Juan Rulfo's Pedro Paramo is a novel that clearly demonstrates the themes of magical realism throughout the story. Magical realistic literature attempts to incorporate magical elements with a realistic plot in order to find the deeper meaning of things. By using the themes of life & death and time, Juan Rulfo is able to give the reader a much better understanding of the concept of magical realism, as he uses numerous literary devices throughout the novel.
Life and death is the predominant device used in Rulfo's story in attempt to display magical realism. We notice this as Juan Preciado continues to hear voices and see people in Comala throughout the story even though everybody is actually dead. It's this sixth sense that Juan acquires that shows why this book has magical realism written all over it. He doesn't understand why he's hearing these voices until he hears from Damiana Cisneros that the town is "filled with echoes" (Rulfo 42). The idea of life & death is what allows Juan Preciado to learn about his family's past and untangle the reality that he was seeking to discover in the first place. This theme is a reflection of Mexican culture because the death is more significant in Mexico than it is in America. People of Latino cultures have a holiday that celebrates the dead, and death is much more meaningful to them.
Time is another device used by Juan Rulfo in Pedro Paramo that exemplifies magical realism. Rulfo constantly jumps back and forth in his story, talking about the past at one moment and the present in the next. By referring back to the past and the life of Pedro Paramo, it makes it easier for the reader to understand why he is hearing/seeing the things that he is. Juan Preciado has the ability to see and hear things from Comala's past that eventually gives him a better understanding of Pedro Paramo and his family's past. The concept of time is most likely used by Rulfo in this story because Mexican culture reflects more upon its past. Unlike American culture, Mexican culture is very traditional and doesn't change that much as time goes on.
Juan Rulfo's Pedro Paramo is a novel that clearly demonstrates the themes of magical realism throughout the story. By using the themes of life & death and time, Juan Rulfo is able to give the reader a much better understanding of the concept of magical realism, as he uses numerous literary devices throughout the novel.
ReplyDeleteLife and death is the predominant binary used in Rulfo's story in attempt to display magical realism. We notice this as Juan Preciado continues to hear voices and see people in Comala throughout the story even though everybody is actually dead. It's this sixth sense that Juan acquires that shows why this book has magical realism written all over it. He doesn't understand why he's hearing these voices until he hears from Damiana Cisneros that the town is "filled with echoes" (Rulfo 42). The idea of life & death is what allows Juan Preciado to learn about his family's past and untangle the reality that he was seeking to discover in the first place. This binary is a reflection of Mexican culture because life and death are important values in Mexican society. By Juan being able to interact with characters who are dead, the author is almost trying to say that Mexico is dead. Juan Rulfo is mourning Mexico in this book as he constantly switches back and forth between Comala in the present and past.
Time is another device used by Juan Rulfo in Pedro Paramo that exemplifies magical realism. Rulfo constantly jumps back and forth in his story, talking about the past at one moment and the present in the next. By referring back to the past and the life of Pedro Paramo, it makes it easier for the reader to understand why he is hearing/seeing the things that he is. Juan Preciado has the ability to see and hear things from Comala's past that eventually gives him a better understanding of Pedro Paramo and his family's past. The concept of time is important in this book because it is cyclical. Rulfo uses cyclical time in this novel in order to show how Mexico has no past and present. By combining the past and present in this book, Rulfo is trying to say how Mexico hasn't made much forward progress in society and has been going through troubled times.