Magic Realism
Magic realism is the juxtaposing of seemingly mundane, everyday detail with the surreal or mystical.
Authors who operate within the Magic Realist form would be;
Gabriel Garcia Marquez ("One Hundred Years of Solitude," "Love in the time of Cholera.")
Isabelle Allende ("The House of Spirits.")
Jose Luis Borges ("Tlon, Uqbar, Orbis Tertius.")
Salman Rushdie ("Midnight's Children")
Nb: Borges is not strictly considered to be a magic realist, rather he is most probably the precursor or even 'father' of the style. Garcia Marquez would be its most notable proponent and "One Hundred Years of Solitude" would be the most famous (and probably the greatest) novel in the entire form. Rushdie is always 'borderline' with the style, but much of his work would qualify.
Here is a brief example from "One Hundred Years of Solitude."
Quote: A trickle of blood came out under the door, crossed the living room, went out into the street, continued on in a straight line across the uneven terraces, went down steps and climbed over curbs, passed along the Street of the Turks, turned a corner to the right and another to the left, made a right angle at the Buendía house, went in under the closed door, crossed through the parlor, hugging the walls so as not to stain the rugs, went on to the other living room, made a wide curve to avoid the dining-room table, went along the porch with the begonias, and passed without being seen under Amaranta's chair as she gave an arithmetic lesson to Aureliano José, and went through the pantry and came out in the kitchen, where Úrsula was getting ready to crack thirty-six eggs to make bread.
"Holy Mother of God!" Úrsula shouted.
What are your thoughts on Magic Realism? Do you use it in your own writing?
Note: If you set your stories entirely within the realm of fantasy or the surreal then they're not by definition or style Magic Realist. It's the juxtaposition with the seemingly everyday and the surreal that takes writing into the realm of the Magic Realist.
Traveller in the arts
Posts: 1
(1/21/02 12:00 pm) Reply
Re: Magic Realism
I am always confused about where the line is drawn between magical realism and fantasy. Would Laura Esquivel (Like Water for Chocolate) be considered magical realism? Like I said, I always get confused when people use the term 'magical realism.'
Re: Magic Realism
I haven't read "Like Water for Chocolate" so can't comment specifically, though I notice with a quick search in various literary circles on the 'net that it is considered by critics to be 'Magic Realist.'
Fantasy novels are usually set entirely in a fantasy world, or are a combination of the real and the fantastic but with a clear sense within the structure and the very 'feel' of the book that the fantasy world does exist. A couple of movies that would fit this latter definition would be "Time Bandits" and "The Navigator."
In a magic realist novel, the reader is always left in a state of disbelief when the magical elements appear, a sort of "no, this can't be happening" feeling. To contrast with a pure fantasy story; take a novel like "Lord of the Rings." Because the book clearly takes place in a world of the imagination - the reader wouldn't actually rule out the possibility of anything happening, because they are aware that there are no boundaries. In a magic realist novel the realist elements are very ordinary and the magic elements so fantastic that the two just don't go together in any sensible way. It is this very non-sense feeling, that magic realism engenders.
In Marquez's great novel "One Hundred Years of Solitude" there is a surreal scene that epitomises Magic Realism. One of the characters - Remedios the Beauty (So known because she is the most beautiful woman in the land) lives as a semi recluse, because young men are arriving day and night just to catch a glimpse of her (and falling of balconeys and roofs in the process ). One morning she appears out in the daylight, a rare occurence, wandering across the street. Suddenly a flock of butterflies appears, thousands of them, and surround her. The butterflies generate so much updraft with their beating wings that Remedios is lifted from the ground, and with a final graceful gesture to the townspeople, vanishes up into the sky on butterflies wings. The people stand watching her fly away, then just go back about their business with nary a word! Remedios is never mentioned again.
Traveller in the arts
Posts: 18
(1/24/02 2:03 pm) Reply
Re: Magic Realism
I just got 'One Hundred Years of Solitude', so maybe I will be better equipped to comment after reading it. As it is, 'Like Water for Chocolate' is the only example of that genre that I have read, and I felt that the fantastic sections of that novel detracted somewhat from the plot, they were too distracting from the core story. If an author wants me to feel a characters pain, he/she should make me believe in that pain.
But as I said, let me read 'One Hundred Years..' It seems to be generally acknowledged as a masterpiece.
One other question, though... why does this style seem mainly confined to Spanish speaking authors? Seems odd... did this style arise in Latin America?
Re: Magic Realism
Yep, Magic Realism is almost the exclusive territory of Latin writers (mainly Latin American.) The tradition probably started with Jose Luis Borges and Marquez 'made it famous' (as it were.)
As to why this is - I'm not really sure. Perhaps it has something to do with the more tangible sense of religious myth in Latin (catholic) countries, encompassing segues into the supernatural and a willingness to embrace 'miracles.' Add to that the beliefs of Afro-Caribbean ex slaves along the northern coasts of South America and it is a potent mix.
Also the move from oral storytelling to written literature in South American cultures is a much more recent development than in say, Europe, so the 'playful' style of narration often intrinsic to oral storytelling transferred more literally over to the written book in Latin America.
Re: Magic Realism
Would I be right in assuming that the TV plays 'Lipstick on my Collar,' 'The Singing Detective' and 'Pennies from Heaven' would fall into this category? At least partly?
). One morning she appears out in the daylight, a rare occurence, wandering across the street. Suddenly a flock of butterflies appears, thousands of them, and surround her. The butterflies generate so much updraft with their beating wings that Remedios is lifted from the ground, and with a final graceful gesture to the townspeople, vanishes up into the sky on butterflies wings. The people stand watching her fly away, then just go back about their business with nary a word! Remedios is never mentioned again. 
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