Gabriel García Márquez: Death Constant Beyond Love — Summary and Analysis
Senator Onésimo Sánchez, a 42-year-old man with a seemingly whole family life and a successful political career, knows he has only six months and eleven days left to live. During an electoral visit to the desert town of Rosal del Virrey, he delivers a speech surrounded by false props that simulate prosperity. In that town lives Nelson Fariña, a fugitive who has spent years vainly asking the senator for a fake ID to escape justice. Resentful, he sends his daughter, Laura, of extraordinary beauty, to pressure the senator. Onésimo is captivated by the young woman but discovers that she wears a locked iron belt whose key is kept by her father, who demands a political favor in exchange. Although the senator agrees to help him, he does not ask for the key; instead, he asks Laura to stay with him to alleviate his loneliness. The story foreshadows that he will die in her arms, marked by scandal and by the unfulfilled desire to remain with her.