Magic realism and its importance in literature
Magic realism allows writers to connect rich imagination and exaggeration with aspects of reality. Gabriel García Márquez was a Colombian writer and is known as a representative of magical realism in Spanish literature and one of the “main icons” in the twentieth century (McGurk and Cardwell). As formed by the Colombian environment, Márquez projected his prospects for injustice and the social context that existed in Latin America through the use of magical realism in his works as’ one hundred years of loneliness’ and ‘something very serious will happen in this town’. In this essay, he first study analyzed the way in which magical realism could present social dynamics in the twentieth century. Second, he examined the use of magical realism to express political criticism. As magical realism allows the authors of Spanish literature to open "new horizons" to the imagination of individuals, therefore, it is important that understanding what influences these writers (Ianni).
To begin with, superstition and rumor in ‘something very large’ are used to reflect social lifestyles in Latin America. During the 1970s, individuals in Latin America were not sure of the economy due to the financial crisis of debt and began to believe others regarding their opinions about the ‘tyrannical and corrupt governments’ (Verrier Castro). For example, before people believe in the premonition of the mother, who wakes up believing that something terrible will happen to the city; The rumor causes a sense of despair for residents. Consequently, it resulted in the burning of the city and people preparing to leave the city. The “bitter” tone that Márquez used in ‘something very large’ can be seen as an ‘attack’ against economic and social exploitation (Oberhelman). The superstition presented in the story ‘something very big’ foreshadowed future events in Latin America, with respect to the economic debt crisis during the 1970s.
Likewise, magical realism is used to tell stories to stories that are critical, in relation to political power. As much as Márquez used irrational and exaggerated techniques, he showed the dark reality of experiences, which can be seen as a concentrated projection of Latin American history and culture (Bautista Gutiérrez). In his other work ‘Hundred Years of Solitude’, Márquez described the hatred, fortune and loneliness that existed in Hispanic culture and humanity. As an example, Úrsula sees the birth of generations and embraces the new life in the family, as a contrast to Amaranta who lives her life with hate and aversion towards Rebecca. In other words, the contradictory feelings of characters in ‘Hundred Years of Solitude’ represented the birth, development and death of the city, in which the cruelty of the civil war ravaged the country with blindness and isolation (Geetha).
In summary, with its peculiar expression, magical realism plays a fundamental role and is deeply influential for the development of Spanish literature in Latin America. Many magical realistic writers aware that the art form of surrealism and other genres are used to express lifestyles in Latin America, so that they can join content in a harmonious way.
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