Question

read the excerpt from cristina garcias dreaming in cuban.

lourdes considers herself lucky. immigration has redefined her, and she is grateful. unlike her husband, she welcomes her adopted language, its possibilities for reinvention. lourdes relishes winter most of all-the cold scraping sounds on sidewalks and windshields, the ritual of scarves and gloves, hats and zip-in coat linings. its layers protect her. she wants no part of cuba, no part of its wretched carnival floats creaking with lies, no part of cuba at all, which lourdes claims never possessed her.

which sentence is an example of magic realism?

unlike her husband, she welcomes her adopted language, its possibilities for reinvention.
lourdes relishes winter most of all-the cold scraping sounds on sidewalks and windshields, the ritual of scarves and gloves, hats and zip-in coat linings.
its layers protect her.
she wants no part of cuba, no part of its wretched carnival floats creaking with lies, no part of cuba at all, which lourdes claims never possessed her.

Explanation:

Define magic realism

Magic realism is a literary genre where fantastical, magical, or supernatural elements are blended into a realistic, mundane setting and treated as normal occurrences. In this excerpt, we look for a sentence where abstract, surreal, or impossible elements (like emotions or concepts having physical, active properties) are presented as concrete reality.

Analyze the options

• Option 1: "Unlike her husband, she welcomes her adopted language, its possibilities for reinvention." This describes a realistic psychological state and attitude toward immigration.
• Option 2: "Lourdes relishes winter most of all—the cold scraping sounds on sidewalks and windshields, the ritual of scarves and gloves, hats and zip-in coat linings." This is a highly realistic, sensory description of winter.
• Option 3: "Its layers protect her." This is a straightforward, realistic statement about winter clothing.
• Option 4: "She wants no part of Cuba, no part of its wretched carnival floats creaking with lies, no part of Cuba at all, which Lourdes claims never possessed her." This sentence describes "carnival floats creaking with lies." Lies are abstract concepts, yet here they are given physical weight, causing the floats to creak under their load. This blending of the literal/physical (creaking floats) with the abstract/impossible (floats loaded with literal lies) is a classic hallmark of magic realism.

Connect to mastered concepts

Using the Literary Symbolism and Literary Inference knowledge points, we can infer that the author uses the physical creaking of the floats to symbolize the corruption and political falsehoods of the regime, blending the supernatural/impossible directly into the physical description of the setting.

Answer:

• (A) Unlike her husband, she welcomes her adopted language, its possibilities for reinvention.
• (B) Lourdes relishes winter most of all—the cold scraping sounds on sidewalks and windshields, the ritual of scarves and gloves, hats and zip-in coat linings.
• (C) Its layers protect her.
• (D) She wants no part of Cuba, no part of its wretched carnival floats creaking with lies, no part of Cuba at all, which Lourdes claims never possessed her. (Correct answer)