There are many examples of Ideology in The House of the Spirits. Through out this essay I will focus on the ideological ideas of Esteban Trueba, and how they created and destroyed the deranged marriage of Blanca and Jean de Satigny.
“Ideology, in the end, is what you think before you think or act.” This causes Esteban and his family problems throughout the story. His ideological views are mystified by his actions. You get the idea that Esteban wants no close contact with the lower class workers. Conversely, in the second chapter he rapes and impregnates a young poor woman. Later on when he discovers that Blanca is romantically involved with Pedro Tercero he snaps and beats Blanca and his wife Clara. He sets up harsh morals for his family to follow but then goes out and breaks them himself.
Esteban Trueba forces Blanca and Jean to marry, after he finds out that she is pregnant with Pedro Trecero’s child. Esteban chooses Jean because he knows Jean will do anything to get his hands on Esteban’s money. I feel this is an example of descriptive ideology in the sense that Esteban wants to have his daughter marry a man who comes from a wealthy background such as herself, not out of love. This causes problems.
The wedding dress that Esteban has his daughter wear is mystifying, concealing the fact she is pregnant. After the two get married we start to find out who Jean really is. He sets up a false consciousness for Blanca by hiring Indians as servants. The Indians that are hired and do not do a decent job taking care of chores. Never the less, Blanca does not realize that they are not there to be servants, but to feed Jeans strange locked up fetishes. Once she discovers what was going on behind closed doors she quickly leaves Jean.