Magical Realism and Songs of Solomon

Introduction

Toni Morrison's Songs of Solomon was written and published in 1977, and is considered an iconic part of literature among students, as it has a unique narrative viewpoint as well as a writing style that has been studied by generations of aspiring writers. The novel “Songs of Solomon” is written in third person perspective, and as there is an array of different characters, this works well towards explaining the differing viewpoints and beliefs of the characters. The protagonist of the novel is Macon “Milkman” Dead III, a character that truly transforms during the start of the novel to the finish. He starts off as someone who channels his father's behavior towards the women in his life, as in, his sisters and mother, among others. However , as his character evolves within the story, he learns to respect and listen to the women around him, and take in their wisdom as well as being sensitive to their needs. The story uses different themes and explores the theme of gender, as is common in Toni Morrison's literary works, but there are several aspects of magic realism present in the novel as well, which will be further explored in this paper.

Discussion and Analysis

Toni Morrison's novel may be considered a close equivalent of Gabrial García Márquez's version of magical realism, that is found in the classic literary work, “ One Hundred Years of Solitude”. If one is to compare the two works, there is intricate detail to the cultures and reflections of mankind as exposed to magic in both works. Song of Solomon's obscure intertwining of the history of a fictional African American family's with the multifaceted communal and political circumstances, as well as poetic passages that effectively bring together elements of the pious, the apocalyptic, as well as the exploratory is only next to Gabriel Garcia's literary work. There may not be exact similarities between the two works, but the themes expounded on are used very intricately and the plot arrangement is similar in nature. Both works also have a profound effect on the reader, and leave them immersed.

Song of Solomon is about the “Dead” family, of which the author explores several categories of issues such as gender, inequality, sexual exploration and divinity. There is use of both magical realism and myths in the novel, as well as the theme of African American symbolism explored. Magic Realism is a literary tool used in many different works, and was first introduced by a German Art critic by name of Franz Roh, who is said to consider it a category of art that can be used to explore the enigma's of reality. It has since gained in popularity, with authors using the themes of magical realism to depict their own versions of American stories and the different psychologies, starting from the 1940's.

There are several different categories to magical realism in literary works, such as Hybridity, in which authors attempt to work around the inexplicable differences between extremes, such as rich ...