The Boarded Window

In the story, The Boarded Window, there is usage of magic realism towards the end of the story where the man gets visions of lighting and loud noises, and a unique vision when the panther supposedly attacked the wife. Waking up the next day to find the panther’s ears in between the wife’s teeth , holds the true essence of magic realism. The boarded window itself represents Murlock. The passage also tells us that he did not board the window because of the hatred for light and air but some other reason such as his wife’s death. Windows are usually passageways to something, and when it is boarded up, it blocks the entrance to the passageway. The boarded window also symbolizes Murlock’s connection to the rest of the world, not nature. The story,
‘The Boarded Window’, makes extensive use of the magic realism in its closing paragraphs – in which the man’s wife’s corpse is attacked by the panther. The all too elements of human fear and panic are expertly conveyed through the flashes of lightning-illuminated vision that the man gets. This comprehendible fear is contrasted in the final lines by the discovery of a piece of the animal’s ear between the wife's teeth. This contrast may give rise to magic realism. This is most certainly not the only way that magic realism can be found in the piece; it is however, the most easily noticeable.

The story is an open-ended one in the fact that the mystery of his wife is never resolved (Was she dead before? Is she a zombie? Was she possessed? Is she dead now?). This uncertainty, the intentional failure of the author to clear up such questions, is a crucial component of an open