Fantastic as a cause and consequence of the metaliterary: Historia de un hombre contada por su esqueleto", by Manuel Fernández y González (1857-1858)

Among the prolific fictional production of Manuel Fernández y González, the Historia de un hombre contada por su esqueleto stands out, as it is one of Pío Baroja's favorite novels, having been composed under certain circumstances very conducive to the artistic and to use, for the first time in his narrative, the fantastic as a claim. The latter is only achieved through the use, in turn, of the metaliterary, while the novel is fragmented into four narrative levels, all of them constituted by homodiegetic narrators, whose corresponding lack of certainties give rise to numerous reflections on the same story that is being told, which we never fully understand, which makes possible a constant hesitation about what happened that leads to the appearance of the fantastic.