The Usage of Myths and Utopia in the book El Rieno de Este Mundo by Carpentier - Research Paper Example

Myths and utopia and utopic or distopic ideas in the book El rieno de Este mundo Magic realism is a term that has gained popularity in both nonacademic and academic circles and hence the proliferation of this term has gained it its popularity. The attempts to thee formal characteristics it exhibits has acted as a revelation by the fact that it helps us realize the western and non-westernized modes of thinking. This resulted in the development of what was known as magic realism by theorists who managed to formulate the definitions that surround this phenomenon. The first instance of the usage of the magic realism was used by a German critic Franz Roh to explain the art of inter war in the Weimer republic. He explained that the use of magic realism was more than an expression that was abstract in nature. A period passed which saw the introduction of this term in Spanish literacy contexts. In the Spanish context, it was a combination of myths, politics, culture, geography and the oral traditions that were practiced in southern and Central America. The author of the book el rono de Este mundo was the person who devised a style, which entailed fiction, which later became known as magic realism. He was observed to use this phrase in his book whereby he factors in the term maravilloso instead of the term magico. The author of the book is seen to avoid the use of juxtapositions that are from a surrealist movement point of view and is seen to encourage the use of reality in juxtaposition that is already in existence (Self45). The author was observed to encounter the marvelous in Haitian voodoo. It was after the author’s trip to Haiti that he started to apply the lessons he had learned in Europe to Latin America. He implemented the use of maravilloso daily as a feature of life in its own subcontinent. In his book, the culture of the Europeans was brought out to be less superior to the culture of the natives in terms of their voodoo and their values. The marvelous realism was observed to revolve around the idea that communities that are in different development phases can coexist peacefully in this sub continent. In the book, there is the existence of a search of a paradise. The search of this paradise happened prior to the distraction of Europe. The book is depicted to reveal that the escape into a world where immutability is impossible. It was the understanding of the author that the model that helped explain western civilization did not clearly depict the mode of thinking among the westerners. The modes of thinking that were predominant were the pre modern and modern modes of thinking. There was also the possibility of these modes of thinking occurring simultaneously. Hence, the definition of magic realism was considered dependent on the differences between the two modes of thinking. They also focused on the effects that surround myths and rationalism. The book is also poetic in nature in the sense that the poetic conjectures upwards as signified from the speaker’s point of view (Lelord 67). Magic realism was also observed to bring about the understanding of post-colonial forms of writing whereby the author is seen to refer to it as a language of used in the post-colonial world. Realism has also been distinguished to be the product of a social environment that is oppressive in nature. It was worth noting that magic realism is attributed to a form of design set forth to gain it currency throughout the world. In some areas, it is perceived as a forced imposition of the western transcultural way of writing. As witnessed in this book, the application of magic realism as used by the author is aimed at countering the effects that were brought about by American literature. Language is also observed to bring about a calculated approach towards educating people on how the writers in the post-colonial period used magic realism. Thus, magic realism helps in the bringing into the light the two languages systems. The opposing language systems are also brought out in magic realism (James 45). The author is also seen to present the dilemma posed by the Europeanized part of Latin America and the impressions posed by his homeland. The North is depicted to be a modern world whereby norms are perverted in a large scale. Hence, the journey of the narrator is presented to be a journey such that he is seen to travel back in time in the search of some form of primitivism. The ideas that surrounds marvelous realism is that majority of the communities in different levels of development are able to coexist peacefully. The book is observed to offer a definition that is formal in nature to the understanding of genre. This has been made a possibility through juxtaposition whereby it is portrayed to report in such a manner that it is reliable and realistic and brings out extravagant fantasy. Thus, as a result, the broad nature of the descriptions it exhibits makes text be classified as magic realist (Gram and Hancock 76). As the author manages to depict the unfolding of events in the book, magic realism is not only considered a way of saying but also as a way of seeing. From a greater perspective, magic realism is the favorable way of telling stories and from a small-scale point of view, it is considered a way of depicting reality in a manner that is truthful in the eyes of the reader. This is possible with variety magic’s of metaphors. The application and use of magic makes it a possibility for the reader to transform himself into a character in the book. Thus, as result, the reader of the book is not merely just an observer but he manages to participate in the unfolding of events, which, as a result, makes the reader be glued to the book. The author describes this active but virtual participation magic realism. The book is seen to describe the sensation of magic present in magic realism whereby it is not actually the transportation or the removal of an individual through a certain distance in an unrecognizable world or place but it also involves the viewing of recognizable worlds at a distance. All this takes place through a transformed set of eyes. Magic realism is also thought to bring about the acceptable juxtaposition of the ordinary facts and the extra ordinary in the literature. This, in effect, makes the narrative seem objective and reliable by the fact that it aids in the clear revelation of facts and ideas in the book (Bloom 23). The broad generalizations because of magic realism have painted a clear picture about western democracy and how it allows for articulation. These articulations are not observed to favor the writers because of the regimes they pose which make the writers struggle. The factor that brought about the conception of the idea was the action in response to the reality that surrounded the nature of South America. In the countries that were mostly under colonization, the negotiation of freedom was not made done in institutions. This was mainly due to the reason that the negotiations made were liable to manipulation. Another factor was the fact that the resolutions made could also be commandeered by external powers whose truth was a relative entity. However, critics argued that the perception of the non-western writers about the restrictions they posed were just a stereotype. The key factor to consider about magic realism is the fact that is revolves around a sociological point of view. It is usually seen to feature behind narratives, folklore, and the frequent roots dominant in the western culture. The component that makes the magic in magic realism a reality is the way it works as a destructive climax in majority of the realist works. Magic realism is also depicted to be different from modernism. This is due to the reason that magic realism is observed to be culture specific whereby it identifies the non-modern societies. The myths and the magic persist of these non-modern societies are identifiable with ease in instances whereby magic realism is expected to occur. Hence, the insurance of the survival of magic realism in a very popular culture, which is observed to coexist rationally with the mentalities, generated in the modern societies (Ballard 45). It is evident that magic realism is also considered a form of anthropological attitude whereby it is in a position to confront non-modern and modern. The presence of epistemology helps in erasing the line that divides myths and science. This is due to the reason that anthropology is a scientific study that entails the social organization. This is further classified into methodologies and rituals. Hence, it is worth taking into account that, in the process of defining magic realism, one should not consider the differences between non-western and western modes of thought. Thus, as a result, the definitions of magic realisms mistake the western modernity to epistemology that is radical in nature. Works cited Ballard, M. Russell. Our search for happiness: an invitation to understand the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Book Co., 1993. Print. Bloom, Harold. The Bible. New York: Chelsea House, 1987. Print. Gram, Dewey, and John Lee Hancock. A perfect world. London: Signet, 1993. Print. James, Brian. Perfect world. New York: PUSH/Scholastic, 2004. Print. Lelord, François. Hector and the search for happiness: a novel. New York, N.Y.: Penguin Group USA, 2010. Print. Self, Margaret Cabell, and Edwin Megargee. A treasury of horse stories. New York: A.S. Barnes & Co., 1945. Print. Read More