Summary

Mallarino waited backstage while images illustrating his life appeared on a screen and an announcer detailed Mallarino’s biography. When he was called on stage, Mallarino was overwhelmed by the applause. The theater was full. He did not realize until they began to sit down that the people had been standing. The minister announced Mallarino. She explained how her ideas of many people reflect what she had seen drawn by Mallarino instead of her own idea of that person’s appearance. She also suggested that when politicians no longer appeared in Mallarino’s caricatures, they realized that they no longer existed.

Mallarino spotted Magdalena’s face in the crowd and noticed her melancholy smile. He wondered what her life had been like for the last several years as they had not discussed their personal lives with one another. He noted Beatriz was...