In the novel Pedro Paramo by Juan Rulfo, aspects of the setting, namely time and place, emphasize the magical realism of the novel and help convey the idea by Rulfo that Mexico is in a desperate situation regarding Mexican politics and the Church. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why violent video games should not be banned"? Get an original essay In the novel Pedro Paramo by Juan Rulfo, aspects of setting, namely time and place, emphasize the magical realism. Through his choice of time and place, Rulfo establishes a false allegorical reality symbolic of purgatory through which Rulfo is able to make a statement about the political and religious unrest of Mexico during the time in which the novel takes place. By describing Comala as a purgatory, Rulfo shows that Mexico suffers from the sinful and evil actions of the Church, which Rulfo portrayed allegorically through the character of Father Renteria and his sins, and from Mexican politics, which Rulfo portrayed allegorically through the character of Pedro Párramo and his manipulative and corrupt power in Comala. Magical realism allows Rulfo to subtly allude to the corruption of the Church and government and its consequences through his character living in purgatory. Juan Rulfo decided to set his novel in Comala, Mexico. In the novel's exposition, Rulfo incorporates hyperbolic descriptions of Comala's intense heat. Rulfo also points out the fact that Juan Rulfo enters Comala during the month of August. Historically, August is one of the hottest months in this region of Mexico. For example, Rulfo wrote: “It was during the heatwave, the season when the August wind blows hot, venomous with the stench of saponaria flowers.” Shortly after this description of Comala, he decided to reiterate what month it was and express the oppressive heat by including "Their sleeping eyes were bulging from the heat of August." The description of intense heat parallels common horrific descriptions of hell. Through diction with terrifying connotations such as “stench,” “poisonous,” and “the eyes were bulging,” Rulfo paints a horrifying picture coinciding with hellish imagery. By repeating the month of August, the hottest summer month of the year, Rulfo insinuates the intensity of the heat as Juan Preciado enters Comala. The diction and description insinuate hellish connotations through imagery resembling a common hell described by the Christian Church. In order to remove any doubt, Rulfo creates an allegorical purgatory, Rulfo openly states through Abundio's dialogue: "You will feel it even more when we arrive in Comala. This city is located on the coals of the earth, at the very entrance to hell. They say that when people there die and go to hell, they come back for a blanket.” Purgatory, a place inhabited by the souls of suffering sinners who atone for their sins before going to heaven, is commonly considered to be the median between heaven and hell. Rulfo metaphorically places Comala at the mouth of hell in this dialogue where purgatory would be in the metaphysical world. By describing him as at the mouth of hell but not entirely in hell, it illustrates Rulfo's optimistic outlook. By setting the novel in purgatory, it shows that Rulfo is optimistic that the political system and the Church will be able to find salvation and repair themselves. Furthermore, the fact that the novel is a purgatory shows Rulfo's optimism for the future, but also Rulfo's awareness of the current corrupt state of Mexican politics and the church. The allegorical settingindicates that Rulfo believes there is hope for Mexico's political and religious systems. Even Comala itself, the name of the town in which the novel takes place, is representative of the fiery pits of hell. A comala is the pan used to heat tortillas. This further correlates the setting and its crushing heat with the demarcations of hell by naming the town after something you cook on that draws attention to the extreme warmth and reinforces the magical realism of the novel. By setting a fictional novel in a city that actually exists in Mexico, the novel is given more realistic attributes. The realistic setting mixed with the allegorical setting of purgatory goes hand in hand and makes the audience question the reality of each character in the novel and their state of being within purgatory as it relates to their proximity to salvation. Juan Rulfo gives a sense of timelessness in his novel through the sequence of the plot. This sense of timelessness emphasizes magical realism by moving away from linear, realistic time and instead occurring in a short, messy passage. The novel has three distinct plot strands. Each plot, that of Juan Preciado, Pedro Páramo and Father Renteria, is loosely related but woven together but with regular confusion as to which strand is the actual voice. This adds to the magical realism and timelessness because you have to place the passage in one of the three plot strands after deciphering who the voice is. This confusion gives the story a whimsical, mysterious and magical tone that makes you question the reality of the novel. Additionally, Rulfo begins the novel in medias res. In the exposition, Juan Preciado comes to Comala and the rest of the novel tells what happens before Juan arrives in Comala and why Comala is in crisis. Writing the novel in media res allowed Rulfo to play with the notion of time throughout the novel. In addition, the writing of the novel in medias res highlights the fact that the characters have died throughout the novel through subtle allusions. As Abundio and Pedro discussed Comala, Rulfo wrote, “It doesn’t seem like anyone lives here. Nobody lives here.” Rulfo creates magical realism by making the deceased interact as if they were alive. Also, each voice is aware of its death to different degrees. Through Dorotea's dialogue, Rulfo expresses his conscience. He wrote: “After finding you, my bones were determined to find rest…they buried me in the grave with you, and I fit right in the crook of your arms.” Awareness of death directly correlates to the character's awareness of time or lack thereof. Characters who have not realized their death speak of time as if it occurs in a linear fashion and more often than those who are aware of their death. This is indicated by the tenses of the verbs. The word "determined" is in the past tense, which shows that she knows she is dead. Additionally, the plot is full of repetition and things are always recurring. Rulfo transmits it through Fulgor. When Fulgor appears in the novel, Rulfo tells us about the second meeting that Fulgor had with Pedro Páramo. Then, later in the novel, Rulfo recounts their first meeting. Rulfo wrote about the encounters in an attempt to illustrate that time in the novel is not linear and does not exist. Rulfo incorporates this to show that they are actually in purgatory, suffering for their sin in a repeated cycle while reflecting on their lives while telling these stories. Juan Rulfo deepens the embodiment of magical realism in his novel through the idea that there is no time after death and that things happen out of order. Keep in mind: this is just a sample. Get now..