THE AVATAR IN PANAMA - Theses - Flinders University

3.2 Double Whammy: Mixed Doubles The Avatar in PanamaSiblings, Objects and OffspringAnother group of miscellaneous recurring characters includessiblings, objects, and offspring. 38 While the brother, sister or childreappearing in these stories may not in fact be the same one; it is thefamilial relationship which is recurrent. However, references to twinsand siblings may also be euphemisms for doubles in certain cases. InJaramillo Levi’s “Síntesis corregida y aumentada”, there is a doubling ofactions (camino, como en efecto lo estamos haciendo), objects (en unasala idéntica a ésta, el paraguas que era como éste, sí, hasta creo quees el mismo), and characters. Raymundo believes student Roxana isthe very woman, if not her twin, with whom he engaged in a ménage-àtroisone year before: “hicimos el amor entre tres, y que alguien que, entodo caso, sería tu gemela, estuvo deliciosamente incansable” (58).“El incidente” has two friends strolling in Mexico City who thensee a crowd converging on the street around two other men, one astabbing victim and the other leaning over him. A bystander suggests“[e]se que está con él es el hermano”, and later this same character isreferred to as “el supuesto hermano de la víctima”. This may beevidence of one being the double of the other as perhaps there is aphysical likeness. The accompanying man, however, is referred to bythe dying one as “mi amigo”; has he been mistaken for his brother? (46-47).In “La foto” (ASE), Néstor, while masturbating and spyingthrough the roof, takes photos of his (unnamed) brother while the latteris having sex with then girlfriend Talina. After his brother and Talinaseparate, Néstor assumes his sibling’s role with Talina; becoming hissubstitute.Children have often been viewed as doubles of their parents. 39The desired or unborn child of Jaramillo Levi’s stories is a twist on thistheme and appears frequently. This fact also links other relationships inthe stories some of which include: “Llanto presentido”, “El incidente”,and “Nereida”. 40 A living child is a fundamental character in “Se llamaLucia”, “El vecino”, and “Caracol” (CC), but features in many otherstories.38Vladimir Nabokov’s “Scenes from the Life of a Double Monster” tells the story of theupbringing and childhood of conjoined twins, and is a good example of the notion ofsiblings or twins as doubles in contemporary literature. For a complete listing of allreferences in Jaramillo Levi's work, see Appendix C Replicated Objects.39 “A belief which may be regarded as universal is that children are re-incarnations ofthe souls of their parents or of ancestors.” Crawley 857.40 The intertextual character link between these three stories in particular is pointedout by Margarita Vásquez de Pérez, Duplicaciones y Tocar Fondo: Inventario crítico15.195