Magical Realism in The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao
First and foremost, the “fuku” is introduced as a magical karma or sort; one that haunts Oscar and his family. The “fuku” is negative one, as bad things occur in the family, due to the bad luck of the “fuku”: Oscar does not get a girl after the “fuku” set in, which is, after his seventh year; Beli , his mother, does not get the very kind of life she craves for; and Lola is just not the classical Dominican girl.
Then, there is the Beli’s magical encounter with ‘the golden lion’ that talks to her and leads her out of the cane fields. She walks with her, “for it had a woman’s lilt,” and gets her to safety; where she could be found (150). The lioness does not leave Beli's side till she is safe. The driver who finds her later testifies “that he saw something lion-like in the gloom, with eyes like terrible amber lamps” (150). The lioness does all these because of “the ones who await”; Beli’s son and daughter (149).
When La Inca saves Beli’s life, she battles with the fuku in detriment to herself. It also worthy to note that she also sees “a shadow standing behind Beli’s shoulder which disappeared as soon as you tried to focus on it” that gripped her heart (157). She diminishes after the event and “is no longer the Great Power she had been” (156). In all, one can conclude that something mystical happened that night; something that brought about Beli’s recovery.
I can totally relate with the incident as I have heard stories like that, most especially with people who believe in ‘spirit animals.’ Such people believe that each individual has a spirit animal assigned to him/her. And the spirit animal is a guardian angel to shield you from danger, untimely death and to fight the evil in the world. It is totally up to the animal when it would show itself to you. It is more like a balance of good and evil; when there is evil, there has to be good, when there is a curse, then there is a blessing or deliverance.
All these elements work well together to portray a realistic recount of an exotic culture.
Then, there is the Beli’s magical encounter with ‘the golden lion’ that talks to her and leads her out of the cane fields. She walks with her, “for it had a woman’s lilt,” and gets her to safety; where she could be found (150). The lioness does not leave Beli's side till she is safe. The driver who finds her later testifies “that he saw something lion-like in the gloom, with eyes like terrible amber lamps” (150). The lioness does all these because of “the ones who await”; Beli’s son and daughter (149).
When La Inca saves Beli’s life, she battles with the fuku in detriment to herself. It also worthy to note that she also sees “a shadow standing behind Beli’s shoulder which disappeared as soon as you tried to focus on it” that gripped her heart (157). She diminishes after the event and “is no longer the Great Power she had been” (156). In all, one can conclude that something mystical happened that night; something that brought about Beli’s recovery.
I can totally relate with the incident as I have heard stories like that, most especially with people who believe in ‘spirit animals.’ Such people believe that each individual has a spirit animal assigned to him/her. And the spirit animal is a guardian angel to shield you from danger, untimely death and to fight the evil in the world. It is totally up to the animal when it would show itself to you. It is more like a balance of good and evil; when there is evil, there has to be good, when there is a curse, then there is a blessing or deliverance.
All these elements work well together to portray a realistic recount of an exotic culture.
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