Magical Realism In Allende’s The House Of The Spirits And Kurniawan’s Cantik Itu Luka

Abstract

This article aims to analyze the application of magical realism in two novels, namely The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende and Cantik Itu Luka by Eka Kurniawan. Both novels carry the theme of magical realism where both combine the real world with magical elements that seem ordinary in everyday life, a characteristic of magical realism. This study uses a descriptive qualitative method with a comparative approach to identify the similarities and differences in the use of magical realism in the two works. In The House of the Spirits, magical realism is used to describe the experiences of the Trueba family generation dealing with the turbulent socio-political events of Chile, while Cantik Itu Luka combines Indonesian colonial history with supernatural elements typical of Indonesia through the story of Dewi Ayu and her family. This study focuses on how the magical elements in the two novels not only strengthen the main narrative, but also reflect the social and historical conditions in each country. The analysis shows that magical realism in both novels plays an important role in the construction of the story. The results of this study confirm that magical realism, in addition to functioning as a literary element, is also a means to reflect the complexity of history and identity in two different cultural contexts or across countries.