“"Pulpete," said the taller, "now that we are going to meet each other, knife in hand—you here, I there,—one, two,—on your guard,—triz, traz,—have that,—take this and call it what you like—let us first drain a tankard to the music and measure of some songs."
"Señor Balbeja," replied Pulpete, drawing his face aside and spitting with the greatest neatness and pulchritude towards his shoe, "I am not the kind of man either for La Gorja or other similar earthly matters, or because a steel tongue is sheathed in my body, or my weasand slit, or for any other such trifle, to be provoked or vexed with such a friend as Balbeja. Let the wine be brought, and then, we will sing; and afterwards blood—blood to the hilt."”
~excerpt from the Andalusian Duel
This excerpt shows a lot about the characters. The first one refers to handling a fight between just the two individuals. It also refers to enjoying time and each other’s company, before the battle. The first person is describing the events that will take place when they once they do end up battling each other by referring to them meeting each other with knives in hand.
The second describes the response to the words of the first person. It shows that Pulpete had agreed with what the person had said. It showed Pulpete believing that they two should enjoy the fun festivities prior to their knife fight. Unlike the first person, Pulpete went into more of a graphic and visual perspective. This showed that he was willing to temporarily put his differences aside to have a good time with Senor Balbeja. He was willing to enjoy company with someone that he would later be fighting.
This passage shows that even with the differences and difficulties that the two men had with one another, even if it was just for a short while. Another time that this can tie into is the battles in multiple countries. There are times when large wars will take place, but even if it is just for a day, some holidays, wars will be put on hold. This shows that even though there are issues, there is still time to temporarily set our differences aside. In some cases, this may even help to uncover another solution other than battling it out. This excerpt also did seem to fulfill the plot of the story better, because it focused on the better qualities of the two. Tough in the case of this story it was able to give a realistic coincidence in the form of a story.
