Magical Realism and Political Instability

Gabriel García Márquez, Nobel Prize winner of 1982, is one of the foremost examples of the magical realism genre. Magical realism is difficult to define, but one of the most important characteristics is that it “embeds elements of magic - nonempirically verifiable phenomena - within a realistic narrative” (Farris 2016). The short stories by García Márquez we have read in class include strange or magical things occuring, like an angel landing in a common backyard or butterflies landing on a wall and becoming paint. The setting of Latin America, both for the stories and the movement as a whole to take place in, is very important to the genre I believe. The natural elements, history of indigenous cultures, and political instability in the region perhaps all contribute to the relation between magical realism and Latin America. Magical realism “serves to highlight certain phenomena - love, pain, unconscious desires, individual or collective beliefs, family and communal ties, political atrocities.” (Farris 2016). This can be a useful way for Latin American authors to deal with these themes and the political instability in their countries.

Gabriel García Márquez 

 Although it began around 1925 in Germany, magical realism continued to develop in Latin America throughout the 20th century, beginning in 1949. Important artists and writers were of course Gabriel García Márquez from Colombia, Elena Garro from Mexico, Fernando Botero from Colombia, and Frida Kahlo from Mexico. These four artists, according to Maria Rave from the University of Maine, all use techniques such as hyperbole, mythological or religious elements, ghosts, and non linear use of time. They also use their work to comment on political and social issues in their countries of Colombia and Mexico, and “reflect the Latin concept of people and community in a cycle of life and death, rebirth and memory in endless repetition” (Rave 2003). 

 Gabriel García Márquez’ work frequently includes themes of violence, Latin American culture and society, and Latin American politics. “One Hundred Years of Solitude” was published in 1967, at a time where radical movements and shifts in society were taking place across the globe. Here in Europe and in the United States, the political atmosphere “favored the emergence of radical voices from outside the literary mainstream, and the Latin Americans fitted the bill. But in the context of the Cold War García Márquez’s left-wing views led to his being refused entry to the USA, and later to his only being granted limited visas” (Millington 2014). His work was, however, widely appreciated and loved, having been translated into dozens of languages. The social and political context of the era was very important to the development of the movement. In a lot of his early works, he writes about characters who fall victim to political corruption. Even people who try to uphold their morals cannot defend themselves against such a corrupted political system. Many of his characters as well display resilience in the face of hardship. All these themes used by Gabriel García Márquez relate to the political issues of the time. Latin America has a large history of political instability, corruption, war, and foreign intervention. 

Many of the horrific events that transpired in Latin America during the 20th century seem beyond reality. Imagination can be a helpful way to think about ways to transcend one’s situation. For example, the literary and artistic movement Afrofuturism has served as a way for Black people, particularly in America, to imagine realities other than the one where they had been enslaved and systematically oppressed. Fantasy or magic, or in the case of García Márquez and Latin America, magical realism, functions as a way of imagining different realities or coping with difficult political situations. Another example is Pan’s Labyrinth, a 2006 film by director Guillermo del Toro, a Mexican filmmaker. It uses fantastical and at times horrific elements in a story about the Spanish Civil War, and all the atrocities that occurred during it. Using magical realism - adding these magical elements to a story about real events in our world - communicated the true horror of the Spanish Civil War. Like Pan’s Labyrinth, and other works set in times of political instability, García Márquez’s magical realism is a method of processing and telling stories in which bravery in the face of corruption and horror is magical in and of itself. 

Pan's Labyrinth (2006) 

 Sources

  Faris WB. The Latin American boom and the invention of magic realism. In: McHale B, Platt L, eds. The Cambridge History of Postmodern Literature. Cambridge University Press; 2016:143-158. Rave, Maria Eugenia B. (2003). “Magical Realism and Latin America” (2003) Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 481. https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/etd/481 Millington, Mark. “Love, politics, and the fundamental humanity of Gabriel García Márquez.” The Conversation, 24 April 2014, https://theconversation.com/love-politics-and-the-fundamental-humanity-of-gabriel-garcia-marquez-25835. Accessed 10 April 2024.