Magical Hyperrealism: A Reading of Orbitor through Magical Realism and Maximalism

In this stylistic study I propose a reading of Orbitor [Blinding] through two literary modes: magical realism and maximalism, as Mircea Cărtărescu’s trilogy contains elements that fit into both literary modes, albeit with some differences. Such a reading would allow the formulation of the term magical hyperrealism as a new literary mode. The understanding of magical realism is based on three features: authorial reticence, amplification of reality through “faith” and social comprehension. Regarding authorial reticence, Beatrice Amaryll Chanady compares magical realism with the fantastic as defined by T. Todorov. Unlike the fantastic, which creates doubt between a real or a supernatural explanation for unlikely events, magical realism allows the ordinary and the marvelous to coexist as two components of a harmonious reality that is given without explanation (authorial reticence). The amplification of reality through faith in the marvelous and the social comprehension of the marvelous are concepts based on Alejo Carpentier’s lo real maravilloso. In Orbitor all of these features appear in many episodes, although unlike traditional magical realism, faith in the marvelous is expressed through personal-intellectual convictions rather than social-collective beliefs. As for maximalism, Orbitor fulfills most of the ten characteristics of this genre as defined by Stefano Ercolino. The main difference is point 10: “hybrid realism.” In this case, maximalism usually distorts reality for representational purposes, but Orbitor distorts it for purely literary purposes or for a psychic-subjective exploration of the author. From comparing Orbitor with both literary modes, magical hyperrealism as a literary mode is defined as follows: a totalizing-encyclopedic vision of reality that, with authorial reticence, harmonizes the real and the marvelous through a strong faith. Some applications and future possibilities are discussed in the conclusions.