According to Oxford Dictionary, Magical Realism is a literary or artistic genre in which realistic narrative and naturalistic technique are combined with surreal elements of dream or fantasy. This form of written literature was coined by Frank Roh in his article Magischer Realismus "Magic Realism" describing the picture titled Neue Sachlichkeit "New Objectivity or New Matter-of-Factness" that was presented in Mannheim, Germany in 1925. Magical Realism was first defined by the Cuban writer Alejo Carpentier in his 1949 essay "Lo Marvavillso Real" (Marvelous Reality) and a very popular writing style amongst most Latin American writers.
Magical Realism gained great attention after the success of Gabriel Garcia Marquez's 1967 novel One Hundred Years of Solitude and boosted the popularity of Latin American Literature in the late 1960's and 70's. According Eva Aldea Spindler William stated that Magical Realism can be divided into three main groups, Metaphysical Magical Realism, Anthropological Magical Realism and Ontological Magical Realism. These different groups are technique by which a writer create images and according to Angel Flores "is not weighed down by needlessly baroque descriptions' but clings to reality as if to prevent literature from flying off, as in fairy tales, to supernatural realms."
Metaphysical magical realism According to Eva suggested by Spindler is the practice of defamiliarization, creating a mysterious and disturbing atmosphere, but without an element of the supernatural (3). In relation to this form of writing, Spindler made reference to Franz Kafka's 'The Trial', Jorge Luis Borges's story 'The South' and Henry James' 'The Turn of The Screw'. These authors used savvy suspicions; substantial evidence and the suspenseful atmosphere of improbability to stimulate the readers mind and captivate the world around us. After doing my research and reading numerous articles, journals and reviews on these different writers on metaphysical magical realism writing style, I gained and understanding of what this method is and how I have been affected by it in previous reading and movies. James Patterson's 'Worst Cast' was one of my favorite book I have read, filled with suspense, suspicion and an atmosphere that draws you into the book. The Novel was based on and investigation lead by a Detective Michael Bennett who hunts a kidnapper that doesn't demand money but quizzes his kidnapper on various topics and a wrong answer will result in their demise.
The other style of Magical Realism mentioned by Spindler is Anthropological Magical Realism. According to Eva Aldea, Spindler stated that "this type of writing is characterized by the use of 'two voices': one rational and realist, and the other indicating a belief in magic. The implied contradiction or antinomy between these two voices is resolved by the presence in the text of a specific cultural world-view, a Weltanschauung where the mythical and the rational coexist. Spindler links this type of magical realism to a postcolonial search for national identity, and the struggle to reverse the hierarchy between Western and non-Western cultures." (3) Spindler praised great Latin American writer like Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Alejo Carpentier, Guatemalan Miguel Angel Asturias, and writes from different parts of the world like Guyanese writer Wilson Harris and Salman Rushdie.
The third type of Magical Realism according to Spindler is Ontological Magical Realism, "the supernatural also appears but the contradiction between it and the real world is resolved through a matter of fact presentation rather than by the presence of a particular Weltanschauung. The magic is not explained in any subjective, psychological way; but rather the unreal has an objective, ontological presence in the text." (3) Splindler's examples are Kafka's "the Metamorphosis', Argentinian Writer Julio Cortazar's story axolotl, and Carpentier's Voyage to the seed.
Magical realism as I mentioned earlier is a literary style that gained great popularity among Latin America culture in the 1960s and 1970s. This period is referred to by most as the Boom when novels and short stories collections from various countries were published in large numbers. Authors of the Boom were looked aproned by upcoming writers and literary mentors and often cited and because of the Boom most writers gained International recognition for their work filled with the different styles of magical realism that draws the reader between fantasy and reality. The writing of that era was normally different in theme and subject matters but the work of the authors were similar in essential characteristics.
According to Erick Ching, "Most Boom authors leaned to the political left and defended the popular masses against reigning military and elitist governments. The style and subject matter of their writings often advance the perspective of marginalized and silenced peoples. Their incorporation of Indian themes leads them to emphasize-the magical elements of their culture. Indian religions were based on a belief in a closer and more constant link between the spiritual and material worlds than some versions of Christianity. Accordingly, magical realist authors see themselves approaching a deeper and truer sense of Latin American identity. They refuse to glean identities from the developed West and consider themselves literary orphans who celebrate Latin America's distinctiveness." (270)
The Boom period can be noted as a moment in time when Latin American authors overcame their difficulties of being a third work country and produced narratives that where filled with creative imageries. The writers used a different approach from traditional literature which is a realistic approach. Alejo Carpentier a Cuban writer was one of the first well known Latin American fiction authors who received awards, such as the prestigious Spanish Premio Cervantes (1977) and he French Medicis Prix (1979) for express this method of writing in his work. Adam Feinstein stated that "His novels The Lost Steps, The Chase and Explosion in a Cathedral, published between 1953 and 1962, are considered ground-breaking works that forged a vision of the American continent based on its distinctive historical, social, cultural, ethnic and political characteristics. The Kingdom of This World by Carpentier was one of the first novels that he published and contributed to magical realism in Latin American Literature. In the novel The Kingdom of This Work a slave by the name of Mackandal, gained great belief from his followers that he has the ability to transform into animals, this notion was brought about after he went into hiding being responsible for the poisoning of numerous plantation owners with special plants he discovered. After his capture and sentence to death he promised to return from his death by fire.
Gabriel Garcia Marquez a native of Colombia is considered one of the most noticeable fiction writers in Lain American history who produced demonstrative magical realism. He is a costeno, the inhabitants of the coast of Columbia. Marquez was one of the most multifunctional writers, he wrote novel, short stories essays and script. His books are often on the best seller in Spanish-speaking countries and in the United States. His culture and tropical landscape are the main influence for his literary production. According to Rafael Ocasio the author of Literature of Latin America, apart from the inspiration Marquez receive from, "life in a remote own with many colorful characters and unusual living arrangements" (126), Marquez was educated by his maternal grandparents Nicolas Ricardo Marquez Mejia a retire colonel and one of the Aracataca's founders and Tranquilina Iguaran Cotes a figure of importance in Aracataca's history. Marquez learned colorful family anecdotes of unusual characters, rich local folklore, indigenous and black religious practices and popular belief from his grandmother.
Marquez One Hundred Years of Solitude (1967) which was during the Boom was an instant best seller with thousands of copies sold every week. His literary production was superior because of its excellent quality and the diversity of his characters and motifs. His best sellers worn him awards such as the Noble Prize- winning novelist Toni Morrison and the Noble Prize in Literature by unanimous decision. The first volume of his autobiography Vivir para contarla 2002 sold 500,000 copies in Latin America and Spain within forty eight hours of its release. Ocasio cited that from Kafka, Garcia Marques Learned that "many other possibilities existed in literature outside the rational and extremely academic examples I'd come across in secondary school textbooks" (127). In One Hundred Years of Solitude, Marquez uses a real area an atmosphere where real and unreal events coexist. The family functions of the Buendias are social and economic, but after Jose Arcadio Buendia married Ursula Iguaran and leave their village to fine a new one, they were later discovered by gypsies who b José's childlike fancies, sold them items such as magnifying glasses, flying carpets and a portable lab intended to transform god into more gold.
Julio Cortazar was born in Brussels to Argentina parents. He was an author of numerous short stories, novels, poetry and literary critic articles. He gained national recognition when his short story "Casa Tomada" (House Taken Over) was edited by Jorge Luis Borges on of the famous Latin American Short Story Writers. The publication of Rayuela (Hopscotch 1966) made Cortazar a noted novelist and placed him high into the trend of Latin America Boom writers. After his short story Las Babas Del Diablo" (Blow-Up) was filmed based on the book by Michelangelo Antenionis, Cortazar gained international Fame. In 1976 he received the French Meticis Prize for "Libro De Manuel" (A Manual for Manuel; 1978) which Strengthen his status outside Latin America. Cortazar made evident of Magical Realism and concepts of the Latin American Literature Style in his short story Axolotl. Axolotl is a story about a man in Paris who discovered a water tank with the Axolotls in a botanical garden in Paris. The man became fascinated by these creatures and visited them often and researched their origin. At the end of the story there were ambiguity about who was in the tank and who is the narrator, the man or the Axolotl.
Laura Esquivel was born in Mexico City; her success came from her first novel "Como Agua Para Chocolate" (Like Water For Chocolate, 1992) that placed her at the top of Mexico's best-selling novels. After the English translation and film release her book became a best seller in the United States and was on the New York Times best-seller list for more than a year. In 1994, the book won American Bestsellers Book of the Year, the first foreign book to receive this award. The part of the book that depicts magical realism is when Gertrudis after eating a special dish that Tita prepared is over come with a heat that made her go to the outside shower to cool down, she was then kidnapped by a soldier from the Mexican army who carries her away.
The use of magical realism in Latin American Literature has proven to be successful and helpful to most Latin American authors to advance and stimulate their career. An ability by these writers to take a different methodology from traditional literature that is a realistic approach, to a method where realistic narrative and naturalistic technique are combined with surreal elements of dream or fantasy. This era referred to as the Boom is when most Latin American authors overcame their difficulties of being a third world country and produced narratives that were filled with creative imageries. Using this form of writing style authors were able to gain great recognition both local and international, receive noticeable awards, were looked aproned by upcoming writers as literary mentors, and often cited. Although the Boom authors writing were different in theme and subject matter the work of these authors are similar in the essential characteristics of magical realism.
9173497965 Work Cited
Angel Flores. Magical Realism in Spanish American Fiction: Hispania, Vol. 38, No. 2 (May, 1955), pp. 187-192.
Spindler William, 'Magic Realism: A Typology' Forum for Modern Language Studies, 29/1 (1993): 75-85.
Aldea, Eva. Magical realism and Deleuze: The Indiscernibility of Difference in Postcolonial Literature 2011.
Ching, Erik Kristofer.Reframing Latin America: a cultural theory reading of the nineteenth and Twentieth centuries / Erik Ching, Christina Buckley, and Angelica Lozano-Alonso. - 1st Ed.
Feinstein, Adam. New Statesman; 6/20/2005, Vol. 134 Issue 4745, p15-15, 2/3p
