Magical Realism

Magical realism is when a writer makes the magical or the illogical seem realistic or normal. Alejo Carpentier is a magical realist novelist, especially in his book, The Kingdom of This World. This book is about the time before, during, and after Haitian Revolution and is filled with magical realism. This book is also similar to the country itself. Magical realism dominated Haiti in its past and present. This novel makes voodooism seem natural and realistic. Damballah, the snake-god, and Ogoun, the god of war, seem real in the ceremonies. Macandal, a slave on M. Lenormand de Mézy’s plantation, was not only a slave but a loa (spirit). Loas were summoned for several ceremonies to deliver the natives out of slavery and to heal General Leclerc, a French general during the Haitian Revolution. This book is published in 1949, written in Cuba, and is similar to One Hundred Years of Solitude. GGM’s magical realist novel is similar to that of Carpentier because the real and the unreal are both logical. Because we have all read the GGM’s book, I don’t have to list some examples.