100 Years of Solitude 1-5

I think José Arcadio Buendía represents the foundation of the town, its basis for stability at least when he isn't obsessed with alchemy. He seems to be generally well-liked to the point where he is an unofficial leader that people in the community go to before starting any expansive project. One thing I noticed was that he was the first outsider to pick up on alchemy. He gave it up after a while, but it is important that he came across it, since if he hadn't his sons would have never developed an interest in it. So as the patriarch of the town, naturally all traditions must stem from him. He is essentially tradition, but at the same time, he does not impose it. This is clearly demonstrated when the magistrate more or less invades their town trying impose a dictatorship that never applied to Macondo. José confounds the magistrate by telling him the villagers can paint their house any color they want while presenting him with old-fashioned role of an accommodating host and making sure to state that despite José's generosity they are still enemies.