Unraveling the Real - 9781439902417

In literary and cinematic fictions, the fantastic blurs the lines between reality and fantasy. Lacking a consensus on definition, critics often describe the fantastic as supernatural or similar to, but quite different from, fantasy, science fiction, and magical realism. In Unraveling the Real, Cynthia Duncan provides a new theoretical framework for discussing how the fantastic explores both metaphysical and socially relevant themes in Spanish-American fictions. Selecting examples from the works of such noted writers as Jorge Luis Borges, Julio Cortazar, and Carlos Fuentes, among others, Duncan deftly shows how authors and artists have used this literary genre to convey marginalized voices as well as critique colonialism, racism, sexism, and classism.

"Unraveling the Real is a very readable, succinct introduction to the topic of the fantastic and its primary critics. Duncan presents a review of the texts on the fantastic and applies this trace to individual authors and film directors, narrative strategies, psychological processes, and gender issues. Her introduction is effective in establishing the borders and transgressions of the fantastic, and she is not afraid of moving from the literature of and on the fantastic to the questioning of cultural constructs. Her objective to emphasize the analysis of social criticism is an effective approach."---Enrique Sacerio-Gari, Dorothy Nepper Marshall Professor of Hispanic and Hispanic-American Studies, Bryn Mawr College

"The clarity of the definitions, the overview of the historic development, and the critical apparatus stated without undue recourse to theoretical jargon make Unraveling the Real a useful study for anyone interested in Latin American fantastic fiction. Duncan's analysis of Carlos Fuentes's recent collection of short stories confirms her point that the genre is alive and well and living in Latin America, and indicates the ways in which this genre could move in the future. The close textual analyses of works both familiar and not are beautifully done and offer fine models for students to emulate."---Patricia N. Klingenberg, Professor of Latin American Literature, Department of Spanish and Portuguese, Miami University, Oxford, Ohio