生於中南美洲哥倫比亞的Gabriel Garcia Marquez馬奎斯（1928-至今）結合了神話、傳奇、幻想與現實成為魔幻寫實文學，這份想像特質讓他榮獲1982年的諾貝爾文學獎。

〈一個最英俊的男人溺斃了〉故事發生在靠海的小村子，有人看到從海上漂來一個溺斃的人，趕緊通知村民合力將他抬回村子。他比馬還重，身體很長，散發出海的氣味。當天晚上，女人們齊聚一堂將屍體上的海草碎石清理乾淨。她們大吃一驚，因為這個男人的完美性遠超乎想像。Not only was he the tallest, strongest, most virile, and best build man they had ever seen, but even though they were looking at him there was no room for him in their imagination.

女人們決定用船帆縫製褲子，用新娘婚紗做上衣，讓他死得有尊嚴。她們圍繞著屍體一針一線地縫到深夜，外面的風很平靜，但是浪卻很大，她們覺得這些改變都是死者的影響。如果這個威武英挺的男人在村子生活，他會比任何一位丈夫蓋更大的房子、捕更多的魚、在崖壁上種出最芳香的花朵，當他的妻子真幸福！They thought that if that magnificent man had lived in the village, his house would have had the widest doors, the highest ceiling, and the strongest floor,......and his wife would have been the happiest woman.村子裡最年長的女人不禁長歎一聲：「他的臉多麼像Esteban！」（註：Esteban即聖經中基督教第一個殉教者Stephen）對！他應該就叫Esteban。

夜裡女人們守著Esteban，一邊想他這麼高大，活著時一定常常碰撞東西，但是他一定會說：「夫人！沒事，我好得很。」天亮了，女人們拿著手帕覆蓋他的臉，想到Esteban這個祥和、體貼的大個兒死了，大家不禁悲從中來而低聲啜泣，繼而哀號。It was one of the younger ones who began the weeping. There others, coming to, went from sighs to wails, and the more they sobbed the more they felt like weeping, because the drowned man was becoming more Esteban for them, and so they wept so much, for he was the most destitute, most peaceful, and most obliging man on earth, poor Esteban.

男人們把船桅捆成擔架，在屍體上綁上錨，希望他沉沒入深海中。女人們則拿出許多徽章、瓶罐當陪葬品。一切準備妥善，村民為Esteban舉辦葬禮，Esteban不能無親無故，村民即刻為他選了父母、姑舅、叔叔、堂兄弟等，也因此全村的人都變成他的親戚。At the final moment it pained them to return him to the waters as an orphan and they chose a father and mother from among the best people, and aunts and uncles and cousins, so that through him all the inhabitants of the village became kinsmen.

村民說他們以後會把房子蓋高蓋大，Esteban的回憶到那裡都不會撞傷，也要在崖壁上種花，將來船隻在黎明航行時，船長會被花香吸引到船橋，指著海岬上的玫瑰說：那裡太陽燦爛，向日葵都不知要轉向哪一邊，那正是Esteban的村子。Look over there, where the sun's so bright that the sunflowers don't know which way to turn, yes, over there, that's Esteban's village.

從陌生溺斃的男子變成有生命的Esteban，進而成為小村的傳奇，馬奎斯的魔幻寫實引領讀者進入如幻似真的世界。