Magic realism and the feminine in Encanto: Genre and narrative mode as paratext

Berit Grønn; Britt W. Svenhard

doi:10.54797/tfl.v52i4.11758

Författare

Berit Grønn Høgskolen i Østfold
Britt W. Svenhard Østfold University College

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.54797/tfl.v52i4.11758

Nyckelord:

magic realism, gender, childrens's film, paratext, Gabriel García Márquez

Abstract

The Oscar-winning Disney film Encanto (2021) was hailed for its authentic representation of Colombian culture, but it also sparked a discussion on film’s ability to capture aspects of a culture and even change the global image of a country. This essay does not attempt to evaluate the merit of Encanto as a conveyor of Colombian culture, but investigates the representation of the narrative mode, magic realism, as it is translated from Gabriel García Márquez’s One Hundred Years of Solitude into Disney animation to be presented to a global audience. Based on the current notion of the feminine in modern animated Disney films, we explore how it may function paratextually to guide interpretation of the feminine connection with magic. Viewers of a Disney film in 2021 may have responded differently according to their cultural background and knowledge of languages, and in this case, their familiarity with Disney productions and/or with García Márquez’s literary universe. We examine how Norwegian reviewers received the film, particularly with regard to Disney conventions, such as magical elements, and the representation of female characters.

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Författarbiografier

Berit Grønn, Høgskolen i Østfold

Professor of Spanish and Didactics at Østfold University College (Norway). She is former Head of Studies for foreign languages and online studies. Grønn has also been Head of Section at the Norwegian National Centre for Foreign Languages in Education. She has published books and articles on Spanish, Foreign Language Teaching and Learning, including song translation as a didactic tool. Her field of research includes narrative, intertextuality, paratextuality, and literature didactics.

Britt W. Svenhard, Østfold University College

Professor of English Literature at Østfold University College (Norway) where she teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in literature and film. She has been an adviser at the Norwegian National Centre for Foreign Languages in Education and has supervised several national CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning) projects. Her field of research includes narrative, adaptation, intertextuality, and literature and film didactics.