The Río de la Plata is the imagined destination of Manuel Arroyo’s grief after he parts from Meg Williams. In a brief but decisive scene, the river gives shape to sorrow that he has at last stopped trying to contain, then accompanies his return to the ordinary demands of living.

Setting and Appearance

After walking for a long time, Manuel reaches the water and sits on a bench. The narrative names no particular bank or landmark; the Río de la Plata matters here as the body of water toward which his thoughts and tears seem to flow. Passersby stop to look at him, then move on without speaking.

The Farewell and the River

The scene follows Manuel’s goodbye to Meg. He has given her his business card so she can reach him if something unusual happens, kissed her, and told her he loves her; as he walks away, he understands that he is leaving her for good. The river becomes the imagined terminus of the tears he had been holding back: alone with his distress, he feels they are flowing into the Río de la Plata, and accepts that destination as just.

Return and Narrative Significance

Once he rises from the bench, Manuel retraces his steps and goes home. His landlady, Doña Encarnación, is alarmed by how changed he looks, but he tells her he needs only sleep. The river thus marks a passage rather than an escape: after allowing himself to weep, Manuel returns to his house and wakes the next day to continue living, though his body has recovered more readily than his spirits. The Río de la Plata gives his private mourning a physical horizon without suggesting that the loss itself has been resolved.