Chronicle of a Death Foretold: The Significance of Names The discussion today on the significance of names took a little turn for a bit but that turn really made me think about something that I had never realized. In the novella, the majority of the characters were given Christian names but given that these characters were some of the biggest sinners I think that Chronicle of a Death Foretold was more satirical that it first appears. Some of the most important characters in the novella had names like Santiago (Saint), Angela (Angel), and Maria (Mary). All of these characters have positive Christian names yet they are some of the biggest sinners in the book. This ties in with the theme of corruption because throughout the story Gabriel Marquez was trying to show how hypocritical and sinful the town was. When I first noticed Santiago’s name I thought it was supposed to show that he was innocent of the crime he was killed for but now I’m realizing that those names are to show just how guilty everyone was. After some research we learned that Gabriel Marquez was raised a Roman Catholic but didn’t really believe it. Knowing this, the symbolism of the names is hugely significant! Some Christian’s walk around with the title “CHRISTIAN” stamped to their forehead but they don’t act it. This is still true today and is usually the first thing that turns people off from becoming a Christian. People are given the titles priest, pope, and bishop but in the end everyone is a sinner.