Magic Realism the Fantastic

Magic Realism

Latin American Magic Realism

Literature has endured a plethora of movements that have been used to both expand the literary base and try to explain a specific culture or set of cultures. For novels, it has been said that there are a very few plots which are continuously circulated in the work of authors who are bound by those elements but can expand the use of the plot beyond what has been known previously. A plot based on a love story is not owned by Shakespeare and death is not the sole domain of Hemmingway. No known author started these plots, and it different schools of writing are also difficult to pin down. However, the same cannot be said for the different literary movements which have reinvented the means of delivering simple plots. Much like the authors who adhere to them, literary movements seem to be typical of a moment in time and a group of authors who wish to move outward.

This is the case with magic realism. Most credit Franz Roh with coining the term, but there are many interpretations of the form which differ from what Roh said was intended initially. Magic realism differs from surrealism, science fiction, realism and other similar schools of writing in that it looks at everyday occurrences and sees the magic behind them. It has been defined as;

"A narrative technique that blurs the distinction between fantasy and reality. It is characterized by an equal acceptance of the ordinary and the extraordinary. Magic realism fuses (1) lyrical and, at times, fantastic writing with (2) an examination of the character of human existence and (3) an implicit criticism of society, particularly the elite" (Cowan, 2002).

The explanation of magic realism contained here offers the various components which most recognize as central to the form. People have emotions, desires, etc. which can be described using simple language, but can also be imagined as something beyond the pale. In Poe's imagination, fear was a black cat (in "Black Cat"), a heartbeat (in "The Tell-Tale Heart), and as the appearance of a dead woman (in "Fall of the House of Usher). It is the third element though that also feeds magic realism from most perspectives. The emotion made magic also will speak to some real human condition that is exacerbated by some societal ill.

The form has also been used in the visual arts as well as the literary. It has been a difficult art form to translate to a canvas because the typology artists use has often been confined to what they see. Meaning, on a canvas what is meant to be seen as something mundane with a concurrent magical meaning, may be viewed as something that is just mundane. Artists who paint with a magical realist intent do not necessarily show the fantastic as do surrealists such as Salvador Dali, so the subtlety often confuses what the intent of the work actually is. For example, a bridge may signify promise because on one side is a stark, poor little town and on the other is a bright country setting with cavorting unicorns and smiling fairies. Many Latin American artists would try to paint a picture of how poor villagers lived, and the promise that could be had with proper government and economic prosperity. Unfortunately, the vision the artist has for the picture may fall short because every person sees symbolism differently. However, it is the perfect medium for writers because they can show the symbolism without compromising the realism of the portrait they are trying to paint.