One Hundred Years of Solitude Since the beginning of time, man has clung to the notion that there exists some external force that determines his destiny. In Grecian times, the epic poet Hesoid wrote of a triumvirate of mythological Fates that supposedly gave "to men at birth evil and good to have". In other words, these three granted man his destiny. Clotho "spun the thread of life", Lacheis distributed the lots, and Atropos with his "…showed first 75 words of 1592 total…

…showed last 75 words of 1592 total…underlying theme. The Fates were an attempt by men to explain the unexplainable, the coincidences in the odd. In One Hundred Years of Solitude and Thousand Cranes there are many events that can't be explained rationally, specifically why the male characters continue to repeat actions that promise condemnation. Thus, the character's efforts to shape his destiny ultimately becomes futile in the face of the desires of some unknown manipulator- characterized by the theme of Fate.