The Gathering Storm explained

What happens

Themes in this chapter

• Power and Megalomania

  The Gobernador's absolute control over every detail of the province, his secret communications, and his orchestration of international crises reflect a megalomaniacal drive for power.

• Imperialism and Exploitation

  The chapter highlights the economic exploitation of the Gran Seco's resources and the manipulation of nationalist and imperialist tensions between the U.S. and Latin America.

• War and Revolution

  The buildup of tensions, secret meetings, and the Gobernador's preparations suggest an impending conflict or revolution, with global powers on alert.

Characters to notice

• Archie Roylance

  Studies the geography of the Gran Seco, concluding its western side is precipitous and inaccessible.

• Castor

  Referred to as the Gobernador; he manages the province with Napoleonic attention to detail and orchestrates international maneuvers.

• Don Mario Sanfuentes

  Olifa's Minister for External Affairs; visits the Gran Seco and discusses press strategy with the Gobernador.

• Señor Aribia

  Olifa's Minister of Finance; accompanies Sanfuentes on a visit to the Gran Seco and comments on press coverage.

• Mr. Roderick Wilbur

  American Consul in Olifa; burns papers, takes a holiday, and sends encrypted messages via the British Consul.

• Don Alejandro Gedd

  Left in charge of the American Consulate in Olifa during Wilbur's absence.

• Señor Rosas

  Vice-President of the Company; left in temporary charge of the Gran Seco while the Gobernador travels.

• Sylvester Perry

  Author of 'Seeing Eyes'; his question about the Gran Seco's lack of a western route is referenced.

Key passages

• “The close lines of the hatching, though they must have been largely a matter of guesswork, showed that the sailors who had surveyed the coast had no doubt about its precipitous character, and up in the northern apex, where the great peak of Choharua overhung the ocean, the contours made the drop as sheer as the side of a house.”

  The map's dense contour lines, though speculative, indicated that the sailors who charted the coast were certain of its steepness; near the northern tip, where Mount Choharua looms over the sea, the drop is as vertical as a building's wall.

  Describes the geographical barrier isolating the Gran Seco from the Pacific.

• “The Gobernador led a life as arduous as Napoleon’s during the early years of his Consulate. Like Napoleon, he had made himself the master of every detail in every department, and, like Napoleon, he had instituted a zealous inquest for capacity, and, having found it, used it to the full.”

  The Gobernador worked as tirelessly as Napoleon in his early rule, controlling every aspect of his administration and seeking out talent to employ completely.

  Highlights the Gobernador's Napoleonic work ethic and control.

• “There was a great deal of talk about America’s manifest destiny; responsible newspapers discoursed upon the difficulty of a high civilisation coexisting side by side with a lower, and of the duty of the imperfect democracies of the South to accept the guidance of the mature democracy of the North.”

  The American press widely discussed manifest destiny, arguing that advanced civilizations cannot coexist with lesser ones and that the flawed democracies of South America should submit to the guidance of the mature U.S. democracy.

  Reflects the imperialist rhetoric used to justify U.S. intervention.

• “The press of the Latin South had a quieter tone, but it was notable for its curious unanimity, which extended even to the phrasing. The United States, it announced, was forsaking democracy for imperialism, the white robes of liberty for the purple of the tyrant.”

  Latin American newspapers, though more restrained, were strikingly unanimous in their language, accusing the U.S. of abandoning democracy for imperialism and trading liberty for tyranny.

  Shows the coordinated Latin American response to U.S. policies.