In the magical realism packet, Roh states, “Expressionism searches for a secret geometry” on page 27. In this story, expressionism can be in the form of the hexagonal rooms which are the necessary shape of absolute space. The geometry can be seen in the shape of these hexagonal shaped rooms which are the center of the sphere shaped library, but the secret or hidden geometry cannot be seen, because there is no circumference.
Roh states, “The intrinsic miniature is art produced by attempting to locate infinity in small things” on page 27. In this story, infinity can be found in these books that were smaller than natural books which were known as The Vindications. The knowledge in these books was infinite. They held prophesies, the future for every man and they told of all the actions and words that every person is doing or saying at any particular moment. Roh also writes, “The extent to which the miniature can express power all by itself can be explained by thinking of the greatest spectacle that nature offers us, a sight that contains the smallest units, almost simple units placed on the prodigious surface…” on page 29. The Vindications are of the “greatest spectacle” because of their uniqueness and the fact that they are irreplaceable. They are also “simple units placed on the prodigious surface,” because the book is so small, but it is placed in the prodigious library. Also, on page 29 Roh states, “In Grosz and Dix this miniaturism tries to present the horrible side of the world in the crudest manner and in all its minute detail.” The “horrible side” of the librarians is seen when they find out about this magical book. They mutter expletives, strangle one another, throw books around, and others went insane.
Flores writes, “Time exists in a kind of timeless fluidity and the unreal happens as part of reality” on page 115. Borges talks about everything being written down about our past so our existence was erased or our current existence is not real or is some kind of an illusion. Time is timeless, and the past life of these librarians is nothing and their present lives are unreal and are nothing but an illusion.
Magical realism has to deal with binaries and there are several binaries in this story. Borges states, “Let heaven exist, though my own place be hell,” on page 117. The binary in this case is heaven and hell. It is heaven, because this magical and infinite book exists, but it is also hell, because there is no way for this librarian to get to this book or be able to read it. Also, the binary of rationality and irrationality can be seen. All of the books within the library contain rational lines, statements and elements but for every rational line, element or statement there is irrationality. The irrationality exists because the books themselves have no meaning, are verbal nonsense or are incoherent. On page 112, Borges states, “The light they give is insufficient and unceasing.” The binary that can be seen here is ceasing light and unceasing light. The light is unceasing and will never stop providing light, but at the same time it is incapable of providing light.
The library resembles a labyrinth, because it is like maze full of books with many different passageways, but only one passageway will deliver you to The Vindications which is a destination that is reachable but indefinite in the eyes of the librarians. The soviet army is like a labyrinth, because it takes many secretive actions and does many secretive things in which innocent people get stuck in the middle of it and the only way for these innocent people to survive in this labyrinth is to reach a destination that results with Stalin standing at the end of it. In both cases, this labyrinth is convoluted in the library as well as in the Soviet Union and the destination at the end of this labyrinth does not bear good news or bad news, but an infinity of unpredictability where nothing is concrete but everything ambiguous.
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Jackie: Tlon, Uqbar, Orbis Tertius
On page 69, Borges states, “the visible universe was an illusion or, more precisely, a sophism. Mirrors and fatherhood are hateful because they multiply and proclaim it.” In this given time and place that the story takes place in, the natural philosophical truths or principles are that the universe is just an illusion and is not real so if you do anything that magnifies this illusion or false world, then it is wrong. By having children you are creating life in this illusion and thus creating more of an illusion and by looking in the mirror at yourself, you are looking at an illusion, because you may do one thing on the right but it is really on the left. This deals with magical realism, because it deals with fantastic/phantasmagoric characters/worlds versus real people/worlds.
A lot of the content in this story has to deal with metaphysical philosophy on account of a world known as Tlön which is world or universe that is of a different time and place. The metaphysicians of Tlön seek to amaze and astound, because in their view, metaphysics is a branch of the literature of fantasy. Tlön is a fantasy world which is the philosophical issue in this story. In this place, “while we sleep here, we are awake somewhere else, so that every man is in fact two men,” states Borges on page 74. In magical realism, this statement would refer to parallelism and the idea that there is such thing as an alternate universe where everything is the same somewhere else. Also, Borges writes, “Tlön goes so far as to deny the existence of time” on page 74. In magical realism, everything is timeless like in this world where the past is the present recollection, the present is undefined and indefinite and the future has no reality, because it hasn’t happened yet. Also, the books are timeless. Moreover, Tlön’s geometry is a mix of Expressionism and Post-Expressionism. Expressionism deals with tactile representation and Post-Expressionism reintegrate’s reality into the heart of visibility like Tlön’s visual geometry. The term, juxtaposition, is introduced in magical realism and deals with the connection of two things. Borges mentions this term when he is talking about people being able to conceive the universe as a series of mental processes that occur not in space but in time on page 73. On page 30 in the magical realism packet, Roh mentions the word, “idealism” which unifies abstract art in Postexpressionist pictures. Similarly, Borges talks about things derived from language such as metaphysics that create this idealism and perfect representation of this planet on the bottom of page 72. Leal stats, “magical realism is but the discovery of the mysterious relationship between men and his circumstances,” on page 122. The men on Tlön went through many intricate paths and passageways in order to reach their destination and decipher the many discoveries found on Tlön.
A lot of the content in this story has to deal with metaphysical philosophy on account of a world known as Tlön which is world or universe that is of a different time and place. The metaphysicians of Tlön seek to amaze and astound, because in their view, metaphysics is a branch of the literature of fantasy. Tlön is a fantasy world which is the philosophical issue in this story. In this place, “while we sleep here, we are awake somewhere else, so that every man is in fact two men,” states Borges on page 74. In magical realism, this statement would refer to parallelism and the idea that there is such thing as an alternate universe where everything is the same somewhere else. Also, Borges writes, “Tlön goes so far as to deny the existence of time” on page 74. In magical realism, everything is timeless like in this world where the past is the present recollection, the present is undefined and indefinite and the future has no reality, because it hasn’t happened yet. Also, the books are timeless. Moreover, Tlön’s geometry is a mix of Expressionism and Post-Expressionism. Expressionism deals with tactile representation and Post-Expressionism reintegrate’s reality into the heart of visibility like Tlön’s visual geometry. The term, juxtaposition, is introduced in magical realism and deals with the connection of two things. Borges mentions this term when he is talking about people being able to conceive the universe as a series of mental processes that occur not in space but in time on page 73. On page 30 in the magical realism packet, Roh mentions the word, “idealism” which unifies abstract art in Postexpressionist pictures. Similarly, Borges talks about things derived from language such as metaphysics that create this idealism and perfect representation of this planet on the bottom of page 72. Leal stats, “magical realism is but the discovery of the mysterious relationship between men and his circumstances,” on page 122. The men on Tlön went through many intricate paths and passageways in order to reach their destination and decipher the many discoveries found on Tlön.
Saturday, January 30, 2010
Borges Stories
For Tuesday analyze either "Tlon . . ." or "The Aleph" in terms of magic realism as a mode to understanding philosophical issues of a given time and place.
For Thursday analyze either "The Library . . ." or "Lottery. . ." in terms of applying magic realism to understand what Borges is trying to say to us
For Thursday analyze either "The Library . . ." or "Lottery. . ." in terms of applying magic realism to understand what Borges is trying to say to us
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Aura
“Aura” by Carlos Fuentes reflects many binaries used to better interpret and illustrate the viable and ironic metaphors used in his story. Last class we discussed magical realism as something out of the ordinary. To better understand this meaning, Zamora and Faris better explained in the introduction for last class reading as, “Magical realism often facilitates the fusion, or coexistence, of sible worlds.spaces, systems that would be irreconcilable in other modes of fiction”. (pg. 7) A parallel universe intertwining with reality. Binaries are generally used in his book to undermine people’s perceptions.
Aura is revealed as a projection of Consuelo, who, in mourning her dead husband mourns herself, but Felipe is ensnared by his own desire and actions into the role of the General, coupled with Consuelo to give birth to "Aura," an illusion of life and youth. On page 123, it talked about the life after life as “Aura” sees it, it says, “She’s trying to bury you alive. You’ve got to be reborn, Aura. You have to die before you can be reborn…” it touches the subject of magical realism because of this notion of a parallel universe, another life. The book ends with Mrs. Consuelo saying, “She’ll come back, Felipe. Well bring her back together.” Mrs. Consuelo character showed a desperation of youthfulness and the fulfillment of being a mother and bringing another life into the world.
In the book it talked about Mrs. Consuelos sadist religious ways. As a Spanish background I can relate to this idea of black magic or sadist religious approach because in many Spanish cultures it is believed and worshiped. In Dominican Republic people believe in saints and gods and in a greater power here on earth. I believe that in the novella, “Aura”, the black cat can express this ideology and how the Mexican culture may also believe in such a greater power. I know “La virgin de Guadalupe” is said to make miracle happens, my mother for once is a great believer in the fact that she believes that “La virgin the Guadalupe”, which is the main saint in Mexico, saved her life before.
Just like the old days where witches were represented with black cats as pets. I believe it isn’t an accident that the black cat represents a sense of black magic or mystery within this novella. It is also the reason why Carlos Fuentes chose to emphasize the significance of the cat by using a picture of a black cat as a cover page for this novella. Black cats always represent bad luck in movies or suspense, same way it was used in this novella.
Aura is revealed as a projection of Consuelo, who, in mourning her dead husband mourns herself, but Felipe is ensnared by his own desire and actions into the role of the General, coupled with Consuelo to give birth to "Aura," an illusion of life and youth. On page 123, it talked about the life after life as “Aura” sees it, it says, “She’s trying to bury you alive. You’ve got to be reborn, Aura. You have to die before you can be reborn…” it touches the subject of magical realism because of this notion of a parallel universe, another life. The book ends with Mrs. Consuelo saying, “She’ll come back, Felipe. Well bring her back together.” Mrs. Consuelo character showed a desperation of youthfulness and the fulfillment of being a mother and bringing another life into the world.
In the book it talked about Mrs. Consuelos sadist religious ways. As a Spanish background I can relate to this idea of black magic or sadist religious approach because in many Spanish cultures it is believed and worshiped. In Dominican Republic people believe in saints and gods and in a greater power here on earth. I believe that in the novella, “Aura”, the black cat can express this ideology and how the Mexican culture may also believe in such a greater power. I know “La virgin de Guadalupe” is said to make miracle happens, my mother for once is a great believer in the fact that she believes that “La virgin the Guadalupe”, which is the main saint in Mexico, saved her life before.
Just like the old days where witches were represented with black cats as pets. I believe it isn’t an accident that the black cat represents a sense of black magic or mystery within this novella. It is also the reason why Carlos Fuentes chose to emphasize the significance of the cat by using a picture of a black cat as a cover page for this novella. Black cats always represent bad luck in movies or suspense, same way it was used in this novella.
Beverley Yuen: Aura
Readers are quickly thrown into the story of Aura; literally, as the author uses second person narrative to merge the reader and the protagonist, Felipe Montero, into one entity in order to accurately portray the intense and truly unbelievable adventure that Felipe experiences with Señora Consuelo and Aura. Carlos Fuentes starts his novel right away in second person narrative using the word, “you’re,” which introduces the very first stop on the binary train of this book: real/imaginary. Fuentes is blending the real life reader and the fictional character of Felipe Montero to create an atmosphere in which the reader can genuinely believe the happenings of this unique story. Transgressing the boundaries of real and imaginary, Fuentes is exemplifying the idea of magical realism that people should experience the spirit of the object, in this case the literature, from the inside out and not from the outside in, which is the only way of creating new views of reality and evoking emotions. Instead of just simply reading the book from a third person, outside point of view, Fuentes has created a new and completely different way of reading.
When answering the advertisement to Señora Consuelo’s job offer, Fuentes uses his next binary of new and old as Felipe searches for the correct address. While walking down an old street, Felipe notices the “old colonial mansions, all of them converted into repair shops, jewelry shops, show stores, drugstores” (Fuentes, p. 9). Upon reaching the Señora’s house, he recognizes the sophistication and classiness of it as it sits on the second story, above “the cheap merchandise on sale along the street [that] doesn’t have any effect on [the] upper level” (Fuentes, p. 9) It is this binary of new and old, and perhaps above and below, that attracts Felipe to the Señora’s house; the binary puts emphasis on her house, making Felipe and the reader wonder what is so different about it.
Upon entering Señora Consuelo’s house and permanently leaving the bright outside world, Felipe finds himself in a world of darkness, shrouded with much mystery. Unable to see, he must rely on his other senses to distinguish everything around him as well as use unfamiliar methods to find his way around. Felipe is so accustomed to a world filled with light, where everyone and everything is easily seen and observed, that having to suddenly enter and adjust to this house of darkness puts Felipe in a challenging position. He is perplexed by what he sees or, more accurately, what he cannot see. In order to make his way around this dark and mysterious house, “you’ve got to learn it and re-learn it by touch” or “you count the stairs as you down: [a] custom you’ve got to learn in Señora Llorente’s house” (Fuentes, p.35). Felipe’s adjustment from light to darkness, experiencing the world in a completely different way in the process, demonstrates the very essence of magical realism, which is to alter one’s reality or perspective.
The main reason for Felipe’s presence in the house is his job to put together the memoirs of General Llorente, all of which are in French. Despite the setting being in Mexico and all of the characters belonging to Latin American origin, the language needed to perform this important task worth four thousand pesos a month is French. General Llorente’s memoirs document his life in France and other events involving the French. Felipe has studied French and must use it to perform this task. He states that after this project, he would continue his “great, inclusive work on the Spanish discoveries and conquests in the New World” (Fuentes, p. 65). Working on General’s Llorente’s French memoirs takes priority over working on his own Spanish focused work. Does this binary portray a relationship in which the French is superior to the Spaniards?
As the story progresses, religion seems to play an important role or theme within the story, which is not surprising considering Catholicism is very important within the Mexican culture. At one point, the Señora is kneeling and looking at her wall of religious objects with anger. She is looking at an image of “Christ, the Virgin, St. Sebastian, St. Lucia, the Archangel Michael, and the grinning demons in an old print, the only happy figures in the iconography of sorrow and wrath, happy because they’re jabbing their pitchforks into the flesh of the damned, pouring cauldrons of boiling water on them, violating the women, getting drunk, enjoying all the liberties forbidden to the saints” (Fuentes, p. 47). This image of Señora first introduces the binary of good and evil. It is interesting that the religious picture she passionately stares at portrays demons as enjoying themselves and happy. Does she consider this image as good instead of evil? Has she lost her faith in God, twisting her view of good and evil because she blames God for her old age and infertility? We learn that discovering she was unable to bore a child had caused Señora Consuelo to become mentally depressed and unstable. Her husband, General Llorente, in reference to his wife, said, “Even the devil was an angel once,” (Fuentes, p. 135) equating her with Lucifer, the angel who turned his back on God and tried to rebel. The once young, pure, innocent, and good Consuelo is no more as she has been tainted with insanity, succumbing to an evil, selfish state of mind. This binary is very important, illustrating a new reality of people twisting or blending their views of good and evil. It is also unique in the Mexican culture for someone to despise God since most Mexicans are strong Catholics, as mentioned before. Is Fuentes subtly trying to suggest that not everyone in Mexico need to be Catholic and strongly support God?
In continuing with this religious theme, in a later scene in which Felipe and Aura are about to become physically intimate with one another, Felipe notices her “naked arms, which are stretched out from one side of the bed to the other like the arms of the crucifix hanging on the wall, the black Christ with that scarlet silk wrapped around his thighs, his spread knees, his wounded side, his crown of thorns set on a tangled black wig with silver spangles” (Fuentes, p. 109) Essentially, Aura’s position resembles that of Jesus Christ while he was crucified. Is Fuentes using this male/female dynamic to prove that roles, even those of such religious importance, can be interchangeable? Is he implying that not only can a male can take on the role of savior or martyr but so can a female? Such a unique implication, especially one involving religion, would have a tremendous impact on the perspective of religion and the relationship of males and females.
Near the conclusion of the novel, Felipe receives an enormous revelation when looking at the photographs of General Llorente. He sees General Llorente sitting with Aura, who is actually a young Señora Consuelo, and Felipe discovers that he looks unusually similar to General Llorente, perhaps even his reincarnation. The past coupling of General Llorente and Señora Consuelo and the present Felipe Montero and Aura presents an interesting binary of past and present. Does this mean that love can transcend even time? The other main binary revealed throughout but most notably at the end of the book is that of age and youth. Señora Consuelo and Aura are the same entity with “the will of one depende[nt] on the existence of the other,” (Fuentes, p. 119) but they represent different ages, different versions of that entity. Señora Consuelo is very focused on growing old and her youth, so she projects a younger version of herself through Aura, thinking that age, youth, and vanity are of utmost importance. Despite her old age and appearance, Felipe still notices an innocence and child-like, youthful aura from her. When describing Señora Consuelo in her bed he says, “a tiny figure is almost lost in its immensity” (Fuentes, p. 15). While in her room he says, “you move aside so that the light from the candles and the reflections from the silver and crystal show you the silk coif that must cover a head of very white hair, and that frames a face so old it’s almost childlike” (Fuentes, p. 17). Lastly, while helping the Señora up after kneeling in front of the religious image, Felipe says, “you raise her by the elbow, and as you gently help her to the bed you’re surprised at her smallness: she’s almost a little girl” (Fuentes, p. 49). Felipe does not simply see age and the outer appearance but what is inside, which is why he stays with the elderly Señora Consuelo at the end. Like in magical realism, his perspective changed and he looked inside the spirit of Señora Consuelo instead of judging solely on the exterior appearance. Does this binary of age and youth between Señora Consuelo and Aura and Felipe Monetero prove that love transcends age? That age is not outside appearance but how one feels on the inside, the age of the soul?
Dasha Skripchenko: Aura Blog
This story has a very ordinary beginning, where a young Felipe Montero finds an advertisement in the newspaper that seems very appealing to him. In my opinion the elements of magic realism start to appear from the first page. The advertisement is affecting Felipe like a magnet; he feels the connection to it, as if it was written specifically for him. One of the key issues in magic realism is the spirituality of objects, their mystery. Reader has to look deeper to see the true meaning and the spirit that’s hiding behind an object. For Mr. Montero that advertisement almost becomes a living creature. He looks beyond the lines and words and sees himself, sees his name: “All that’s missing is your name (5).” That starts of the mysterious impression of the story, and the structure of narration only enforces secrecy and magical feeling.
There are a lot of binaries that are typical for magical realism in this story. Fuentes introduces them to the reader throughout the book, but, if in the beginning, the borders are very clear, they tend to fade closer to the turning point in the book. When Felipe is walking to find the place from the advertisement he ends up on the street that seems to have very disturbing differences between the first and second stories. Lower levels of houses are all turned into various stores with cheap products, all the numbers are mixed, and there is no order or neatness. Second stories still resemble the past, they still contain “the baroque harmony of the carved stones (9)”, and impressive architectural structures are still there. It seems like the time itself collided in these buildings. Old and beautiful keeps resembling new and ugly.
When Felipe finally gets to the house he is looking for he goes in, and readers realize that the house is a mystery itself. I think that Fuentes tried to show the difference of this house from the outside world. When Felipe stepped into the doorway I had a feeling that he walked into a parallel world. Mr. Montero is basically saying goodbye to the ordinary world: “You try to retain some single image of that indifferent outside world (11).” It’s a binary between the ordinary world and something else, more intriguing and confusing. The house itself represents a battle between light and darkness. There is a almost no light in the house, and Felipe has to rely on his senses, which is a efficient way of representing magical realism as not just a way of observing the world, but actually feeling it. And indeed, the inside of the house gives readers goose bumps:” furniture upholstered in faded silk; glass-fronted cabinets containing porcelain figurines, musical clocks, medals… (37)”. One can see very distinct boundary between darkness and light during one of the dinners:”the compact circle of light around the candelabra, illuminating the table and one carved wall, and the larger circle of darkness surrounding it (43).”
Felipe is also being stuck in between the collision of youth and maturity. It is the biggest binary in the story. Old senora Consuelo is over 100 years old and is a mysterious woman, who possesses some magical powers and is able to bring a young version of herself to life. At first, young Aura just seems as a girl who is helping her; she is almost like a prisoner. Felipe wants to rescue her, because he believes that she is hypnotized to take care after her old aunt forever:”She gets up with a motion like those you associate with dreaming, takes the arm of the bent old lady, and slowly helps her from the dining room (71).” He falls in love with Aura and keeps thinking only about her, he is mesmerized with the way she moves, dresses, presents herself. The turning point of the story is when Felipe lays next to Aura and realizes that Aura is senora Consuelo as the young body turns into old one. That’s when the time becomes vague and not important. He accepts it, because, at this moment, he is not acting like himself. It seems that he is also under some kind of spell that makes him deny his identity and even recognize himself in the portraits of senora’s dead husband: “You cover General Llorente’s beard with your finger, and imagine him with black hair, and you only discover yourself... (137)” It probably has to do with some kind of voodoo doll he finds at the dinner table. Again, the time doesn’t exist for characters of this story anymore: “…the ray of moonlight shows you the naked body of the old lady, of Senora Consuelo, limp, spent, tiny, ancient, trembling because you touch her. You love her, you too have come back (145).”
At some point it is really hard to distinguish the reality from dreams in the story. When Felipe is dreaming about Aura, it seems so real that I started wondering if that actually had happened. The boundary between the reality and dreams is so thin, I couldn’t even feel it. Then, this scary scene, when Aura is beheading a baby, happens and leaves readers in shock. Not only the boundaries between reality and dreaming are erased, but there is no more borders between right or wrong. Instead of running away from the house Felipe wants to go to the old lady and “really throw her greed and tyranny in her face (91).”
There are a lot of binaries that are typical for magical realism in this story. Fuentes introduces them to the reader throughout the book, but, if in the beginning, the borders are very clear, they tend to fade closer to the turning point in the book. When Felipe is walking to find the place from the advertisement he ends up on the street that seems to have very disturbing differences between the first and second stories. Lower levels of houses are all turned into various stores with cheap products, all the numbers are mixed, and there is no order or neatness. Second stories still resemble the past, they still contain “the baroque harmony of the carved stones (9)”, and impressive architectural structures are still there. It seems like the time itself collided in these buildings. Old and beautiful keeps resembling new and ugly.
When Felipe finally gets to the house he is looking for he goes in, and readers realize that the house is a mystery itself. I think that Fuentes tried to show the difference of this house from the outside world. When Felipe stepped into the doorway I had a feeling that he walked into a parallel world. Mr. Montero is basically saying goodbye to the ordinary world: “You try to retain some single image of that indifferent outside world (11).” It’s a binary between the ordinary world and something else, more intriguing and confusing. The house itself represents a battle between light and darkness. There is a almost no light in the house, and Felipe has to rely on his senses, which is a efficient way of representing magical realism as not just a way of observing the world, but actually feeling it. And indeed, the inside of the house gives readers goose bumps:” furniture upholstered in faded silk; glass-fronted cabinets containing porcelain figurines, musical clocks, medals… (37)”. One can see very distinct boundary between darkness and light during one of the dinners:”the compact circle of light around the candelabra, illuminating the table and one carved wall, and the larger circle of darkness surrounding it (43).”
Felipe is also being stuck in between the collision of youth and maturity. It is the biggest binary in the story. Old senora Consuelo is over 100 years old and is a mysterious woman, who possesses some magical powers and is able to bring a young version of herself to life. At first, young Aura just seems as a girl who is helping her; she is almost like a prisoner. Felipe wants to rescue her, because he believes that she is hypnotized to take care after her old aunt forever:”She gets up with a motion like those you associate with dreaming, takes the arm of the bent old lady, and slowly helps her from the dining room (71).” He falls in love with Aura and keeps thinking only about her, he is mesmerized with the way she moves, dresses, presents herself. The turning point of the story is when Felipe lays next to Aura and realizes that Aura is senora Consuelo as the young body turns into old one. That’s when the time becomes vague and not important. He accepts it, because, at this moment, he is not acting like himself. It seems that he is also under some kind of spell that makes him deny his identity and even recognize himself in the portraits of senora’s dead husband: “You cover General Llorente’s beard with your finger, and imagine him with black hair, and you only discover yourself... (137)” It probably has to do with some kind of voodoo doll he finds at the dinner table. Again, the time doesn’t exist for characters of this story anymore: “…the ray of moonlight shows you the naked body of the old lady, of Senora Consuelo, limp, spent, tiny, ancient, trembling because you touch her. You love her, you too have come back (145).”
At some point it is really hard to distinguish the reality from dreams in the story. When Felipe is dreaming about Aura, it seems so real that I started wondering if that actually had happened. The boundary between the reality and dreams is so thin, I couldn’t even feel it. Then, this scary scene, when Aura is beheading a baby, happens and leaves readers in shock. Not only the boundaries between reality and dreaming are erased, but there is no more borders between right or wrong. Instead of running away from the house Felipe wants to go to the old lady and “really throw her greed and tyranny in her face (91).”
Aura
Carlos Fuentes both employs a second person point of view and uses multiple binaries to develop a surreal novella, which beautifully demonstrates the concepts of magical realism. Magic realism often focuses on the concept of transgressing the boundaries of normal or rationale thought. There are very many binaries present in “Aura;” aiming to destroy these distinctions; Fuente blurs the lines between fantasy and reality, darkness and light, young and old, and past and present. The borders of these binaries are not only individually blended within the story, but often at the same time.
From the beginning of the story the boundary between what is real and fantasy is broken. The first example, which indicates something peculiar, is when Felipe sees a very specific ad in the paper that describes him with uncanny detail. The advertisement, which “is addressed to you and nobody else,” seeks someone who is a “young historian…with a perfect knowledge of colloquial French”(4). While the reader is not entirely aware of the inclinations of such a strange encounter, this scene in fact foreshadows the fact that Felipe is one in the same with the elderly women’s husband, thus blurring the line between real and fantasy as well as the boundary between youth and old age.
Towards the end of the story the reader becomes exposed to an intimate scene between Felipe Montero and the older women. During the scene many binary lines are transgressed as it becomes progressively less clear, both the identity of Felipe or who he is having sex with. As the line between darkness and light is crossed Felipe’s lover transforms from the beautiful “Aura” to the elderly women, and as Felipe now makes love to the elderly women herself he loses himself in the fantastical world and becomes unable to distinguish himself from the women’s husband. Felipe explains that as the silvery moonlight “falls upon Aura’s eroded face…the ray of moonlight sows you the naked body of the old lady” (145) The reader may see many of the binaries’ boundaries have been crossed in this one scene.
The blurring of the borders between these binaries is meant to bewilder and confuse the reader, so that he could reexamine his outlook of the rigid distinctions he has made between them. Fuentes is able to not only blend the distinction between youth and old age by switching from describing Aura to the elderly women, thus making it appear as one in the same, but also it appears that Aura gets progressively older throughout the story, thus blurring the distinction even further. Through this approach Fuente has ultimately confused the reader to the extent that he cannot even distinguish whether the entire story was a dream, thus allowing the reader to reevaluate the meaning of old, young, real, or unreal, and past or present.
From the beginning of the story the boundary between what is real and fantasy is broken. The first example, which indicates something peculiar, is when Felipe sees a very specific ad in the paper that describes him with uncanny detail. The advertisement, which “is addressed to you and nobody else,” seeks someone who is a “young historian…with a perfect knowledge of colloquial French”(4). While the reader is not entirely aware of the inclinations of such a strange encounter, this scene in fact foreshadows the fact that Felipe is one in the same with the elderly women’s husband, thus blurring the line between real and fantasy as well as the boundary between youth and old age.
Towards the end of the story the reader becomes exposed to an intimate scene between Felipe Montero and the older women. During the scene many binary lines are transgressed as it becomes progressively less clear, both the identity of Felipe or who he is having sex with. As the line between darkness and light is crossed Felipe’s lover transforms from the beautiful “Aura” to the elderly women, and as Felipe now makes love to the elderly women herself he loses himself in the fantastical world and becomes unable to distinguish himself from the women’s husband. Felipe explains that as the silvery moonlight “falls upon Aura’s eroded face…the ray of moonlight sows you the naked body of the old lady” (145) The reader may see many of the binaries’ boundaries have been crossed in this one scene.
The blurring of the borders between these binaries is meant to bewilder and confuse the reader, so that he could reexamine his outlook of the rigid distinctions he has made between them. Fuentes is able to not only blend the distinction between youth and old age by switching from describing Aura to the elderly women, thus making it appear as one in the same, but also it appears that Aura gets progressively older throughout the story, thus blurring the distinction even further. Through this approach Fuente has ultimately confused the reader to the extent that he cannot even distinguish whether the entire story was a dream, thus allowing the reader to reevaluate the meaning of old, young, real, or unreal, and past or present.
Aura
Carlos Fuentes “Aura” is a fantastic novel that exemplifies the elements of magical realism by creating a somewhat timeless and cyclical setting, filled with thoughts that challenge the reader’s true sense of reality. Fuentes engages the reader by challenging common binaries and blurring the lines that separate such parallel concepts like heaven and hell, private and open, and past versus present. This causes the entire novel to be entrancing and have a surreal wave throughout, forcing the reader to attempt to distinguish between realities and dreams.
Aura most clearly challenges the borders between past versus present. Felipe Montero, the young historian who is hired to edit the memoirs of a deceased General, finds the job advertisement in the newspaper. It is so specific and detailed yet it matches every one of his own skills and qualities to a tee. That is because the advertisement is for the General. Fuentes blurs the lines between past and present by bringing older elements within the story up to match the current events. When Felipe first attempts to find Senora Consuelo’s house, he is deterred by the address numbers on the buildings. There are old and new buildings, some of which have the traditional numbering system while others have adopted a new, modern numbering system. This just shows the fusion of time between past and present that Fuentes is trying to uncover. The audience doesn’t know when the story takes place, because there is such a huge derailment of time. The old Senora Consuelo uses her niece, Aura, to reflect a younger version of herself in order to resurrect youth and a child. While reading the General’s memoirs, Felipe discovers that the Senora was obsessed with having a child though she was infertile. She was slightly delirious and felt the need to be young again. Like on page 133, “She cried, ‘Yes, yes, yes, I’ve done it, I’ve re-created her! I can invoke her, I can give her life with my own life!” When the General confronted her, she stated, “Don’t stop me…I’m going toward my youth, and my youth is coming toward me…” The Senora wants to recapture her youth, and the beautiful, young niece is only a projection of the 109-year-old Senora, waiting for her General husband to love her infinitely in time. The dividing line between past and present is destroyed because the old, incapable Senora is actually the same as the young, beautiful niece. The senora’s actions even parallel that of Aura. For example, when Aura is downstairs in the kitchen skinning an animal for dinner, the senora is upstairs mimicking her actions. Past and present events are shown at the same time to blend the two concepts into less concrete ideas.
The borders between privacy and openness are also obscured. Everything seems to have a key, but nothing is actually locked. The doors have no locks and are always swinging open or shut, the Senora’s trunk is locked but the key is available, and Felipe’s belongings from his house are fetched by the supposed ‘servant’ with no key. On page 31, Felipe explains, “…Aura opens the door to your bedroom – another door without a latch-…” It’s almost as though each room is meant to be private but it is inherently unlocked and open to everyone. The Senora’s trunk is full of her old treasures and the General’s memoirs, though she gives the key to Felipe and states “no, no, you can keep the key. I trust you” on the very first day that she meets him and allows him to stay in her house. Even physical privacy when Aura and Felipe embrace each other is shattered by the Senora, who was sitting in the corner the entire time. There seems to be no privacy, yet it is full of solitude. Each character is almost always alone, in darkness and isolation, yet there are no locks and barriers separating them.
In this story of reality versus imagination, everything crosses the filament. Fuentes also incorporates religion, as it is important in Mexican culture. Consuelo is always worshipping the saints, praying, and then when Aura and Felipe finally embrace, she first washes his feet and then breaks a wafer between his legs. This clearly is reflective of Christian practices and goes along with the other carvings in the house. Fuentes is trying to expose the origin of the strong Catholic practices in Mexico.
Other binaries like dark and light, old and young, privacy and openness; all reflect elements in the history of Mexico itself. The history is a bloody, dark one, especially in the years before and during the Mexican Revolution. During this era, it was violent with no seeming escape from imposing forces and the entire society structure was biased towards the rich. The binaries Fuentes includes in the novel also reflect the tones of the Mexican Revolution. Fuentes is trying to convey the shape-shifting that occurs between the characters and his own country. Throughout the novel, certain colors are emphasized like green, red, and white. For example, Aura’s eyes are not just green; they are surging, powerful green. In the house, there was “an easy chair covered in red velvet, an old walnut desk with a green leather top…” Fuentes may be asking what it is to be Mexican and what their identity is. The past is full of history and of so many leaders, languages, and governments. War time is a chaotic time where borders and identities are shifting, and people are displaced from what they thought was their identity. The first word of dialogue in the story is “no”. This shows that Felipe is under the Senora’s control and must obey her words. No is a stronger word than yes, and it is also more negative than yes. Like the book as a whole, this could relate to the Mexican people as a whole. Throughout history they have been conquered, and re-conquered over and over again so there is a large negative and overpowering aspect that clouds their past. This has led to major instability. Fuentes is addressing how Mexico has “died” so many times and been reborn, each time with a new shape.
Monday, January 25, 2010
Aura Blog
Aura by Carlos Fuentes brings in the concept of Magical realism by using several binaries such as past and present, light and dark, youth and old age, and the reader and the protagonist. The book first starts with the word “You’re” (Pg. 3), using a second person narrative to merge the reader and protagonist together. This use of binary allows the reader to imagine he/she is actually part of the story, as if he/she is actually Felipe. By merging these ideas of real and imaginary life Fuentes book is encompassed around the idea of Magical Realism.
Senor Felipe Montero is hired by the elderly woman, Senora Consuelo, to organize her deceased husband’s memoirs. Senora Consuelo lives in the house with her niece, Aura, who is a young and beautiful girl. Felipe is immediately taken by her presence. As Felipe stands in Senora Consuelo’s room for the first time she reaches out as if she were trying to touch someone (Pg. 25). She is trying to reach for a hand and as Felipe looks up he sees beautiful women. Senora says, "I told you she'd come back...Aura. My companion. My niece." This is the first time you see how Aura and Senora are a whole but two separate people at the same time. There is a binary between youth and old age relating specifically throughout the book to Aura and Senora Consuelo.
The house itself represents the idea of Magical Realism by showing the binary between light and dark. Felipe is used to seeing the world through light, as most of us are but the only room in the house that is lighted is his own room. As he walks through the hallways, they are always dark. As he says on page 35, "This house will always be in darkness, and you've got to learn it and relearn it by touch." This quote shows the idea of Magical Realism because he is viewing the house in a different perspective than he normally would.
The house being dark also symbolizes death and that is how Senora has been living her life. She lives in exile, just like her husband until they can rejoin each other in the bright lights in heaven. A part of her will always be missing until she is reconnected with her husband. On page 49 Senora Consuelo is praying in front of her wall of religious objects. She is so weak and skinny. As she prays she says, "Come, City of God!" Gabriel, sound your trumpet! Ah, how long the world takes to die!" It seems almost as if Senora is stuck between these two worlds. The day her husband died, it is like her soul was taken with him, but her body remains on this earth. She knows it is almost time for her body to rejoin her soul, so she can be as one. Since Aura and Senora depend on each other so much, it is as if Aura is actually the temporary soul of Senora's. As the novel progresses it becomes apparent that she may have other plans to rejoining her soul and her body.
On Page 87 Felipe says, "Always dressed in green. Always beautiful, even after a hundred years." This quote describes Senora Consuela. On Page 103 when Felipe goes to meet Aura he says, "Aura is dressed in green, in a green taffeta robe from which, as she approaches, her moon pale thighs reveal themselves." Once again the novel shows the binary between Senora Consuelo and Aura and between youth and old age. During Aura and Felipe’s intimate time he says, "Then you fall on Aura's naked body, you fall on her naked arms, which are stretched out from one side of the bed to the other like the arms of the crucifix hanging on the wall, the black Christ with that scarlet silk wrapped around his things...Aura opens up like an altar." This symbolizes Aura's and Senora Consuela's souls finally opening up, and Senora has finally gotten out of the exile she has been in since the death of her husband. Aura rises from the bed, only to show that Senora Consuela has been sitting in the dark corner the entire time. They both make the same movements at the same time, smiling, thanking Felipe, and leaving the room at the same time. This truly shows that Aura and Senora Consuela are connected.
Felipe looks through old photographs of Senora Consuelo's and on the third photograph there is picture of Aura and an old gentleman (the General). After looking at the General he covers up the beard, only to find himself in the picture. On Page 123 Aura says, "You have to die before you can be reborn...No, you don't understand, forget about it, Felipe. Just have faith in me." This quote doesn't make completely sense until the ending of the novel when Felipe gets into Senora Consuelo's bed with Aura. He begins to lie down next to her and once again she is wearing her green robe. As he kisses Aura, he suddenly notices in the moonlight that it is not Aura, it is Senora Consuelo. On Page 145 it says, "You love her, you too have come back..." symbolizing that General Llorente has come back to be with Senora Consuelo. It now becomes apparent that Felipe is now the General, married to Senora Consuelo. They will bring Aura back into the world as their baby, just as the quote explained that Aura had to die to be reborn. Aura is the representation of youth and life.
Senor Felipe Montero is hired by the elderly woman, Senora Consuelo, to organize her deceased husband’s memoirs. Senora Consuelo lives in the house with her niece, Aura, who is a young and beautiful girl. Felipe is immediately taken by her presence. As Felipe stands in Senora Consuelo’s room for the first time she reaches out as if she were trying to touch someone (Pg. 25). She is trying to reach for a hand and as Felipe looks up he sees beautiful women. Senora says, "I told you she'd come back...Aura. My companion. My niece." This is the first time you see how Aura and Senora are a whole but two separate people at the same time. There is a binary between youth and old age relating specifically throughout the book to Aura and Senora Consuelo.
The house itself represents the idea of Magical Realism by showing the binary between light and dark. Felipe is used to seeing the world through light, as most of us are but the only room in the house that is lighted is his own room. As he walks through the hallways, they are always dark. As he says on page 35, "This house will always be in darkness, and you've got to learn it and relearn it by touch." This quote shows the idea of Magical Realism because he is viewing the house in a different perspective than he normally would.
The house being dark also symbolizes death and that is how Senora has been living her life. She lives in exile, just like her husband until they can rejoin each other in the bright lights in heaven. A part of her will always be missing until she is reconnected with her husband. On page 49 Senora Consuelo is praying in front of her wall of religious objects. She is so weak and skinny. As she prays she says, "Come, City of God!" Gabriel, sound your trumpet! Ah, how long the world takes to die!" It seems almost as if Senora is stuck between these two worlds. The day her husband died, it is like her soul was taken with him, but her body remains on this earth. She knows it is almost time for her body to rejoin her soul, so she can be as one. Since Aura and Senora depend on each other so much, it is as if Aura is actually the temporary soul of Senora's. As the novel progresses it becomes apparent that she may have other plans to rejoining her soul and her body.
On Page 87 Felipe says, "Always dressed in green. Always beautiful, even after a hundred years." This quote describes Senora Consuela. On Page 103 when Felipe goes to meet Aura he says, "Aura is dressed in green, in a green taffeta robe from which, as she approaches, her moon pale thighs reveal themselves." Once again the novel shows the binary between Senora Consuelo and Aura and between youth and old age. During Aura and Felipe’s intimate time he says, "Then you fall on Aura's naked body, you fall on her naked arms, which are stretched out from one side of the bed to the other like the arms of the crucifix hanging on the wall, the black Christ with that scarlet silk wrapped around his things...Aura opens up like an altar." This symbolizes Aura's and Senora Consuela's souls finally opening up, and Senora has finally gotten out of the exile she has been in since the death of her husband. Aura rises from the bed, only to show that Senora Consuela has been sitting in the dark corner the entire time. They both make the same movements at the same time, smiling, thanking Felipe, and leaving the room at the same time. This truly shows that Aura and Senora Consuela are connected.
Felipe looks through old photographs of Senora Consuelo's and on the third photograph there is picture of Aura and an old gentleman (the General). After looking at the General he covers up the beard, only to find himself in the picture. On Page 123 Aura says, "You have to die before you can be reborn...No, you don't understand, forget about it, Felipe. Just have faith in me." This quote doesn't make completely sense until the ending of the novel when Felipe gets into Senora Consuelo's bed with Aura. He begins to lie down next to her and once again she is wearing her green robe. As he kisses Aura, he suddenly notices in the moonlight that it is not Aura, it is Senora Consuelo. On Page 145 it says, "You love her, you too have come back..." symbolizing that General Llorente has come back to be with Senora Consuelo. It now becomes apparent that Felipe is now the General, married to Senora Consuelo. They will bring Aura back into the world as their baby, just as the quote explained that Aura had to die to be reborn. Aura is the representation of youth and life.
Jeff Wright : Aura
Carlos Fuentes uses many binaries throughout Aura to create an engaging and realistic, yet supernatural storyline. The use of these binaries illustrates the importance of the country of Mexico to the characters in this novel and ultimately the importance of General Llorente to Senora Consuelo.
One of the most apparent binaries of Aura was the use of light and dark. On page 43, Felipe mentions the two elements that make up the room: “the compact circle of light around the candelabra… and the larger circle of darkness surrounding it.” I believe this is in reference to our lives, inferring that we are comfortable and knowledgeable of very little in this world, and there is so much left unknown and untold. He also mentions that the evening light is blinding compared to the darkness of the house (31). On the night Aura slept with Felipe, all he could see was her figure in the shadows. When he rolled over to touch in the morning, she was gone. Throughout the book, Felipe is allowed to live his dreams and desires through the darkness, only to be brought back to reality when exposed to the light.
Another binary I noticed was that of silence and sound. There are multiple references to this binary throughout the story, with Aura often opening her mouth in silence as if she were talking and silently laughing. It seems as though this binary is closely related to that of light and dark: When the characters are exposed to light, they are silent, when in darkness, they speak. This allows the characters to remain in between reality and fantasy, never reaching too far to either extreme.
I noticed while reading Aura that colors were of somewhat significance throughout the story. However, I had much trouble deciphering the true meaning this binary. There are multiple references to the colors red and green throughout the story, including Aura’s green eyes and her green taffeta and veil. Felipe mentions the green paste in his toothbrush and the desk covered in green leather in Senora Consueolo’s bedroom. The family has the same dinner every night consisting of liver, thick, red wine and broiled tomatoes (all red objects). He notices the red wool rug, a chair covered in red velvet, the red drapes over the windows, and the worn out red silk of Senora Consuelo’s pillows. There is also reference to the color of the three ribbons that bound the General’s memoirs: Yellow, blue, and red. I searched the book for connections to these three colors and had much trouble making any connections. It is possible that they are related to the Oaxaca coat of arms, where the General lived at an estate. These colors could also refer to the General’s association with Mexico (green, white, red) and the exile later in his life to France (blue, white, red).
Aura Blog
In our last class meeting we talked about how magical realism blends the borders between binaries, making it difficult to decipher realism from fantasy. Throughout Fuentes’ entire book he exemplifies this general idea – focusing on the main binary of past vs. present. There are three main overriding themes throughout his story, one of which is the motivation of one of the principle characters, Senora Consuelo, to recapture her youth. This is a binary in itself, being that she is 109 years old during the time in which this story takes place (youth/old age). Aura, who is first presented as Senora Consuelo’s niece, is in fact Senora Consuelo’s puppet that allows her to relive her youth: “Aura is living in this house: to perpetuate the illusion of youth…kept here like a mirror…” (pg 89)
Another main theme which mirrors magical realism is the dream-like world that Felipe Montero lives in. While reading each page one cannot help but wonder what Felipe is truly experiencing as part of his reality from what is a dream. In fact, by the end of the story one cannot help but wonder if the entire story was in fact a dream. First off, the story is told from Felipe’s perspective as it is written in second person and present tense. Immediately, there is a peculiar example that indicates something out of the ordinary when Felipe sees an advertisement that describes someone exactly like himself. The specificity of the ad is extreme, which gives one a surreal initial feeling. After all, how many people are likely to be a historian, living in Mexico, and be able to speak “colloquial French” (pg 5). The entire setting of the story speaks to magical realism and supports this theme of Felipe’s dream-like perspective. Everything is bizarre from what other characters say to the characteristics of the house that Senora Consuelo and Aura live in. For example, when Felipe is shown to his room, he notices that he has a skylight above his head instead of a roof. (pg 31)
Lastly, there is a recurring religious theme. Christian figures, themes and symbols recur throughout the novel, but in a very peculiar way. This first became obvious to me when Felipe went to see Senora Consuelo. When he arrived at her door she was kneeling towards her wall filled with Christian icons such as Jesus Christ, the Virgin Mary, St. Sebastian, St. Lucia and the Archangel Michael. The peculiar thing was that all of these figures were not rejoicing or even happy. Instead, they were “…figures in that iconography of sorrow and wrath.” (pg 47) In contrast, the demons seem to be joyous in the act of torturing others. Later in this story we see Aura beheading a baby goat, which may represent some sort of religious ritual of animal sacrifice. Finally, the most obvious sign of this inverted religious theme was evident at the end of the book right before Felipe had sexual intercourse with Aura. Before they slept together Aura washed Felipe’s feet; a religious ritual in it of itself. Then, she put a wafer in between her thighs, broke it, and gave half of it to Felipe to eat. This process mimics the sacrament of communion in Christianity. Going along with this inverted religious theme, one cannot help but recognize that the binary of dead/alive is repeated over and over again. Reincarnation is hinted at both in the supernatural relationship between Aura and Senora Consuelo and when Felipe finds his reincarnated identity in the General.
Mexico’s population is greatly divided by class status. In this sense, the country’s population is made up of a distinct binary: rich/poor. For the poor folk it must be difficult to accept their reality, when they see how the people in power have so much more than they do. Perhaps Felipe is meant to be a representative for the poor - where the only aspect of his life that is limitless is fantasy. Perhaps the inverted religious theme also speaks to the feelings of the poor. Many of them are Christian and, most likely, look to their faith for hope for the future. Day after day, as their wishes remain unanswered and their economic status remains the same, they begin to lose faith. Perhaps this explains the disrespect of Christianity in Aura.
Stray animals, such as cats, are common to stumble upon in Mexico. That may explain some parallelism between the recurring themes of cats appearing throughout this story. In fact, cats are often being tortured every time they are present in Aura which may represent warlike times in Mexico such as the Mexican Revolution. In fact, death, darkness, solitude, and extraordinary situations make up the overall tone of this entire story. That being said, most of the story takes place in a house; usually homes are described as calm, comfortable familiar and homey. Oppositely, these vibes could very well be mirroring war times in Mexico and the feelings/nightmares that the Mexicans involved in wars, like the Revolution, must have been feeling towards their home.
Another main theme which mirrors magical realism is the dream-like world that Felipe Montero lives in. While reading each page one cannot help but wonder what Felipe is truly experiencing as part of his reality from what is a dream. In fact, by the end of the story one cannot help but wonder if the entire story was in fact a dream. First off, the story is told from Felipe’s perspective as it is written in second person and present tense. Immediately, there is a peculiar example that indicates something out of the ordinary when Felipe sees an advertisement that describes someone exactly like himself. The specificity of the ad is extreme, which gives one a surreal initial feeling. After all, how many people are likely to be a historian, living in Mexico, and be able to speak “colloquial French” (pg 5). The entire setting of the story speaks to magical realism and supports this theme of Felipe’s dream-like perspective. Everything is bizarre from what other characters say to the characteristics of the house that Senora Consuelo and Aura live in. For example, when Felipe is shown to his room, he notices that he has a skylight above his head instead of a roof. (pg 31)
Lastly, there is a recurring religious theme. Christian figures, themes and symbols recur throughout the novel, but in a very peculiar way. This first became obvious to me when Felipe went to see Senora Consuelo. When he arrived at her door she was kneeling towards her wall filled with Christian icons such as Jesus Christ, the Virgin Mary, St. Sebastian, St. Lucia and the Archangel Michael. The peculiar thing was that all of these figures were not rejoicing or even happy. Instead, they were “…figures in that iconography of sorrow and wrath.” (pg 47) In contrast, the demons seem to be joyous in the act of torturing others. Later in this story we see Aura beheading a baby goat, which may represent some sort of religious ritual of animal sacrifice. Finally, the most obvious sign of this inverted religious theme was evident at the end of the book right before Felipe had sexual intercourse with Aura. Before they slept together Aura washed Felipe’s feet; a religious ritual in it of itself. Then, she put a wafer in between her thighs, broke it, and gave half of it to Felipe to eat. This process mimics the sacrament of communion in Christianity. Going along with this inverted religious theme, one cannot help but recognize that the binary of dead/alive is repeated over and over again. Reincarnation is hinted at both in the supernatural relationship between Aura and Senora Consuelo and when Felipe finds his reincarnated identity in the General.
Mexico’s population is greatly divided by class status. In this sense, the country’s population is made up of a distinct binary: rich/poor. For the poor folk it must be difficult to accept their reality, when they see how the people in power have so much more than they do. Perhaps Felipe is meant to be a representative for the poor - where the only aspect of his life that is limitless is fantasy. Perhaps the inverted religious theme also speaks to the feelings of the poor. Many of them are Christian and, most likely, look to their faith for hope for the future. Day after day, as their wishes remain unanswered and their economic status remains the same, they begin to lose faith. Perhaps this explains the disrespect of Christianity in Aura.
Stray animals, such as cats, are common to stumble upon in Mexico. That may explain some parallelism between the recurring themes of cats appearing throughout this story. In fact, cats are often being tortured every time they are present in Aura which may represent warlike times in Mexico such as the Mexican Revolution. In fact, death, darkness, solitude, and extraordinary situations make up the overall tone of this entire story. That being said, most of the story takes place in a house; usually homes are described as calm, comfortable familiar and homey. Oppositely, these vibes could very well be mirroring war times in Mexico and the feelings/nightmares that the Mexicans involved in wars, like the Revolution, must have been feeling towards their home.
Jackie Marques: Aura
On page 49, Senora talks about sounding the trumpet which can signal the start of war and she iis crying for death and for the world to die. Senora is in this warlike state of mind and surrounds herself with death and darkness. I feel like she is trying to take the General inside of her and pretend that she is fighting in the battles of Mexico like he did. Similarly, the combining of both male and female into one is part of magical realism. When the General was exiled away from Mexico, he went away to another world. Ever since his exile, I believe that Senora has exiled herself away from the world like what the people did to her husband. She remains in this world of darkness where she places herself there to rot in exile like her husband. With all of this said, the Mexican history is a subtext for this novel.
Magical Realism deals with parallelism and the idea of two of the same things existing at the same time. On pg. 119, Felipe talks about the existence of Aura and Senor depending on each other. Senora and Aura are the same person. They are both a medieval sculpture (pg. 47) and a little girl (pg. 49).
On pg. 83, the old lady talks about people wanting her to live in solitude, because it is the only way to achieve saintliness (where you die and go to Heaven), but she says that people forget that in solitude the temptation is even greater to achieve it. Meaning, you are alone so much that all you think about is death and you want it that much more, because you are surrounded by nothing like in death. This deals with magical realism, because magical realism is about binaries and life and death. Senora is alive, but she wants to achieve saintliness and die.
“How it employs various techniques inherited from the previous period, techniques that endow all things with a deeper meaning and reveal mysteries that always threaten the secure tranquility of simple and ingenious things.” Meaning, everything in magical realism has a deeper meaning and history that defines what is that you are looking at before you. This quote by Roh from the magical realism packet pertains to the following observations that I made of both present and past.
On page 85, he reads in one of the memoirs that the old woman had a cat clasped between her legs and she was torturing it. This made me think of the burning bush which was on fire in a place called Mount Horeb. Mount Horeb is place that is unknown and does not exist like the garden where the cats are located. The cats are yowling on account of being tortured by this woman and like the burning bush, these cats are burning and are on fire, but they are not consumed by the flames.
Magical Realism deals with parallelism and the idea of two of the same things existing at the same time. On pg. 119, Felipe talks about the existence of Aura and Senor depending on each other. Senora and Aura are the same person. They are both a medieval sculpture (pg. 47) and a little girl (pg. 49).
On pg. 83, the old lady talks about people wanting her to live in solitude, because it is the only way to achieve saintliness (where you die and go to Heaven), but she says that people forget that in solitude the temptation is even greater to achieve it. Meaning, you are alone so much that all you think about is death and you want it that much more, because you are surrounded by nothing like in death. This deals with magical realism, because magical realism is about binaries and life and death. Senora is alive, but she wants to achieve saintliness and die.
On page 135 the old lady is talking about a garden and I think she was referring to the Garden of Eden. The Garden of Eden was a place that offered beauty and sustained life and Senora was telling her husband that her youth and beauty have returned to her. When she says , “Even the devil was an angel once,” I think she was comparing herself to the devil because of her old age and unattractive appearance and now she is an angel, because she feels beautiful and young again. Her horns are gone and her wings are back for her to fly and flourish like she did in her younger days. Senora is talking about a creation in the garden. Similarly, in magical realism, Roh talks about magical realism being created and not copied. Although, Aura and Senora are like a copy of each other, it is not a copy, but a creation. Roh states, “Painting now seems to feel the reality of the object and of space, not like copies of nature but like another creation.”
On page 145, Felipe watches Aura turn into Senora and now he knows for sure that Aura and Senora are one person. They both need each other to survive. I think that their life is like that of a fire. On the first day, Fuentes removes a purple ribbon (pg. 51). On that day, Aura was strong and full of life. Similarly, a fire has this purple and dark color at the bottom that makes the fire hot and strong. On the second day, Fuentes removes a blue ribbon (pg. 79). On that day, Aura seemed older and weaker. Like a fire, the blue color is still hot and strong, but it is weaker than the dark purple color at the bottom. On the third day, Fuentes removes a red ribbon (pg. 129) and on that day, Aura was so weak that she turned into Senora and collapsed. The red color of a fire is the weakest part of a fire, and it is not as strong as the other deeper and darker colors on the bottom. In magical realism the writer tries to confront reality by untangling it to discover the mysteries behind life and human acts. Similarly Felipe untangles ribbons to confront the reality of this old woman and try to figure out why she acts the way she does and why Aura and her aunt seem so connected. Moreover, the three day period and three ribbon colors have to do with magical realism. Roh states, “Art tries over and over again to picture the whole volume of space, making it felt through its division into three dimensions.” In this book, Felipe travels through three dimensions and goes through a different dimension over a three day period in order to feel and understand the whole picture.
“How it employs various techniques inherited from the previous period, techniques that endow all things with a deeper meaning and reveal mysteries that always threaten the secure tranquility of simple and ingenious things.” Meaning, everything in magical realism has a deeper meaning and history that defines what is that you are looking at before you. This quote by Roh from the magical realism packet pertains to the following observations that I made of both present and past.
On page 135 Felipe is looking at a picture of Aura where she is surrounded by a landscape of a Lorelei in the Rhine. The Lorelei is the name of a rock in the eastern bank of the Rhine. There is a legend that there was a beautiful, young maiden who committed suicide by jumping off this rock on account of an unfaithful lover and her name was Lorelei. She then became a siren, part woman and part bird and with her seduction and her beautiful charm, she hypnotized men with her hypnotizing voice. Similarly, Aura is also a beautiful young maiden who has this power over Felipe who sings to him on page 107 before they make love. Aura’s aunt is also similar to Lorelei, because on page 67 Felipe describes Senora’s voice as bird-like chirping, so Senora like Lorelei is part bird and part human.
On page 85, he reads in one of the memoirs that the old woman had a cat clasped between her legs and she was torturing it. This made me think of the burning bush which was on fire in a place called Mount Horeb. Mount Horeb is place that is unknown and does not exist like the garden where the cats are located. The cats are yowling on account of being tortured by this woman and like the burning bush, these cats are burning and are on fire, but they are not consumed by the flames.
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