1181 2b. The Handsomest Drowned Man in the World A Tale for Children Gabriel Garcia Marques translated by Gregory Rabassa

I don't see a direct contrast with the village other than this.....

"They thought that if that magnificent man had lived in the village, his house would have had the widest doors, the highest ceiling, and the strongest floor, his bedstead would have been made from a midship frame held together by iron bolts, and his wife would have been the happiest woman."