Magical Realism

Ask any child and they will tell you that magic is real. The imagination of a child is fueled by literature and film vibrant with the supernatural. The fairy tale, often associated with children's literature, is a powerful tool with multiple levels of meaning that help shape the world and our beliefs. Latin American novelists have used the power of magic to shape our world allowing readers to comprehend what is seen in the everyday world. Laura Esquivel's novel, Like Water for Chocolate, and Luis Sepulveda's novel, The Old Man Who Read Love Stories, fall under the genre of magical realism. In Esquivel's Like Water for Chocolate, a story of love and war revolves around Tita, the youngest of three sisters. Sepulveda's, The Old Man Who Read Love Stories, explores the fragile balance between man and nature along with the agony of lost love. The magic of Esquivel's world drips like icing on a cake, whereas Sepulveda's novel draws on the supernatural only found in the depths of the Amazonian jungle among the Shuar.

In the introduction to The Classic Fairy Tales, Neil Gaiman shares: "fairy tales recruit the extraordinary to help us understand the ordinary and what lies beneath it" (Tartar and Gaiman xi). Magic or magical realism is a literary genre that paints a realistic view of the modern world while also adding magical elements. In other words, magical realism focuses on the ordinary; normal people going about their daily lives in cities, states, or countries around the world. As described in The Norton Introduction to Literature, Kelly J. Mays states that "this style of realism is associated especially with modern Latin American writers such as Gabriel Garcia Marquez and Jorge Luis Borges", becoming quite prominent during the 20th Century (Mays A8). The Encyclopedia Britannica adds that "some scholars have posited that magical realism is a natural outcome of postcolonial writing, which must make sense of at least two separate realities - the reality of the conquerors as well as that of the conquered." Both Mexico and Ecuador were colonized by the Spanish and have been influenced by the customs and cultures of Spain, including religion. Both novels reflect these influences as details to the stories being told. With magical realism defined and explained, the deployment of this style of writing by both Esquivel and Sepulveda will be discussed.

Like Water for Chocolate is a fairy tale set in the real world with actual historical context; much like how C.S. Lewis's Chronicles of Narnia begins with the evacuation of children from London during World War II. Set in Mexico during the Mexican Revolution, spectacular events occur within the De la Garza household. It is the magic of supernatural events that make it a fairy story; dropping it into the realm of magical realism.

In the movie adaptation of Esquivel's novel, each recipe imbued with the emotions of the cook manifests in the participants of the meal allowing the reader to observe human nature. Sensuality and amorous feelings manifest themselves after Tita receives a bouquet of roses from Pedro in honor of her anniversary as the main cook in the household. Rather than throwing out the roses, per her mother's demands, Tita uses them to prepare "Quail in Rose Petal Sauce". By this time in the movie, we have already seen the effects of unconventional elements in Tita's cooking; specifically, the tears in the wedding cake. The scenes of the guests and the wedding party succumbing to food poisoning are tragic for the bride, yet terribly funny for the viewer. It may not have been clear in the film the significance of receiving the roses and the thorns that cut Tita; ultimately absorbing her blood, however, the novel makes it very clear. The blood turns out to be an ingredient that sets the dining party on "fire" sensually and Gertrudis literally, or rather the bathhouse. This particular dinner scene introduces the relationship between food (Tita's cooking) and communicating thoughts and feelings:

With that meal it seems they had discovered a new system of communication, in which Tita was the transmitter, Pedro the receiver and poor Gertrudis the medium, the conducting body through which the singular sexual message was passed" (Esquivel 52).

The film has similar language of the same event and I am certain that the narrator specifically states: "With that meal, it seems they had discovered a new system of communication." This film is like the U.S. film, Simply Irresistible, in which the same elements of cooking, emotion and unconventional ingredients result in "magical occurrences". Both storylines include tears and those tears cause the diners to weep. Both storylines include strong emotion; causing the recipient to display ill effects. For Rosaura, she becomes "ill" with flatulence, bad breath, etc. In the case of Simply Irresistible, the recipient behaves poorly in the restaurant destroying dinnerware. The most significant ingredient, found in both movies, includes flower petals. Tita uses rose petals and the chef in the other movie uses vanilla orchids; both resulting in heightened emotions. Unlike Sepulveda's novel, the use of magical realism in Esquivel's novel is direct and obvious.

Sepulveda's novel focuses on the relationship between humans and the environment; specifically the differences between the colonizers and the Shuar. As demonstrated in the Old Man Who Read Love Stories, the magic comes from the spiritual beliefs of the Shuar and the disposition of the soul upon death, as well as the sacredness of nature and all life. Sepulveda's love for Ecuador, the Amazon, and the Shuar are evident in his telling of a heartbreaking love story. This love was born from his work with UNESCO in the Amazon. Shortly after the death of his wife, Antonio determines that he cannot return to his village in the mountains because "the poor forgive everything but failure" (Sepulveda 33) and not being able to succeed in the Amazonian jungle would be a failure to both himself and the residents of his hometown. He decides to settle in El Idilio and make a go of it, living in a ten-yard, square bamboo hut that he built. Antonio spends considerable time with the Shuar, who are the indigenous people in the area; learning their ways and it was said that "[Antonio] was like [the Shuar], and yet was not one of them" (Sepulveda 40).

This becomes a critical element in the novel and an idea/theme that recurs. We see how important this relationship is throughout the novel and the results of breaking trust or being unable to fulfill a promise. One of the things to point out is the abandonment of traditional religious belief and practice by Antonio who was raised Catholic; as he embraces the Shuar culture, rituals, and beliefs founded on the supernatural and the power of spirits/souls.

The death of his friend, Nushino, and the failed attempt at retribution by killing the white man with a poisoned dart disrupt the required ritual to capture the essence of the man that fled into the jungle. As a result, the Shuar forbid Antonio to live among them; yet permit him to traverse the landscape. This furthers the concept that Antonio is in a type of purgatory, similar to Nushino's sightless wanderings disturbing both the living and the dead. Antonio is left alone in the world.

Not belonging introduces the possibility of an identity crisis that needs to be resolved: Who is he, and where does he belong? The skills that he has gained as a result of his interactions with the Shuar make him uniquely important to the settlement in El Idilio; providing resources like venom and animals for the settlers in the area. He knows the jungle, the plants, and animals, and is equipped to navigate and remain safe in this environment.

His personal relationship with his surroundings is also an important element in this story; having a unique bond with nature. This bond will reveal who Antonio is and how he is positioned in the world. At the end of the novel, Antonio comes face to face with the female ocelot who has killed several men as an act of revenge for the killing of her cubs and the fatal injury to her mate. In the novel, Antonio ends her life as an act of mercy, because she was in so much agony over the loss of her family. It is important to note that he used his gun to kill the ocelot. In the movie adaptation of Sepulveda's novel, Antonio still faces the ocelot. Rather than killing her with his gun, he uses a poisonous dart, emphasizing the respect that the Shuar have for nature and life. In addition, there is a sense of retribution for Antonio's failed attempt at avenging Nushino's death.

Antonio has answered the pleas of both the ocelot and his friend, Nushino:

I can't go in peace, my brother. Until his head hangs from a stake I'll wander like a sad, blind parrot, bumping into the trees. Help me, my brother (Sepulveda 44).

Luis Sepulveda's approach to magical realism is based on the actual customs and beliefs of the Shuar, which he likely learned from his friend Miguel Tzenke who was a Shuar union leader from Sumbi. Both Tzenke and Sepulveda have a great love for the Amazon and Ecuador. Sepulveda's work, like fairy stories, is a "powerful instrument of constructive socialization" (Tartar and Gaiman xv). In quoting Charles Dickens, Gaiman explains:

It would be hard to estimate the amount of gentleness and mercy that has made its way among us through these slight channels. Forbearance, courtesy, consideration for the poor and aged, kind treatment of animals, the love of nature, abhorrence of tyranny and brute force... (Tatar and Gaiman xv).

The protagonist, Antonio, embodies all these attributes and is the possible catalyst for change in El Idilio. Antonio is the link between the world of the colonizers and the supernatural world of the Shuar and the elements of the Amazonian jungle.

It isn't a wonder that children believe in magic or have a keen sense of the supernatural. They see the magic in the nature that surrounds them and in the traditions and customs practiced in their homes. Magic, after all, is the occurrence of the unexplained but is accepted as normal. The legacy of storytelling provides beauty, poetry, and power that allows the reader to imagine endless possibilities and the consequences of tragedy. Maybe the most wonderful meals are an expression of magical influences and the acceptance of the supernatural is just an acknowledgment of spirituality. The magic of Like Water for Chocolate and The Old Man Who Read Love Stories provides us with examples of both the extraordinary and the spiritual context of magical realism.

References:

Esquivel, Laura, et al. Like Water for Chocolate. Doubleday, 1995.

"Magic Realism." Encyclopaedia Britannica, Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc., 2019, www.britannica.com/art/magic-realism.

Mays, Kelly J. The Norton Introduction to Literature. 12th ed., W.W. Norton & Company, 2017.

Sepulveda, Luis and Bush, Peter. The Old Man Who Read Love Stories. First Harvest ed., Harcourt, Inc. 1995.

Tatar, Maria, and Gaiman, Neil. "Introduction." The Classic Fairy Tales, Second Norton Critical ed., W.W. Norton & Company, 2017, pp. xi-xxvi.