First Blog - Magical Realism (Posted Correctly)

In constructing definitions and ideas about magical realism, Franz Roh focuses on the pictorial characteristics of magical realism, while Angel Flores and Luis Leal discuss the literary aspects of magical realism. While the authors may differ in their art form, they have a general agreement about the theme and distinctiveness of magical realism as a whole. Magical realism, neither fantasy nor supernatural, does not waste its time focusing on “imagined worlds” (Leal, p. 121) or unrealistic dreams; its uniqueness branches from its mundane yet enigmatic nature that transgresses worldly boundaries in an attempt to exemplify the mysteries in life, leading to new revelations and unraveling truths about the world. In a painting or literary work, a seemingly “normal” setting could be invaded by something totally surprising or unconceivable, causing people to completely stop and think about the matter at hand. Magical realism is “the transformation of the common and the everyday into the awesome and the unreal” (Flores, p. 114).

Unlike Impressionism or Expressionism that focuses more on the superficial appearances of objects in terms of colors, shapes, and forms, magical realism revolves around emotions and feelings. Magical realism follows the idea that objects in any art work should not solely be portrayed by its exterior but should be spiritually depicted as well, which essentially means to not look at objects from the outside in but from the inside out. To successfully show more than the exterior appearance and dive deeper into the spirit of objects, imitation must be avoided. Magical realists make it of great importance to establish that imitation has no place in magical realism because realistically portraying should not involve exact copying but rather innovative construction and creation “to seize the mystery that breathes behind things”(Leal, p. 123). “Only when the creative process achieves its goal from the inside out can it generate new views of reality, which is at the most built in pieces never imitated as a whole” (Roh, p. 25). Looking past an object’s appearance and witnessing its spirit is part of magical realism’s objective to either evoke or express emotions. Roh believes magical realism evokes feelings and “memories of smells and tastes” (Roh, p. 19), while Leal believes its true goal “is to express emotions, not to evoke them” (Leal, p. 121). Who is right?

A very brief but interesting point made by Roh is the relationship between magical realism and socio-economic class. What socio-economic class does magical realism appeal to? The lower classes burdened with “the monotony of hard labor” has an affinity for “discrete and prudent works,” while the bourgeoisie take a thrill in viewing “lofty and inspired ones” (Roh, p. 18). Magical realism could appeal to the lower classes with its seemingly mundane and “normal” appearance, while the mysterious nature and new truths would attract the bourgeoisie. Could the influences and popularity of magical realism transcend socio-economic boundaries? It is important to know which socio-economic classes participated in magical realism and how they viewed the art works because knowing the audience might help us gain an understanding of why magical realists choose to paint what they paint or write what they write.

Though it may only apply to Roh and his pictorial versions of magical realism, the concept of miniature and monumentality appears to be very important. Both ideas of miniature and monumentality are not limited to the actual size or dimensions of the painting. The importance of each is the meticulous attention to detail and finding meaning and depth in small things. A magical realist can be considered a “monumental” painter even though the painting might be small itself because it focuses on a smaller, meaningful object that evokes emotion rather than on a broad array of objects.

"Kiss of a Spider Woman'

While the “Kiss of a Spider Woman,” as other magic realist compositions attempts to convey a moral message to the viewer, as compared with other magical realism works Puig doesn’t not blur or distort the boundaries of many binaries lacking the characteristics of a true magical realism piece. “Kiss of a Spider Woman” implores not only the message that love is unstoppable, even by the government’s power, but also that one may love whoever he wishes and often has no control over who or what he loves. Puig conveys his views on homosexuality through Molina’s struggle. Molina’s love and emotions are unaffected by any of the governments actions or any laws put in place. Puig attempts to explain that emotions are uncontrollable and more powerful than any other force, and love, the most powerful emotion, is more powerful still. Puig’s underlying message is that while love is unrelenting, one alo cannot control who he loves, regardless of whether it is in the ‘norm,” and is something so powerful it is worth dying for.

Maria: Kiss of the Spiderwoman

In the movie Kiss of The Spiderwoman, Puig puts an emphasis on the power of love versus the power of social norms and government laws imposed on society. He uses the “Spiderwoman” as a symbol; being something that one gets caught up in. I believe that government and society are represented by the Spiderwoman while Puig is represented through the character, Molina and his emotions. Being a homosexual, Molina (and Puig) knows the feeling of being exiled and ridiculed, but to him, those things do not matter nearly as much as one’s inner happiness. To him, the emotions that drive love and sexuality, regardless of whether others see them as being ‘right’ or ‘wrong,’ are stronger than any other force. Both in Molina’s story and in the story he tells we see love conquering all other things. For example, the woman in his story falls in love with a soldier; something that is not accepted in her world. But, she explains that one cannot help who one falls in love with and says, “love doesn’t’ have a country.” Similarly, Molina shows that he is willing to die for Valentine, the man he loves, because without being able to love there is nothing worth living for. Puig shows that the government can impose as much power as they want through different actions, such as putting people in jail over and over again, but the power of one’s emotions will still prevail. In this movie, I see Valentine as a representation of the typical stereotype of a man in society during the time and place that this film takes place, while Molina represents something different. Puig shows how we need to embrace the differences found within one another rather than judge them; only then will we be headed toward a more peaceful world.

The Kiss of the Spider Woman

In “The Kiss of the Spiderwoman”, Manuel Puig uses characteristics of magical realism to deliver the underlying message behind the film. There are obvious binaries between hetero and homo sexuality, and reality versus fiction. While in prison, Molina and Valentin escape their harsh reality by listening to Molina’s dictation of old movies. The movie is a classical Nazi propaganda love story. Whenever Molina and Valentin are experiencing especially bad moments like food poisoning, insomnia, or depression; Molina describes the movie to create an oasis that allows them to mentally escape their pain. Though they have different sources of pain – Valentin’s is his political angst and his love for Marta, Molina’s is his mother and his societal oppression for being homosexual – they both take refuge in this dreamy state. Puig is trying to expose the negative aspects of society and how they affect everyone as a whole. Molina and Valentin are completely different types of people, yet they are both oppressed and restricted by societal problems. Just like the tale of the spider woman that Molina describes, the relationship between him and Valentin grows from within and is mysterious, forbidden, and confused all at once. This passionate interaction and emotion destroys the boundaries that exist between hetero/ homo sexuality and reality versus fiction.

Dasha: Kiss of the spider woman

Kiss of the Spider woman is a very impressive movie. It shows struggles of two completely different men who are in prison for unlike reasons. They both find escape from ordinary life through different approaches. Political prisoner Valentin is ready to go through anything it takes to preserve the secrets of opposition. He survives tortures, poisoning and just plain intimidation. He shows how important it is to be persistent and loyal to your beliefs, keep fighting for freedom and rights. Molina finds an escape through imagining movies and pretending to be a gorgeous woman. He can’t stand the brutality of men. He sees the world differently through his sensitivity that allows him to get closer to Valentin. Despite the plan of Warden to find out information from Valentin through Molina, the story shows how important and powerful true friendship can be. It can change the world. The idea of this imaginary perfect woman spices up the storyline and brings the element of magic realism. Everybody is looking for something great and perfect, but most of the times the ideals only exist in our imagination, and we are left to face the cruelty of the world unprotected. Another aspect of magic realism is a very thin boundary between the storyline of the movie that Molina tells to Valentin and what is going on in their lives. It seems that connections are very precise, and you almost feel that this modern story is a repeat of this old movie.

Mona

“Mona” by Reinaldo Arenas attempts to expose the reader’s common held stereotypes by blurring the boundaries between male and female, reality and fantasy, and living or dead.
Elisa, the protagonist of the story, becomes Fernandez’s infatuation. At the beginning of the novella the reader is lead to believe that “Mona” is a romance story, however, as the story progresses Elisa begins to exhibit abnormal features more closely resembling male attributes, thus blurring between male and female making what was once perceived to be a romance novella more closely resemble a parable.
As the story progresses Elisa’s features are portrayed to be more and more masculine. She is portrayed as having “an almost” masculine voice as having animal like characteristics. Each proceeding description only further adds to her portrayal of a masculine character, she “[drinks] the water…so naturally that anyone would have thought drinking from a vase was a normal thing to do,” this act is very unusual and certainly would have been considered “lady like.” Thus further stripping Elisa of her femininity. The narrator then proceeds to describe that as he was kissing Elisa he “felt the underlip of some animal,” furthermore Elisa is characterized as having knowledge of motors and machines, a skill normally more attributed to men.
This novella not only forces the reader to reexamine the previous assumptions he had made regarding women, but also touches upon the idea the homosexuality. At the end of the story it becomes clear to the reader that Elisa is Leonardo Da Vinci himself. One can interpret Fernandez’s infatuation with Elisa as a gay romantic attraction, Fernandez must obviously be aware of Elisa’s attributes being uncannily resembling masculine traits, yet he dismisses them and once more attempts to focus on Elisa’s female attributes, appearing hesitant to admit his homosexuality. Another aspect of the novella that leads the reader to believe that homosexuality was a factor is the author’s choice of Da Vinci as the artist, for many historians believe that Leonardo was gay.
Arenas employs magic realism in order to both force the reader to reexamine the stereotypes he has made about women and surface the struggle of homosexuality.

"Kiss of a Spiderwoman" Heidy

In “Kiss of a Spiderwoman” Puig is drawing a line between an idealism and reality. Molina passes the time by telling Valentin the stories of his favorite movies in great detail. Valentin a Marxist revolutionary tends to criticize Molina’s melodramatic tales of romance. However, Valentin would listen as it would calm him down. It is not until the end when Valentin and Molina share a romance together that we realize that the tales Molina originally told where about them. The story about Benny and Vernin were indeed the love story of them. What made it magical realism between fallacy and reality is that Molina told the story exactly how it happened in real life, before it even occurred. This movie ended with Molina dying to help the love of his life. (reality) It also ended with Marta sailing away with Valentin, in which he said, “this dream is short but happy” (fantasy). This ending sums up the binary of reality and fantasy illustrated in this movie.