Maybe their actions aren't commendable or are difficult to understand, but they still are doing the things they do based off their life experience and convictions. Through all of this interpersonal connection, Patchett is trying to communicate that people who do bad things are still people.

Overall, the people on both sides of the argument are humanized. Lovers are made and allowed to meet secretly in the night. The relationships that develop between borders deepen as time goes by. As the story progresses, they characters all fall into increasingly relaxed routines. Children play a role in the plot because, not fully appreciating the danger of the situation, they lighten the atmosphere and don't conform to the strict lines between captives and captors. In the same vane, the hostages start to feel affectionate toward their captors, even paternal to some of the younger ones. The general doesn't want to harm the hostages. The unique nature of their interactions is dictated by the tense level of occupation. The book won several awards for literary merit and was read in an opera award show because of the centrality of opera to the main character.īecause of the amount of time that the hostages and terrorists must remain together, they develop relationships between their ranks.

Patchett does not relate any of those events, but she used her knowledge of that crisis to incorporate certain elements into her plot. We are thankful for their contributions and encourage you to make your own.īel Canto was inspired by a real hostage situation at the Japanese embassy in Peru in the 1990s, from which only one hostage was rescued. These notes were contributed by members of the GradeSaver community.

Bel canto by ann patchett