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Literary Analysis : ' Dream Like Quality '

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Jorge Luis Borges was an Argentine writer who lived between the years of 1899 and 1986. Borges is known for his short stories that use elements of magic realism to leave the reader wondering about themselves and the world they live in. Magic realism can be defined as giving the story “dream-like quality” which is “captured by the presentation of improbable juxtapositions in a style that is highly objective, precise, and deceptively simple” (Menton 412). Borges used this to his advantage by taking simple everyday scenarios and adding a twist. In the case of “Dreamtiger,” “Inferno, I, 32,” and “Blue Tiger,” it is the element of a big cat. This forces the reader to identify with the protagonist, and as the narrators in these stories do, the reader themselves goes on to individualize in their journey to discovering their true “Self”.The journey to finding fulfillment is not easy but is important. Borges makes this evident by challenging the protagonists in his stories, he paints their journey as a labyrinth. Like a labyrinth the journey has no clear path, and has many possibilities, but once the center is reached, you find what you were looking for. Borges uses big cats to symbolize the process of individualization, and the obstacles a person must face in order to discover their true “Self”. It was during the 1920s that Borges first published his works of literature. It was also at this time that the concept of magic realism was gaining popularity and the works of Carl Jung

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