[In Progress] Magical Realism Unveiled: A Journey Through One Hundred Years of Solitude with Luciano Martinez | Virtual Course

Registration

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• This course is limited to participants who are 18 years of age or older.
• Please check your spam folder for your email confirmation. If you have questions, please call (215) 732-1600 or email [email protected].
• Registration opens for Delancey Society on March 7, for Rosenbach members on March 14, and for the general public on March 21.

This course is in progress; registration is now closed.

Description 

In this course, we delve into the profound impact of One Hundred Years of Solitude (1967), authored by the Colombian Nobel Prize-winning writer Gabriel García Márquez (1927-2014), widely hailed by Yale literary scholar Harold Bloom as “the new Don Quixote.” Boasting translations in 46 languages and a staggering 50 million copies sold, it stands as the most translated Spanish literary work, following Don Quixote.  

To cultivate a nuanced comprehension of García Márquez’s literary evolution and fictional realm, we explore a selection of his short stories predating this seminal novel. Examining the author’s life in tandem with his literary contributions, we draw insights from his challenging upbringing to illuminate his “magical” sensibility and enduring commitment to equality and social justice.  

This course adopts a deliberate approach, eschewing a hurried reading of One Hundred Years of Solitude. Instead, it fosters an appreciation for the pleasure of immersing oneself in a remarkable text. We will explore magical realism as a literary method, deciphering the novel’s profound themes including identity, historical recurrence, knowledge pursuit, time circularity, and the exploration of love, sexuality, and solitude. 

Syllabus 100 Years of Solitude

About the Instructor

Luciano Martínez is a Professor of Spanish at Swarthmore College, where he also serves as the chair of the Division of Arts and Humanities. He has additionally served as chair of the Department of Spanish, coordinator of the Latin American and Latino Studies and the Gender and Sexuality Studies programs, and Spanish section head of the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures. Prof. Martínez teaches classes on various subjects, including contemporary Latin American literature and culture, literary theory with a focus on Jorge Luis Borges, Colombian literature featuring Gabriel García Márquez, and identity within 21st century literature.