c o l u m n
MAGICAL REALISM 101
a s k    t h e    p r o f e s s o r

BY TAMARA KAYE SELLMAN

~ Featured Educator ~

KATHLEEN ALCALÁ
Author, workshop instructor, independent scholar
Bainbridge Island, WA

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SOMETIMES THE best writing instructors are not full-time university professors. I had the pleasure of sitting in on one of Kathleen Alcalá's magical realism workshops at the Richard Hugo House in Seattle in 2003 and found a class filled with eager, imaginative writers interpreting a diverse cross-section of magical realism titles in order to perfect their own understanding of the narrative style.

Kathleen Alcalá is one of the United States' premiere magical realist authors. Her popular books include the short story collection, Mrs. Vargas and the Dead Naturalist and three novels set in 19th Century Mexico: Spirits of the Ordinary, The Flower in the Skull and, most recently, Treasures in Heaven. She is an essayist, a frequent writer-in-residence and a dedicated supporter of Latino literary arts. She's also an advisory board member and occasional instructor for Field's End, a writers' organization in Bainbridge Island, WA.

Independent writing workshops focusing on magical realism enjoy popularity among writers in post-graduate life. Small local workshops, online forums and conference programs (both for literary writers and for fans of genres like science fiction and fantasy) are including more discussions about magical realism on a regular basis as writers are increasingly drawn to its narrative sensibilities. It makes sense that discussions about magical realism venture from beyond the university, and Kathleen Alcalá serves that need, from time to time, as an independent instructor, as well as a popular guest lecturer in universities in the southwest United States and the Pacific Northwest.

Kathleen and I frequently discuss magical realism as a pet subject. Below, I've composed a more formal discussion with her about magical realism as it pertains to her personal life, her professional life, and to literature in general.

ABOUT KATHLEEN ALCALÁ

Can you share any personal experiences that you would credit with inspiring your interest in magical realism?

The term was not in wide use when I was young, and most Latin American fiction was not available in translation. In the seventies, when I was at Stanford, I came across a copy of One Hundred Years of Solitude in English, and read it straight through. It was the first time I had come across literature that reflected my background in any way. Not only that, but the stories were the type of stories that we told in and about our family. Remember, García Márquez considers this mainstream storytelling, nothing unusual. That was true for my family as well. I sent the book to my parents, and later made my husband read it before marrying me, to make sure this was the sort of situation he wanted to marry in to.

But I did not come across the term Magic Realism until after I moved to Seattle in 1983. Intiman (a local theater) staged a production of “Blood Wedding” by Garcia Lorca, and Yvonne Yarbro Bejarano wrote an article for their program listing books in the tradition of magic realism.

Which authors appealed to you in childhood?

I taught myself to read on Dr. Seuss. In elementary school, I read every book in the science fiction section. When I was nine, I read all of the Old Testament and wanted to know why we were not Jewish (that’s another story…) When I was ten, I got the opportunity to study Japanese culture. I remember reading a book of Japanese folktales and really loving them. I also love folk tales from all over the world. Another collection I read then and recently came across again is called Tales from Silver Lands, by Charles J. Finger. Now they seem really corny, because they are retellings of traditional folk stories for English speaking children, but again, it was one of the few times I came across anything that seem to reflect my own storytelling tradition.

What did you study in college and why?

As an undergrad I studied linguistics and psychology at Stanford. I have always been interested in all aspects of language, from how we learn it and store it in our brains, to how it affects the way we interact with the world.

My MA is in English from the University of Washington. My thesis was a set of five short stories that became part of my first collection of stories.

I am now studying Arabic, and am about to apply to the MA program in Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations. I have always spent a lot of time researching my books and learning new things, and dipping back into formal education when it seemed the most expedient thing to do.

Okay, this is a cheap question, but inquiring minds want to know… Who are your favorite magical realist authors?

Well, the hardest thing about that is that they may challenge the parameters of magic realism that I defined earlier. But that is the idea, right? That all definitions are meant to be undermined. Thomas Pynchon is right up there, along with Clarice Lispector, Louise Erdrich, Gabriel García Márquez, Julio Cortázar, Isak Dineson, Ana Castillo, Jewelle Gomez, Alai, Juan Rulfo, and Ursula LeGuin.

Following that, who are your favorite authors (regardless what they write)?

This is a little easier, I think: Along with the people above, James Joyce, Leslie Marmon Silko, James Welch, Charles Johnson, WB Sebald, Michael Ondaadje, Flannery O’Connor.

But that’s just today. If I answered these two questions a week from now, I would have an entirely different set of answers. And for people who start in with “what about…?” I can only say that I am not as well read as I would like to be, so I probably have not read that writer’s work. At least today.

KATHLEEN ALCALÁ ON MAGICAL REALISM

Regarding classifications or "genre." Some fantasy and science fiction authors and/or editors tend to either dismiss magical realism's legitimacy as a commercial form or wish to absorb it into the larger "pool" that comprises imaginative writing. So-called "genre" writers seem to either want to co-opt magical realism's popularity or deny it exists at all. Do you agree? If so, why do you think this is so? Why the rift?

There are some general ideas that I think most people will agree are aspects of magic realism.

A) magic realism arises as a form of writing in countries where a portion of the population is politically, culturally, or socially repressed—it becomes a sort of coded outlet for ideas that cannot be stated forthrightly

B) magic realism usually has a naturalistic setting and gradually introduces elements of fantasy into the story

C) by default, magic realism always contains social commentary

D) magic realism often uses hyperbole—to paraphrase Flannery O’Connor, for the hard of hearing, you shout; for the blind, you draw large and startling pictures

E) I will go out on a limb a little and say that it is never escapist fiction—while it is a pleasure to read, it is never merely an entertainment

F) magic realism arises in cultures where the unseen is just as important as the seen.

Do you think the fact that the US is becoming increasingly bilingual (Spanish/English) will have any bearing on the popularity and acceptance of magical realist literature here? What about the growing translation boom's effects?

I don’t consider magic realism the sole property of Latin American readers and writers, for the reasons listed above. But because this type of storytelling is widely understood in Latin America, it can’t hurt. Is there a growing translation boom? I’ve heard that editors have turned down wonderful books from outside of the country because they didn’t think an American audience was literary enough to understand them.

One of the problems of magical realism's alignment with El Boom is its unintended pigeonholing of all Latin American writers as magical realists, even for those who do not write magical realism. This has given rise to the "McOndo" faction of writers, led by Alberto Fuguet, who want to disinherit themselves from the magical realism legacy by speaking critically of the narrative style. What are your thoughts on Fuguet's efforts at backlash?

If Fuguet feels better disassociating himself from this type of writing, that’s fine. It’s silly to say that all Latin American fiction is magic realism. Most of it is very realistic, i.e., it attempts to hold up a realistic mirror to the world. I like to think that excellent writing rises above categorization. Unfortunately, the way books are marketed today, most editors won’t touch a book unless the marketing people feel that they can put a label on it and characterize it in the most simplified way.

As you know, many literary critics wish to define magical realism more narrowly than others. How do you feel about those who would limit the discussion to a very small group of texts?

Again, if that’s what they want to talk about, let them. Of the many books I love, one could argue endlessly about whether or not they fall into that category. What matters is, is this a wonderful book, and why or why not? If one uses the criteria I set out above, there are thousands of books from all over the world that fit those parameters, yet the definition is fairly specific. Critics need something to rub up against, so they must set hurdles and define rules so that they can argue about them. It’s the nature of the exercise. It’s their job.

Do you think mainstream readers in the US appreciate and understand magical realism, regardless of their understanding of the term itself?

Absolutely. Has anyone ever said that Margaret Atwood writes magic realism? That Moby Dick was magic realism? People do not care. Above all, people want a good story, and the primary job of a writer is to give it to them.

Do you see magical realist trends in television and film? Any favorites you'd like to claim?

Every once in awhile a show with elements of magic realism pops up. The movie Being John Malkovich is a good example. The TV show Dark Angel was sort of science fiction, and sort of magic realism. Janet Jackson accidently ripping her costume off at half-time, and the public reaction to it, may fall into the category of unintended magic realism. Or maybe that was just surreal. The Truman Show may meet those criteria. More recently, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Movies that mess with our idea of reality and question our place in it, as well as our ability to affect it, always raise the sorts of ideas that magic realist fiction sets out to address.

Most readers/students/people align magical realism with Gabo, but I'm curious, can you list a few magical realist authors who deserve, but have never received, the same amount of attention?

It always helps if you live a long time and write a lot of novels, so of course there are wonderful books out there by people who only wrote one book, or whose work was never translated, etc. Bruno Schulz, a Polish writer, comes to mind. He wrote two collection of short stories, translated as The Street of Crocodiles and Sanatorium Under the Sign of the Hourglass and also wrote a novel. He was killed by the Nazis, and the novel was never found. Red Poppies by Alai is about the fall of Tibet to Red China, and was subtle enough, through the use of the devices described above, to get by the Chinese censors. Alai (just the one name) has written one book, as far as I know, but I hope he writes more.

There are other writers, such as John Crowley, whose work is really magic realism, but his work is hard to classify, and others whose work is classified as science fiction. The irrepressible Ursula LeGuin crosses back and forth at will across this line. Writers of this sort are probably lucky, because science fiction readers are hip and smart and not put off by categorization, and there is a well-established way to sell science fiction.

KATHLEEN ALCALÁ ON TEACHING MAGICAL REALISM

Why are you interested in teaching magical realism?

My favorite definition of magic realism is a quote by Ariel Dorfman: “When people who have nothing demand everything, that’s real magic.” Magic realism is an avenue for changing the world.

Where have you taught magical realism workshops?

I have taught workshops specifically on magic realism at Clarion West, at Richard Hugo House (both in Seattle), in Mesa, Arizona, and probably other places. I have taught creative writing workshops all over the west, and I usually include at least one day on magic realism, because people are interested in it.

I tend to speak casually about "getting" magical realism. It seems to me that readers either naturally understand it or they reject it, with very little middle ground. Is this your experience, as well? How would you proportion the numbers of your students who "get" it versus those who don't "get" it?

People who have trouble with fiction in general usually have trouble with magic realism. I think it is the idea of the metaphor, which is stretched to its utmost possibilities in magic realism, in that a whole world can be created which is a metaphor for the society in which the writer and reader live. It is kind of like people who know how to swim, but refuse to go deeper into the water than where they can touch bottom with their feet. It is an act of faith.

What strategies do you employ in your classroom to engage your students in an enthusiastic study of magical realism? Any funny, quirky tales from the classroom front?

I have had the honor to teach a couple of workshops to high school students who were recently arrived from Mexico—once in Bridgeport, Washington, and last spring in Hatch, New Mexico. I started by asking them to tell me the story of La Llorona, the most widely known folk tale in Mexico. Of course there are many versions, and once a few are told, I start to list the elements that they have in common, and how they differ. Then I ask each student to write a new version of the story. This has produced incredible stories by students who have been told that they are failures in school. By introducing the elements of storytelling with which they are familiar, I can take them into the realm of putting words on paper—i.e., creating a literary product that is valued in a classroom setting—and bypass the many hurdles that have been thrown in their paths.

La Llorona actually falls into the category of a fantasma, an overlapping form that is very popular in Mexico. I wrote more about this in the introduction to Fantasmas: Supernatural stories by Mexican American Writers, edited by Rob Johnson. I also have an essay in Creative Nonfiction, Volume 23, called “The Woman Who Loved Water,” that compares versions of the La Llorona story with various aspects of the Andrea Yates murder case.

A lot of energy certainly must go into the defining of magical realism—what it is, what it is not. I've seen class plans that ask for students to correctly "identify" magical realism. Is it really possible to accurately "identify" magical realism as a narrative category?

Probably not. In a discussion with our son, we realized that the students at his high school are expected to learn about literature without having to actually write it. The best way to learn the elements of magic realism would be to write some.

In the introduction to the second volume of Black Water, an anthology of stories edited by Alberto Manguel, he addresses this very well, and a random sampling of the stories Manguel includes in these two volumes points out the difficulty in pinning down the commonalities. In some cases, it is merely a hint of the otherworldly, like something glimpsed out of the corner of the eye.

What would you say are your students' most frequent misunderstandings about magical realism?

I don’t think students have any trouble understanding magic realism. Teachers may get tripped up in having to classify everything.

If a student (or peer, for that matter) came up to you and said, "Magical realism? Oh, that's just highbrow fantasy!", how might you respond to them?

I suppose I would encourage that person to read some and then get back to me. That’s the sort of comment I would expect from someone unwilling to break out of his or her “safe” territory, so they may not enjoy reading it, anyway. Magic realism is all about being outside of the safe zone. It is written by people who are outsiders, for outsiders who have been told that they must have limited expectations. Magic realism is a way of saying that anything is possible. That is very scary to some people.

If you were to give any advice to a professor teaching literary magical realism for the first time, what would it be?

To get their hands on the most subversive magic realism they can find, leave it in the classroom, and forbid their students to read it. A Confederacy of Dunces by John O’Toole Kennedy comes to mind, and boygenius by Yongsoo Park, or The Gilda Stories, a novel by Jewell Gomez, which is also a vampire story.

I got in trouble at an early age when my mother found me reading The Centaur by John Updike. It’s magic realism! But it’s also sexy.

Alcalá's story, "Cities of Gold," will appear later in 2005 in the upcoming Pacific Northwest Writers Conference Anthology. Margin's readers can expect an essay from her in conjunction with our upcoming Iberian Peninsula theme edition this spring when she discusses the magical realism in Cervantes' Don Quixote as well as her own family's connection to the novel, which she learned about while teaching and researching at the University of New Mexico.

She has scheduled a full slate of appearances in early 2005 in Seattle, Tacoma, Arizona, New Mexico and the San Juan Islands. To find out more about upcoming panels, readings and workshops, you can visit her website at www.kathleenalcala.com.

Tamara Kaye Sellman is founding editor and publisher of Margin.
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Rev'd 2005/01/26