Though exact dates are debated by scholars as to the appearance of Magical Realism in Latin American literature, the publication of Jorge Borges short-story collection “Historia universal de la Infamia” ( A Universal History of Infamy) in 1935 was a landmark moment for the genre. Angel Flores, the first person to use the term “magical realism”, set its origin point at the publication of Borges collection. Borges, and the genre of Magical Realism at large has had a profound effect on Latin American literature and culture, providing a culturally distinct lens through which Latin American authors, poets, and playwrights have explored themes of colonialism, identity, and political turmoil.
Isabel Allende’s novel The House of the Spirits is a considered a major work of Magical Realism, and we see her utilizing the genre to achieve her thematic goals throughout the text, using genre conventions to explore themes of political unrest and women’s issues specifically. The magical powers that characters such as Clara possess (clairvoyance, predicting the future) locate the novel within the genre and also serve as a comment on the role of women in society in Latin America. Furthermore, Allende uses magical elements as political symbolism throughout the novel, portraying the forces of fascism as almost working “against” the magical elements and characters within the text.
Flores, Angel. “Magical Realism in Spanish American Fiction.” Hispania, vol. 38, no. 2, 1955, pp. 187–92. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/335812. Accessed 5 May 2026.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Universal_History_of_Infamy#cite_note-1