Magic realism is a form of literature that embraces and accepts magic in the rational world while still having a range of other concepts. It portrays magical or imaginary elements as a natural part in an otherwise practical, everyday environment.
In The Picture of Dorian Gray, magic realism takes place in the novel. While the everyday lives of all the characters in the story keep going on, Dorian Gray, a man who wants to forever remain beautiful, wishes for a painting of himself to take on and portray all the sins and old age for the rest of his life. While Dorian on the outside always remains looking beautiful, everyone else grows older and the painting hidden away grows more and more grotesque as Dorian himself commits more sins and ages on. The magical element in the story is that while everything else remains normal in the environment, the magical painting becomes a known idea throughout the story to both the readers and Dorian Gray.
Another example of magic realism is in the story The Wizard of Oz.. Dorothy's life is boring, ordinary on her little farm when soon enough she is whisked away by a tornado into a magical world of witches and all different unusual creatures. Dorothy has never seen talking animals or witches, they have suddenly came into view in her otherwise normal life.
