September 3, 2022 in Famous writers, Fiction and intelligence, Magical Realism 0

Jorge Luis Borges – A brief on the creator of Magical Realism and thought provoking Literary Fiction

Jorge Francisco Isidoro Luis Borges was born in Buenos Aires in 1899. His parents were middle-class with a very long military background. As one of his grandfathers was of English descent, Borges quickly learned the language. Soon after he was born, the family moved to Geneva in 1914 as their current neighborhood, Palermo, was not safe.

The writer and his family stayed in Geneva through the First World War and Borges’ primary education. Jorge later moved to Europe, taking German and French as elective subjects. Later on, the writer found himself as a dedicated member of Ultraism, a literary movement for poetry freedom and limitless imagination. This was the start of Jorge’s avant-garde literary ideas in conventional literature.

The writer vs magical realism

Jorge Luis Borges was an Argentine storyteller who focused his work on literary fiction. His name is listed among the profound literati, which would bind magical elements into real-life stories without making them too obvious or forced. Jorge Luis Borges is also considered the founder of the genre of magical realism, alongside Elizabeth Allende and Gabriel Marquez. Since literary fiction was unheard of, his work quickly became popular in South America. The readers were captivated by the unique art of storytelling.

Similar to his work on books and stories, Jorge Luis Borges’ poetry also includes modern realism. He would play with a fantasy world full of nature. He would interplay with rivers and trees by mentioning components of magic. Due to his vital efforts in the literary fiction world, Jorge Luis Borges was also shortlisted for the Nobel Prize. Unfortunately, he could not take one home.

The magical realism genre significantly influenced the inability to win the Nobel Prize. The deciding committee at the time did not see eye to eye with his political views. Jorge was publicly conservative regarding his political stance. However, the magical realism introductory writer was also against fascism and communism. Jorge’s views on anti-Semitism are not a secret, similar to his opinion regarding the injustices in his own country’s history.

Jorge is well known for Ficciones. An array of short stories that uses numerous magical themes to keep the reader engaged. His paranormal realism stories showcase imagery and minor hyperboles. Furthermore, he also uses metaphors sparingly to add depth to the context. He was an expert in using fantasy to deliver his ideas without making them look too cliché.

Jorge Luis Borges’s Famous work

One of his most famous stories is the Secret Miracle. The events involve a character who dreams within a dream. Jaromir Hadlik’s dream is almost about to end. He is running out of time in a lost maze. Unfortunately, he wakes up with a jolt. Lost has ever, what will he do next? Read the Secret Miracle to find out.

The second mention of Jorge Luis Borges’s famous work is the Circular Ruins. In this story, Borges introduces an individual who longs to turn a young boy in his dreams into a reality. The central character enlists the necessary elements for his plan and creates the perfect environment. Jorge compares fruits and rice to dreaming and sleeping in the actual world vs magical realism argument.

The Bottom Line

Jorge Luis Borges’s use of hyperbole in his works resembles his dedication to literary art. One wonders about the time and effort he would invest into coming up with these comparisons. Borges believed that magical realism provided a temporary escape from society’s evident influence over people. Therefore, his stories are open-ended. It encourages the reader to come up with their conclusion for closure.