“On the third day of rain they had killed so many crabs

inside the house that Pelayo had to cross his drenched courtyard

and throw them into the sea, because the newborn child had a

temperature all night and they thought it was due to the stench.

The world had been a sad thing since Tuesday. Sea and sky were a

single ash-gray thing and the sands of the beach, which on March

nights glimmered like powdered light, had become a stew of mud

and rotten shellfish. The light was so weak at noon that when

Pelayo was coming back to the house after throwing away the

crabs, it was hard to see what it was that was moving and groaning

in the rear of the courtyard. He had to go very close to see that it

was an old man, a very old man, lying face down in the mud, who,

in spite of his tremendous efforts, couldn’t get up, impeded by his

enormous wings.”

Some might say this is “fantasy” or “science fiction”, however the unique quality of blending the truly real world with touches of the surreal or magical give this genre it’s own uniqueness and style.

Magical Realism was first used to describe art in the early twentieth century by German art critic Franz Roh when describing a several Latin American artists.

Later, the term was used when Miguel Angel Asturias used it when referring to his literary style in his Nobel Prize speech. Although Magical Realism has it’s roots in Latin American literature, it quickly spread to writers such as William Kennedy’s book, “Iron Weed” and Toni Morrison in “Song of Solomon.” The magical bits are so skillfully woven into the fabric of their stories that we accept it and understand how it must be there to make the work complete.

The term Magical Realism’ became very popular in the 1960’s and was perhaps overused and abused during that time. As with anything creative and new, it will be thrown into the caldron of mainstream and often comes out in a much weaker form. However, that is what growth and change is about, it’s what keeps literature and art alive.

Recommended Reading:

Midnight’s Children – Salman Rushdie

One Hundred Years of Solitude – Gabriel Garcia Marquez

Like Water for Chocolate – Laura Esquivel

Artists:

Salvador Dali

Michael Parkes

Edward Hopper