Understanding Magical Realism: Definition and Characteristics
Magical Realism: Definition and Characteristics
Magical realism is a meta-linguistic and literary genre of the mid-twentieth century. The term was first used by an art critic, the German Franz Roh, to describe painting which demonstrated an altered reality, but was later used by certain Latin American writers. The novel Doña Bárbara by Rómulo Gallegos is considered the initiator of this literary trend.
Magical realism is defined as the stylistic concern and interest in showing the unreal or strange as an everyday and common occurrence. It is a magical literary expression; its purpose is not to arouse emotions and express them but is, above all, an attitude towards reality. One of the most representative works of this style is One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez.
Magical realism shares certain characteristics with epic realism, such as the claim to internal credibility of the fantastic and unreal, in contrast to the nihilistic attitude originally assumed by the avant-garde and surrealism.
Key Features
Characters
The characters present in the works of this movement tend to travel, not only physically, such as those suffered by characters in Creole works, to name one example, but also change in space and time through their thoughts and dream states.
Time
We find four positions:
- Chronological time: The actions follow the logical course of time.
- Rupture time levels: Mix of present tense, past tense (regressions), and future tense (advances). (e.g., Night’s Up by Julio Cortázar)
- Static Time: Chronological time is stopped, as if not transcended.
- Time spent: It is the most contradictory: to consider the night a day when we read: “It was the dawn,” “It was night,” among others.
Magical realism is a meta-linguistic and literary genre of the mid-twentieth century. The term was first used by an art critic, the German Franz Roh, to describe painting which demonstrated an altered reality, but was later used by certain Latin American writers. The novel Doña Bárbara by Rómulo Gallegos is considered the initiator of this literary trend.
Magical realism is defined as the stylistic concern and interest in showing the unreal or strange as an everyday and common occurrence. It is a magical literary expression; its purpose is not to arouse emotions and express them but is, above all, an attitude towards reality. One of the most representative works of this style is One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez.
Magical realism shares certain characteristics with epic realism, such as the claim to internal credibility of the fantastic and unreal, in contrast to the nihilistic attitude originally assumed by the avant-garde and surrealism.
Characters
The characters present in the works of this movement tend to travel, not only physically, such as those suffered by characters in Creole works, to name one example, but also change in space and time through their thoughts and dream states.
Time
We find four positions:
- Chronological time: The actions follow the logical course of time.
- Rupture time levels: Mix of present tense, past tense (regressions), and future tense (advances). (e.g., Night’s Up by Julio Cortázar)
- Static Time: Chronological time is stopped, as if not transcended.
- Time spent: It is the most contradictory: to consider the night a day when we read: “It was the dawn,” “It was night,” among others.