Magical Realism and Man's Search for Meaning Magical realism was first coined by Franz Roh while he was writing about paintings. Artaro Ulsar Pietri was the first to use the term when talking about literature. Magical realism is also related to other academic fields such as philosophy, psychology, mathematics, physics, and theology. In magical realism, “the writer confronts reality and tries to unravel it, to discover what is mysterious in things, in life, in human acts” (Leal 121). Viktor E. Frankl uses this concept in his book Man's Search For Meaning. The magical characteristics of realism that relate to this story include defamiliarization and integration. Through man's search for meaning, Frankl explores "a reality that is already magical or fantastic" (Simpkins 149). Try to magnify and expand the small and simple things in life. Defamiliarization is used throughout human life (Simpkins 150). Defamiliarization occurs when a common, everyday object is shown in a new way that has never been seen or noticed before. Integration is when it is reality...