harmony.