Magical Realism in The Garden of Forking Paths Essay -- Garden of Fork

magic world in The tend of Forking PathsWhile there may be some debate as to whether the Argentinian Jorge Luis Borges was technically a legerdemainal Realist, some may feel that his works definitely do get to some of the characteristics of what is considered Magical Realistic literature. Among his various types of works are poetry, essays, fantasies, and concise fictions. Often referred to in essays that discuss the history and theory of Magical Realism, The garden of Forking Paths is probably Borges most popular shortsighted story. Published in 1964 in a collection of Borges works entitled Labyrinths Selected Stories & Other Writings, his short story The Garden of Forking Paths appears to have several of the elements of Magical Realism. At a glance, the main plan of The Garden of Forking Paths may bet fairly simple and very real. In this story the main character, Yu Tsun, is a German spy who knows the name of the British artillery greens. Yu Tsun wants to tell his gaffer about this British artillery park so that the Germans can stamp out it. However, Yu Tsun is afraid that Captain Richard Madden, who is on the British side, will shoot him beforehand he is able to get the word out in time. Therefore, Yu Tsun comes up with the plan to go to a Dr. Stephen Alberts house and shoot him. By snap Stephen Albert, Yu Tsun relays the message to his chief in Berlin that Albert is the city where the British artillery park is located (Wiehe 980). A reader can see that the realist elements in The Garden of Forking Paths are that the story is taking place during World war I, that the story involves real people who are spies, and that the story is based on a fairly logical plot. The term fairly logical plot is us... ...mmunity. Ed. Lois Parkinson Zamora and Wendy B. Faris. Durham, N.C. Duke UP, 1995 163-186. Flores, Angel. Magical Realism in Spanish American Fiction. Magical Realism. Theory, History, Community. Ed. Lois Parkinson Zamora and Wendy B. Faris. Durham, N.C. Duke UP, 1995 109-116. Roh, Franz. Magic Realism Post-Expressionism. Magical Realism. Theory, History, Community. Ed. Lois Parkinson Zamora and Wendy B. Faris. Durham, N.C. Duke UP, 1995 15-30. Simpkins, Scott. Sources of Magic Realism/Supplements to Realism in contemporaneous Latin American Literature. Magical Realism. Theory, History, Community. Ed. Lois Parkinson Zamora and Wendy B. Faris. Durham, N.C. Duke UP, 1995 145-157. Wiehe, Roger E. Jorge Luis Borges. Critical Survey of Short Fiction. Vol 3. Ed. straight-from-the-shoulder N. Magill. Englewood Cliffs, N.J. Salem Press, 1981 977-982.