One of the main aspects in the novel Like Water for Chocolate is magica

One of the main aspects in the novel Like Water for Chocolate is magical realism. The author, Laura Esquivel, uses it to show the main themes Like Water for Chocolate Commentary One of the main aspects in the novel Like Water for Chocolate is magical realism. The author, Laura Esquivel, uses it to show the main themes in the novel, such as the power of food, and passion. It exaggerates the important points in the story so that they can be more easily identified. Foreshadowing can also be shown by using magical realism. Magical realism also adds humour to the novel, which would otherwise be a serious story. But most importantly, it allows for the protagonist, Tita, to express her feeling and memories through the food that is so central to her life. Magical realism can be seen throughout the novel, even at the very beginning. The start of the story shows Tita’s birth in the kitchen â€Å"Tita was literally washed into this world on a great tide of tears that spilled over the edge of the table and flooded across the kitchen floor.† This foreshadows all the sorrow that Tita will go through in her life, and all the tears she will cry. It is also said that the water dried into â€Å"enough salt to fill a ten-pound sack†. This relates to Tita’s future love of cooking, as salt is used to prepare many meals. It is also used to preserve food, and this resembles the way that Tita’s memories are preserved through food and the recipes she uses. For example when Tita is preparing the 3 Kings’ Day Bread she remembers her childhood, and how she used to have so little problems then. â€Å"Her biggest worry then was that the Magi never brought her what she asked for, but instead what Mama Elena thought was best.† Magical realism... ...she see on the other side of the planks but Pedro, watching her intently.† Tita and Pedro’s love has always been passionate, and heat has always been used to symbolise it ever since they first met. â€Å"It was then Tita understood how dough feels when t is plunged into boiling oil. The heat that invaded her body was so real she was afraid she would start to bubble†. The magical realism conveys their passion, but also relates Tita’s emotions to food, as food is the thing that she is most comfortable with. Food is also one of the recurring themes in the novel, so magical realism again helps to emphasize this. So we can see that magical realism is a powerful tool for Esquivel, it helps to convey all the main points, my making them more noticeable and more humourous. She uses it to show the emotions of the characters, and to demonstrate the themes of the novel.