Magic Realism

Magical realism, magic realism, or marvellous realism is a style or genre of fiction and art that presents a realistic view of the world while also incorporating magical elements, often blurring the line between speculation and reality. Magical realism is the most commonly used of the three terms and refers in particular to literature with magical or supernatural phenomena presented in an otherwise real-world or mundane setting, commonly found in novels and dramatic performances. The critic Luis Leal explained the difference between magic literature and magical realism by noting that magical realism aims to express emotions, not to evoke them the way magic does. Despite including certain magical elements, magical realism is generally considered a different genre from fantasy, because magical realism uses a substantial amount of realistic detail and employs magical elements to make a point about reality, while fantasy stories are often separated from reality altogether; magical realism is closer to literary fiction than to fantasy, which is instead a type of genre fiction, and it is often seen as an amalgamation of real and magical elements that produces a more inclusive form of writing than either literary realism or fantasy on its own.