Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s novel, One Hundred Years of Solitude, uses Magical Realism to portray political events and atmospheres that Marquez, himself, and other Latin Americans experienced during their lifetimes. Political unrest, governmental upheaval, and financial instability were all experienced during Marquez’s childhood and adulthood. Though Magical Realism is rendered in many possible ways, Marquez, in particular, in One Hundred Years of Solitude, uses elements of the supernatural, Spiritualism, the paranormal, and divine, alongside reality to capture certain feelings, tensions, and emotions experienced during these times. Magical Realism is defined by Stephan Hart, author of “Magical Realism in the Americas: Politicised Ghosts in One Hundred Years of Solitude, The House of Spirits, and Beloved” as:
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[T]he sense in which occurrences seen as supernatural in the First World (such as ghostly apparitions, human beings with the ability to fly, levitate, disappear or increase their weight at will) are presented as natural from a Third World perspective, while occurrences seen as normal in the First World (magnets, science, ice, railway trains, the movies, phonographs) are presented as supernatural from the point of view of an inhabitant of the Caribbean. (Hart 116)
People who have lived for any length of time in Latin American are accustomed to stories about ghosts, superstitions, and fortunetellers. However, if we have not forgotten history, or the nature of Western “civilizations,” we would recall that Christianity, along with notions of the importance of science and technology, were forced upon the native people during times of exploration and colonization. Not all of the native stories and beliefs would be destroyed, though. Those who maintained some small portion of their old world passed stories, beliefs, and superstitions on in some form to their offspring, which have developed into a more modern Spiritualism.
Spiritualism is the “belief that the dead manifest their presence to people, usually through a clairvoyant or medium” (“SPIRITUALISM”). Spiritualism also involves the reading of divinity cards, séances or communing with the dead, and healing of the mind, whether through energy work or herbal remedies. Spiritualism is not a literary device like Magical Realism; rather, it is part of a cultural belief system, but it does indeed have literary implications in One Hundred Years of Solitude. Spiritualism accomplishes much of what Magical Realism does by expressing the novel’s theme of the inextricable nature of the past, present and future. What readers must understand is that in Latin American culture, Spiritualism, pre-Christian beliefs, the belief in ghosts, and the reading of cards play an enormous role in the culture. In other words, Latin American culture, itself, is an example of Magical Realism.
Marquez was raised by his grandparents in Aracataca, Colombia, in the province of Magdalena (like the River Magdalena in the novel). Much like the Buendía home, their home was on the coast and was nearly cut off from the outside world, had it not been for the large amount of relatives who constantly filled the large house. Marquez’s grandfather was a retired colonel who told the most amazing stories of war and his adventures (Sickels). Amy Sickels, author of “Gabriel García Márquez: Cultural and Historical Contexts,” wrote extensively about Marquez’s home life and childhood. She remarked on how he was inspired to write by those around him and if he had not inspiration enough, his grandmother was also a master story-teller, who told Marquez “stories of ghosts and the dead” (Sickels 20).
Marquez said that he wrote the novel in the tone that his grandmother used while telling her stories: “She told things that sounded supernatural and fantastic, but she told them with complete naturalness” (Hart 116). It is even said that his grandmother inspired the character of Remedios in One Hundred Years of Solitude, who, while hanging sheets out on the line to dry, was taken up to heaven. With the influence of his grandparents and the great amount of folklore he heard, it is easy to see why Marquez chose the literary device of Magical Realism through which to tell his own stories for a world audience (Gunther). Ghosts and apparitions, omens, apocalyptic prophecies, and fortunetellers are some of the elements of Latin American Spiritualism present in the novel. Furthermore, a Latin American reader would most like not initially notice the Magical Realism; rather, he or she would notice the familiar elements of Spiritualism in the work, like ghosts and apparitions, omens, apocalyptic prophecies, and fortunetellers.
Several ghosts appear from time to time. Melquíades is the first person in Macondo to die; thus, he is the first ghost to appear. The very description of Melquíades combines the supernatural and human characteristics: “That prodigious creature, said to possess the keys of Nostradamus, was a gloomy man, enveloped in a sad aura, with an Asiatic look that seemed to know what there was on the other side of things” (5-6). Melquíades is a member of a band of gypsies who becomes close to the Buendía family and who delivers the technology to the city of Macondo. He is overweight and is rumored to have the gift of prophecy with knowledge that would rival Nostradamus. His abilities are mysterious and his survival of many plagues is completely unbelievable to the reader, but is accepted by the folks he comes into contact with. He becomes José Arcadio Buendía’s mentor and good friend. He dies from a fever in Singapore, but later shows up as a seemingly living ghost in Macondo and rekindles his friendship with José Arcadio Buendía. Once Melquíades returns, though, the aging process catches up with him and he dies again, though José Arcadio Buendía claims he is still alive, just not in a body: “with the invisible presence of Melquíades, who continued his stealthy shuffling through the rooms” (73). Melquíades’ spirit provides comfort for José Arcadio Buendía while he experiences other losses, but he still mourns the second death of a dear friend.
The ghost of José Arcadio Buendía appears, also, after he was tied to a tree where he died: “It was an intricate stew of truths and mirages that convulsed the ghost of José Arcadio Buendía under the chestnut tree with impatience and made him wander all through the house even in broad daylight” (224). In Fernanda’s solitude, was quietly visited by “the dead ghost of José Arcadio Buendía who at times would come to sit down with an inquisitive attention in the half-light of the parlor while she was playing the clavichord” (258). No one is startled by the presence of these ghosts; rather, folks are comforted by them, while the presence of the living is wearying and lonesome.
Both ghosts mentioned above also present another element of Spiritualism in the novel, the omen or sign of what it to come. Omens may be positive or negative, but for the Buendías, omens usually indicate death. The ghost of José Arcadio Buendía manifests himself and reveals an omen about the fate of the colonel. Ursula had been weeping under the tree where José Arcadio Buendía had died, but the colonel could not see him. The notion that the colonel can not see him provides further evidence toward Spiritualism, because, as stated previously, the belief that ghosts manifests themselves for certain people. Ursula tells the colonel, “Say hello to your father” (241), and when he asks his mother what the ghost says, she replies, “He’s very sad…because he thinks that you’re going to die” (241). This omen was confused by the colonel because he had no desire to envision the ghost of his father, “the powerful old man who had been beaten down by half a century in the open air” (241).
Omens repeat themselves in this novel, and Ursula is privy to this notion. She seems to have some sort of medium-like abilities herself, since she is able to see ghosts, as well as produce her own interpretations and predictions without using cards. She understands that Buendías die without warning and with no signs of sickness whatsoever. For example, Aramanta receives an omen of death and proceeds to send letters to those she had wronged in the past in order to clear her conscience and have Ursula make a statement that she dies a virgin. Ursula does not doubt that Aramanta received the omen because she has ability to recall the meaning of an omen when it pertains to a Buendía family member.
The third element of Spiritualism that is present in the novel is also the most significant: fortunetelling. Making predictions in a work of literature lends itself to the notion of foreshadowing, but what is different about OHYS, is that the predictions are often interpreted incorrectly or mistaken, or they have more of an impact on the future of the characters than they realize at the time the prediction is received. Many characters in the novel make predictions and other characters rely on those predictions and their spiritual guidance. José Arcadio Buendía, for instance, makes predictions about the earth and other scientific matters, but he also would make simple predictions about events; for instance, some was coming. Ursula, though, “as she did whenever he made a prediction, tried to break it down with her housewifely logic” (40). Fernanda relies on a spiritual advisor to assist her in making decisions about her own body, dates when she should practice “venereal abstinence” (209).
Melquíades, the gypsy, made the most influential predictions, the prophecy of Macondo. At first, while discussing his prediction of the future of Macondo with José Arcadio Buendía, he thought that he was mistaken. He predicted that Macondo “was to be a luminous city with great glass houses where there was no trace remaining of the races of Buendías” (53). His predictions are what the novel are following and based upon. In other words, they both motivate the beginning and the end of the novel. In the final pages of the novel, Melquíades’ predictions come to fruition:
Aureliano read aloud without skipping the enchanted encyclicals that Melquíades himself had made Arcadio listen to and that were in reality the prediction of his execution, and he found the announcement of the birth of the most beautiful woman in the world who was rising up to heaven in body and soul, and he found the origin of the posthumous twins who gave up deciphering the parchments…Then he skipped again to anticipate the predictions and ascertain the date and circumstances of his death. Before reaching the final line, however, he had already understood that he would never leave that room, for it was foreseen that the city of mirrors (or mirages) would be wiped out by the wind and exiled from the memory of men… (417)
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The notion that the story’s genesis and destruction are envisaged in Melquíades’ prophecy exemplifies the novel’s theme of the indivisibility if the past, present, and future. Though Melquíades’ predictions are indissoluble in the novel, the character of Melquíades does meet his end rather early on. There is a character, though, who is present for the duration of the novel and is an important fortuneteller¾Pilar Ternera.
Pilar Ternera is the epitome of modern, Latin American Spiritualism in the novel. She is said to be modeled after Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s mother, Luisa Santiaga: “a spirited, strong-willed woman with a liberal upbringing…She won the lottery several times based on information she claimed to have gotten in dreams” (Stavans 42). Pilar is “a merry, foul-mouthed, provocative woman” (25) who became a servant to the Buendías, but was later known in the town for her love-making skills¾as a prostitute who never took payment for her services and who just wanted to make sure her customers were happy. Also, she reads other characters’ fortunes, the past, and future with Tarot cards. She has the ability to heal the psyches of others and she is blessed with an extremely long life.
Pilar’s seemingly magical powers as a lover and her ability to read fortunes give her a very powerful female role. In Latin America culture, the woman is generally controlled the realm of domestic space, sexually repressed, and without much authority outside of her own home. There has been a movement within Spiritualism, though, toward a more powerful spiritual leadership role for women, and for women to be intellectually, spiritually, and sexually free (Finkler). Marquez’s mother could have possibly been the vehicle through which this movement was expressed in his own life as well as inspiration for such a strong, liberated female character. As a lover, she holds power in the future of Macondo as she gives birth to Buendía sons, and as a reader of the cards, she holds power in that she can influence decisions made by others.
Pilar’s ability to read the cards also further demonstrates the novel’s theme of the inextricable nature of the past, present, and future (like Melquíades’ prophecy). When reading Tarot cards, there are spreads that will reveal answers to questions or problem the inquirer poses. Though the question may be about the future, the past is ever-present and influencing the cards. The symbolism in the cards and their position in the spread allow for the cards to be interpreted. For instance, she reads the cards for Colonel Aureliano Buendía and only managed to reveal “after spreading and picking up the cards three times…Watch out for your mouth” (135). Later, the colonel was poisoned. In this case, her interpretation was correct, yet it was incomplete.
Pilar’s relationship with the cards is very much like that of Ursula’s relationship with the recognizing of omens. Pilar is so deeply involved in the Buendía family that she finds no mystery in their card readings: “There was no mystery in the heart of a Buendía that was impenetrable for her because of a century of cards and experience had taught her that the history of the family was a machine with unavoidable repetitions” (396). This also builds on the novel’s theme of the undividable nature of the past, present and future-Pilar’s history with the Buendías allows her to easily predict their future as well as their past: “Pilar was the one who contributed most to popularize that mystification when she conceived the trick of reading the past in cards as she read the future before” (47).
This theme is also exemplified when José Arcadio Buendía, at the same time, in fear that the people of Macondo would lose their memories, decides to create a memory machine “that he had desired once in order to remember the marvelous inventions of the gypsies. The artifact was based on the possibility of reviewing every morning, from beginning to end, the totality of knowledge acquired during one’s life” (48). The constant repetition of events will allow people to “remember” and make decisions accordingly. What is interesting, though, is that Pilar’s intuition that the Buendía family history is like a machine is a direct correlation with how José Arcadio Buendía viewed it as well. On the other hand, Pilar’s knowledge of the cards was not always handy or useful; rather, what they revealed was very disheartening for her. She saw in the cards that “Aureliano Jose was the tall, dark man who had been promised her for half a century by the king of hearts, and like all men sent by the cards, he reached her heart when he was already stamped with the mark of death” (152-153). The cyclical nature of the interpretation of the cards mirrors that of life, where the past is ultimately tied to the future, and the present is somehow a result, or consequence, of both.
Pilar also serves as a spiritual advisor for Amaranta when Amaranta is alarmed and maddened by the uncertainly of her future. She seeks Pilar’s counsel, but having such an extensive knowledge and understanding of the Buendía family, Pilar is able to provide Aramanta with psychological relief by giving “her recipes that in cases of trouble could expel ‘even the remorse of conscience” (289-90). Kaja Finkler, author of “Dissident Religious Movements in the Service of Women’s Power” discusses, at length, the increasingly powerful role of women as spiritual leaders and guides. Like Pilar, these guides will “prescribe only natural herbs and spiritual cures” (Finkler 488).
In her old age, though, Pilar turns away from the use of the cards. She learns through the constant repetition of omens and events, she has learned much more from experience than from interpreting the cards. Before the destruction of Macondo, Pilar, is over the age of one hundred forty-five, dies in her wicker chair: “She had given up the pernicious custom of keeping track of her age and she went on living in the static and marginal time of memories, in a future perfectly revealed and established, beyond the futures disturbed by the insidious snares and suppositions of her cards” (395). Her insight as to what the future holds for her is based upon her discernment of the past, not by the dangerous interpretations and guesswork involved in the reading of the cards.
In conclusion, even though Magical Realism is the chief, defining characteristic of the novel, One Hundred Years of Solitude, the elements of Latin American Spiritualism cannot be ignored. This cultural beliefs examined in the text, rather than an obscure literary device, illustrates the novel’s theme involving the past, present and future. Furthermore, it would be less likely for a Latin American reader to immediately acknowledge the Magical Realism; rather, the reader would recognize the familiar story-telling and subject matter due to the Spiritual nature of the culture, itself. Also, the character of Pilar Ternera, with her card-reading and healing abilities, is a blatant example of a modern Spiritualist that Finkler discusses in her work. Through Marquez’s use of ghosts and apparitions who manifest themselves only for certain characters, omens and apocalyptic prophecies that are often mistaken or ignored until they come to fruition, and fortunetellers and spiritual guides, like Melquíades and Pilar Ternera, he is able to capture the essence of the tales of his grandparents and the fantastical nature of the Caribbean (Hart 116).
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