Magical realism in relation to quantum physics Three works cited The term Magical Realism is said to have begun with the German art critic Franz Roh, who used flickering to describe the return of art to Realism from Expressionism. The term Magical Realism has also been used to classify some novels and short stories by authors such as Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Gunter Grass and John Fowls. These writers use techniques that combine the real and unreal in ways that make them believable and acceptable to both the reader and the characters in the stories. It can also be said that these techniques correspond to fields of study such as quantum physics. One such technique that can be linked to the field of quantum physics is the "proximity or almost fusion of two realms, two worlds" (Faris). This technique was used in Gabriel Márquez's story "Light is like water" when the two brothers Totò and Joel used a metaphor to bring the two realms of imagination and reality closer together. According to some quantum physicists, this fusion could theoretically happen. If quantum physicists read “Light is like water,” I believe they would come to the conclusion that a “wormhole” opened between two existing parallel universes and allowed such an event to occur. In his book HYPERSPACE: A Scientific Odyssey Through Parallel Universes, Time Warps, and the Tenth Dimension Michio Kaku states that: Normally, life proceeds on each of these parallel planes independently of the others. On rare occasions, however, the planes can intersect and, for a brief moment, tear the fabric of space itself, opening a gap – or passage – between these two universes. (23) This intersection of planes of existence appears to have occurred in “Light is like Water.” I believe the reason why Magical Realism has become such a popular genre is because the events that happen are believable and can be realized without the help of machines. Magical Realism also offers people a break from reality without truly abandoning the reality they have come to know and trust. It also gives a glimpse into the things we have overlooked in our busy lives. Woks cited Faris, Windy B. "Scheherazade's Children: Magical Realism and Post-Modern Fiction." Magical realism: theory, history, community. Ed. Lois Parkinson Zamora and Windy B. Faris. Durham and London: Duke University Press, 1995. 163-190 Kaku, Michio. “HYPERSPACE: A Scientific Odyssey Through Parallel Universes, Time Warps, and the Tenth Dimension.” NY Oxford Oxford University Press 1994; 16-29 Marquez, Gabriel Garcia. "Light is like water." Strange pilgrims. Trans by Edith Grossman. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. 1993. 257-262