Old Man With Enormous Wings Magical Realism Essay

Latin Literature is one which incorporated ‘magical realism’ in their works often, along with the ‘fantastic’ which in simple terms is the used of supernatural elements in their works is such a subtle manner that they might otherwise be deemed impossible to happen, yet are able to happen at the same time. An example can be taken from A Very Old Man With Enormous Wings by Garcia Marquez, where he incorporated the use of a fallen angel and a girl who turned into a spider, and while it seems almost fantastical, it is not because in Christianity angels do exist, and therefore it is not highly impossible for a believer, and we can also not forget Mother Teresa who was called an angel as well from heaven, for a mere human cannot really perform these …show more content…
An important realization was of the fact that as the crystal merchant realizes that there are endless possibilities for him, ones that he had feared of before, he feels depressed for not realizing this before and pursuirng his own ‘Personal Legend’. This is a symbol that the biggest enemy or the obstacle that we can face while achieving our ‘Personal Legend’ are ourselves, that if we do not take the first step, we will never achieve anything in the first place, let alone face obstacles in the path.
‘Soul of the World’ is how the alchemy begins in the novel, although the Englishman should be given credit as well to have introduced so to the boy. The boy befriends new people and exchanges their stories with his, and learns of alchemy from the Englishman who wishes to seek ‘the alchemist’ who found Philosopher’s Stone and carries with him the Elixir of Life. The Englishman represents all that is different from what the boy has heard and seen, as Santiago who is enjoying his travel and gaining experience, the Englishman is reading and learning only from his books that he considers as a reliable