The House of the Spirits - Essay Example

Conflict arises in the quest by Esteban to wage a battle of words and wills against Clara, Blanca (daughter), and Alba (granddaughter). The conflict between Esteban’s materialistic capitalist conservatism characters against Clara and other women’s spiritual solidarity is evident. The conflict between Clara and Esteban enables the reader to understand Western way of life (James 254), against the non-Western way of life. Clara Dell Valle is portrayed as a mother-of-all-mother-figure in the Trueba family as she holds together the family.

Clara’s harbors ardent traits of communicating with the spiritual world, as well as clairvoyant gifts. Spiritualists, artists, Ghosts, birds, cats, and flowers all flock to Clara’s doorstep. Clara lacks focus on the material world. She focuses on her domestic chores and communication with the spirits. The novel presents Clara to be always floating in the world through always letting go of problems she detests dealing with. She is also depicted to have an extremely calm temper. Clara is also a humble woman who respects everybody she interacts with, from Ferula (Esteban’s sister), Pedro Segundo (Esteban’s foreman) to Esteban himself.

She has the ability to foretell the future, but she chooses to embrace her destiny rather than fight it. Clara initiates change on issues that she does not like; however, she does it in subtle and quite ways like establishing small rooms in their big corner house. Esteban could argue that the justice Clara championed could not even be found among animals. Esteban believed that the poor were weak, while the rich were the strong ones in the society. Esteban stated that it was significant for the poor in the society to work harder to get the richness enjoyed by the strong in the society.

He argued, “It’s very easy to stretch out your hand and beg for alms!” (132). Esteban believed that reward and effort