Magical Realism in Context: Analysis of a Very Old Man with Enormous WingsFrom the beginning of "A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings", the ordinary begins to face the extraordinary. This short story by Gabriel Garcia Márquez, one of the most famous Latin American authors, was presented to the world in 1955. By examining the "magical" and "realistic" elements of this tale, the theoretical term given to an emerging art form of the mid-1950s 20th century can be applied to a literary work. Marquez wastes no time introducing the “magical” elements of “A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings.” The main character of the story, Pelayo, was returning to his home after throwing away many crabs that had entered his house. Pelayo and his wife Elisenda thought that the stench of the many crabs was the cause of their daughter's fever. The whole world had been "sad", with the sky and sea turning into "one ash-grey thing". When Pelayo returned from his task of removing crabs from the yard, he noticed a presence moving and moaning in the back of the yard. At first glance, this presence was perceived by Pelayo simply as an old wanderer. Upon further examination, Pelayo noticed that there was an extraordinary feature about this man (Márquez 525): huge buzzard wings were attached to him, dirty and half torn. Pelayo looked carefully at the old man and soon overcame his surprise, finally finding him quite familiar. He was able to come to this conclusion by noticing the strong sailor's voice in which he spoke. Although the "language" the old man spoke was unintelligible to Pelayo, Pelayo concluded that the old man was a lone castaway from a foreign ship wrecked in a storm. By searching… the medium of paper… everyday life and the mundane, one gains a new appreciation for his surroundings. He or she learns to see the world in a way that glorifies the mundane and breathes life into our natural environment. This mid-20th century artistic term can be applied not only to literature, but also to life. Works Cited Flores, Angel. "Magical Realism in Hispanic American Fiction." Magical realism: theory, history, community. Ed. Lois Parkinson Zamora and Wendy B. Faris. Durham, NC: Duke UP, 1995: 109-117. Garcia Marquez, Gabriel. "A very old man with enormous wings." Norton's introduction to literature. Ed. Girolamo Beaty. NY: W. W. Norton & Company, 1996: 525-529. Leal, Luis. Magical realism in Hispanic American literature. "Magical Realism: Theory, History, Community. Ed Lois Parkinson Zamora and Wendy B. Faris. Durham, NC: Duke UP, 1995: 119-124.