API tools faq
paste
Advertisement
jonstond2

Machado de Assis

jonstond2
Mar 17th, 2016
316
0
Never
Add comment
Not a member of Pastebin yet? Sign Up, it unlocks many cool features!
text 60.26 KB | None | 0 0
raw download clone embed print report
  1. Introduction
  2.  
  3. The Brazilian author Joaquim Maria Machado de Assis (b. 1839–d. 1908) is the towering figure of Latin American letters in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Generally called “Machado de Assis” or, simply, “Machado,” he is clearly the most studied author in Brazil. Machado is primarily recognized as a novelist and a short story writer, but he practiced nearly all the traditional genres to at least some extent. Scholars of a cultural, historical, or ideological bent have found fruitful opportunities to show that Machado was engaged in the political and social issues of his day, and they are motivated to contest early accusations of absenteeism. Scholars attuned to more formal and literary qualities have plenty of material, for Machado’s self-referential prose is permeated with metaphor and other poetic figures and abounds in subtle echoes and symmetries. Comparativists are at home with Machado because his writing is rich with allusions to many canonical authors and classical texts—most notably, Shakespeare, the Bible, Cervantes, and the digressive narrators of the 18th and early 19th centuries, such as Laurence Sterne. The person behind the texts has held an enduring fascination through the years, partly because very little solid biographical information is available about the man. Machado’s poor beginnings, and the fact that he was almost entirely self-taught, have helped make him the embodiment of a myth of upward social mobility: from pauper to president of the Brazilian Academy of Letters. Machado’s mixed ancestry (his mother was Portuguese and his father was a descendant of African slaves) has prompted continual debate about the degree to which he identified with this underprivileged class. His appointments to prestigious administrative positions in both the monarchy and the republic have prompted questions about his political leanings. Machado himself did little to shed light on these matters. He never wrote an autobiography. In his fiction, he created obtrusive and often ambiguous narrators, who, in effect, steal the show from their implied author. Even his newspaper columns are not unequivocally attributable to the voice of the real Machado de Assis. It has seemed urgent to discover the true mind behind such an elaborate play of nuanced voices, the authentic philosophical foundation underlying such a house of ironic mirrors. It is almost surely an urge that will never be satisfied.
  4.  
  5. General Overviews
  6.  
  7. In Portuguese, Teixeira 1987 is the more methodically organized overview of Machado’s work, while Moisés 2001 is the more original in its insights. In English, Fitz 1989 gives adequate attention to all aspects of Machado’s work and to points of comparison for readers less familiar with Brazilian literature. Daniel 2012 provides a new perspective on Machado’s complicated racial views, while Duarte 2007 is a survey of Machado’s texts dealing with race and slavery.
  8.  
  9. Daniel, G. Reginald. Machado de Assis: Multiracial Identity and the Brazilian Novelist. University Park: Pennsylvania State University Press, 2012.
  10. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  11. Relates Machado’s mixed ancestry to his sense of duality and ambiguity. Posits an ideal mind-set of “racelessness.”
  12. Find this resource:
  13. Duarte, Eduardo de Assis. Machado de Assis, afro-descendente: Escritos de caramujo (antologia). Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: Pallas, 2007.
  14. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  15. Compiles and comments on texts from all genres in which Machado mentions issues of race or slavery. Characterizes Machado as an oblique and cautious identifier with blacks.
  16. Find this resource:
  17. Fitz, Earl E. Machado de Assis. Boston: Twayne, 1989.
  18. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  19. Treats Machado’s most important production in several genres. Emphasizes the author’s technical sophistication.
  20. Find this resource:
  21. Moisés, Massaud. Machado de Assis: Ficção e utopia. São Paulo, Brazil: Cultrix, 2001.
  22. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  23. A collection of essays about short stories, novels, and newspaper columns.
  24. Find this resource:
  25. Teixeira, Ivan. Apresentação de Machado de Assis. São Paulo, Brazil: Martins Fontes, 1987.
  26. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  27. A systematic overview of the author’s major production. Presents the conventional wisdom on Machado in Brazil.
  28. Find this resource:
  29. Bibliographies
  30.  
  31. The body of works by and about Machado is truly enormous. All efforts to account for these writings rest on a foundation of two bibliographies by the same person. Sousa 1955 and Sousa 1964 list the texts by Machado and about Machado, respectively, and organize the material into helpful categories. Bagby 1975 updates the material about Machado, again breaking down the material into useful sections. Ubiratan 2005 and Pereira 2008 are the most up-to-date bibliographies of secondary sources, but they are more challenging to use because they are simple enumerations with minimal division into meaningful sections.
  32.  
  33. Bagby, Alberto I., Jr. “Fifteen Years of Machado de Assis: A Critical Annotated Bibliography for 1956–1974.” Hispania 58 (1975): 648–683.
  34. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  35. An update to Sousa 1964.
  36. Find this resource:
  37. Machado, Ubiratan. Bibliografia machadiana, 1959–2003. São Paulo, Brazil: Editora da Universidade de São Paulo, 2005.
  38. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  39. A listing of works about Machado. Organized year by year, in order of authors’ names. More than 3,000 entries. Helpful index of authors.
  40. Find this resource:
  41. Pereira, Paulo Roberto. “Bibliografia de Machado de Assis.” In Obra completa em quatro volumes. Vol. 4, Crônica-bibliografia. Edited by Machado de Assis, 1377–1442. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: Nova Aguilar, 2008.
  42. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  43. Lists Machado’s works, film adaptations, translations, and studies about the author.
  44. Find this resource:
  45. Sousa, J. Galante de. Bibliografia de Machado de Assis. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: Instituto Nacional do Livro, 1955.
  46. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  47. Entirely devoted to Machado’s production, accounting for the complexities of a lifetime of collaboration in periodicals, of compilations, of revised editions, etc.
  48. Find this resource:
  49. Sousa, J. Galante de. Fontes para o estudo de Machado de Assis. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: Instituto Nacional do Livro, 1964.
  50. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  51. Important accounting of the large body of early studies about Machado.
  52. Find this resource:
  53. Editions in Portuguese
  54.  
  55. More than one hundred years after Machado’s death, the scholarly community still is in dire need of a trustworthy edition of the complete works of the author. The most reliable editions are Assis 1975, but the set of fifteen volumes does not include all of Machado’s production. For many years Assis 1985 has served as a sort of default corpus for many researchers. In time for the centenary of the author’s death, Assis 2008 expanded on Assis 1985, including many more short stories, but it still does not amount to an actual complete set of works. It has also introduced some questionable alterations to the texts. The so-called Jackson edition (Assis 1964) comes closest to containing everything, but it is marred by errors and has a much-outdated orthography.
  56.  
  57. Assis, Machado de. Obras completas. 31 vols. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: W. M. Jackson, 1964.
  58. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  59. More complete than the three-volume Aguilar edition, but outdated in its orthography. Many errors.
  60. Find this resource:
  61. Assis, Machado de. Helena. Organized by Comissão Machado de Assis. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: Civilização Brasileira and Ministério de Educação e Cultura, 1975.
  62. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  63. A critical edition, this is merely one example of a set of fifteen critical editions. Includes all the novels and many of the short stories.
  64. Find this resource:
  65. Assis, Machado de. Obra completa. 3 vols. Organized by Afrânio Coutinho. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: Editora Nova Aguilar, 1985.
  66. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  67. Many different printings, with some minor revisions over the years to conform to Brazil’s changing orthography. Shies away from the term obras completas (complete works) because it does not include all of Machado’s production. Most notably, it only contains about half of Machado’s roughly 200 short stories. Contains many excellent explanatory essays by important Brazilian writers.
  68. Find this resource:
  69. Assis, Machado de. Obra completa em quatro volumes. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: Editora Nova Aguilar, 2008.
  70. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  71. Contains many more short stories than Assis 1985, but it still falls short of containing Machado’s complete works. Some arbitrary changes in Machado’s usage (coisa instead of cousa, for example, without a list or explanation). Has a helpful bibliography of recent studies, but omits the explanatory essays of Assis 1985.
  72. Find this resource:
  73. Biographies
  74.  
  75. In English, Machado 1953 is obviously the more extensive work. But the short treatment in Caldwell 1970 is perhaps better because it restricts itself more to those matters that can be properly documented and is more aware of the legends that have grown up around the author. Barreto Filho 1947 and Pereira 1955 display a tendency to make biographical inferences from fictional texts. The four volumes of Magalhães Júnior 1981 are exhaustive and relatively free from such inferences. The real accomplishment is Massa 1971, which uses solid archival research to illuminate the beginnings of Machado’s career as a writer.
  76.  
  77. Caldwell, Helen. Machado de Assis: The Brazilian Master and His Novels. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1970.
  78. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  79. An adequate biography in English, especially in the first two chapters. Explains some popular inaccuracies. Well documented.
  80. Find this resource:
  81. Filho, Barreto. Introdução a Machado de Assis. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: Agir, 1947.
  82. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  83. Tends to confuse Machado with his fictional characters.
  84. Find this resource:
  85. Machado, José Bettencourt. Machado of Brazil: The Life and Times of Machado de Assis. New York: Bramerica, 1953.
  86. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  87. The only full-volume biography in English.
  88. Find this resource:
  89. Magalhães Júnior, Raimundo. Vida e obra de Machado de Assis. 4 vols. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: Civilização Brasileira, Instituto Nacional do Livro and Ministério de Educação e Cultura, 1981.
  90. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  91. Based on historical documents, with occasional inferences from Machado’s fiction.
  92. Find this resource:
  93. Massa, Jean-Michel. A juventude de Machado de Assis—1839–1870: Ensaio de biografia intelectual. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: Civilização Brasileira, 1971.
  94. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  95. Rigorous archival research illuminates Machado’s earliest literary efforts.
  96. Find this resource:
  97. Pereira, Lúcia Miguel. Machado de Assis: Estudo crítico e biográfico. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: José Olympio, 1955.
  98. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  99. An influential biography, portraying Machado as a tortured soul. Makes biographical assertions based on Machado’s fictional texts.
  100. Find this resource:
  101. Translations into English
  102.  
  103. Eight of Machado’s nine novels have been published in English translation, the only exception being the very first one, Ressurreição (Resurrection). The project began in the early 1950s and continued through the 1980s. Other translations have appeared besides the ones listed, but they have come about more for commercial motives than for the need for improved texts. The dean of Machado’s English-language translators was Helen Caldwell with novels (Caldwell 1953, Caldwell 1964, Caldwell 1982, Caldwell 1984) and short stories (Grossman and Caldwell 1963). Grossman made important contributions with one of the greatest novels (Grossman 1952) and the first set of short stories (Grossman and Caldwell 1963). Wilson 1954, Bagby 1970, and Scott-Buccleuch 1976 rounded out the effort with one novel each. Schmitt and Ishimatsu 1977 made an important addition to the available short stories. The most pressing remaining needs are the first novel and more short stories.
  104.  
  105. Bagby, Albert I., trans. The Hand and the Glove. Lexington: University Press of Kentucky, 1970.
  106. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  107. Good translation of Machado’s second novel, A mão e a luva, exploring competing love interests.
  108. Find this resource:
  109. Caldwell, Helen, trans. Dom Casmurro. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1953.
  110. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  111. A profoundly self-reflective novel, Machado’s seventh. Its narrator, perhaps deluded, presents his belief that his wife betrayed him with his best friend.
  112. Find this resource:
  113. Caldwell, Helen, trans. Esau and Jacob. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1964.
  114. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  115. Symmetries and relativities. Identical twins vie for the affections of the same young woman while Brazil makes a transition from monarchy to republic. Esaú e Jacó is the author’s eighth novel.
  116. Find this resource:
  117. Caldwell, Helen, trans. Counselor Ayres’ Memorial. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1982.
  118. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  119. A skeptical retired diplomat discovers ambiguities in the courtship and marriage of a young widow. Memorial de Aires is Machado’s last novel.
  120. Find this resource:
  121. Caldwell, Helen, trans. Helena: A Novel. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1984.
  122. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  123. English version of Machado’s third novel. One of the most romantic novels, Helena introduces an apparently illegitimate half-sister and an apparently incestuous attraction.
  124. Find this resource:
  125. Grossman, William L. trans. Epitaph of a Small Winner. New York: Noonday, 1952.
  126. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  127. Machado’s fifth novel, Memórias póstumas de Brás Cubas, shocked readers of the time for its radical technique. Its protagonist lives, dies, and pens his cynical autobiography from beyond the grave.
  128. Find this resource:
  129. Grossman, William L., and Helen Caldwell, trans. The Psychiatrist and Other Stories. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1963.
  130. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  131. Twelve of Machado’s most famous short stories.
  132. Find this resource:
  133. Schmitt, Jack, and Lorie Ishimatsu, trans. The Devil’s Church and Other Stories. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1977.
  134. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  135. Nineteen short stories, mostly from Machado’s later production.
  136. Find this resource:
  137. Scott-Buccleuch, R. L., trans. Yayá Garcia: A Novel. London: Peter Owen, 1976.
  138. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  139. A translation of Machado’s fourth novel, which explores a real (or imagined) love triangle between a young woman, a young man, and the young woman’s stepmother.
  140. Find this resource:
  141. Wilson, Clotilde, trans. Philosopher or Dog? (Quincas Borba). New York: Noonday, 1954.
  142. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  143. Explores the rise and fall of the sole heir of rich philosopher Quincas Borba. A masterful demonstration of opportunistic sociability. Quincas Borba is Machado’s sixth novel.
  144. Find this resource:
  145. Novels
  146.  
  147. The preponderance of Machado criticism is centered on the novels. Scholars have studied the novels both individually and in groups. Three general introductions to the genre are Caldwell 1970, Cândido 1970, and Wöll 1972. The more focused studies have displayed a wide variety of perspectives, theories, and interests.
  148.  
  149. Caldwell, Helen. Machado de Assis: The Brazilian Master and His Novels. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1970.
  150. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  151. Concentrates primarily on the post-romantic novels. Explores Machado’s richly allusive practices.
  152. Find this resource:
  153. Cândido, Antônio. “Esquema de Machado de Assis.” In Vários escritos. Edited by Antônio Cândido, 15–32. São Paulo, Brazil: Duas Cidades, 1970.
  154. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  155. Frequently cited, an overview of Machado’s main projects and preoccupations. Refers to various novels and short stories.
  156. Find this resource:
  157. Wöll, Dieter. Machado de Assis: Die Entwicklung seines erzählerischen Werkes. Brunswick, Germany: G. Westermann, 1972.
  158. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  159. A study of Machado’s maturation as a fiction writer. Includes some discussion of the short stories.
  160. Find this resource:
  161. Philosophical/Theoretical Studies
  162.  
  163. Some studies have involved a philosophical or theoretical problem, such as the gaze (Bosi 1999), Pyrrhonian skepticism (Maia Neto 1994), figurative language (Riedel 1974), time (Riedel 1959), and memory (Saraiva 1993).
  164.  
  165. Bosi, Alfredo. Machado de Assis: O enigma do olhar. São Paulo, Brazil: Ática, 1999.
  166. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  167. A collection of essays, with some concentration on the question of the gaze. Novels and short stories.
  168. Find this resource:
  169. Maia Neto, José Raimundo. Machado de Assis: The Brazilian Pyrrhonian. West Lafayette, IN: Purdue University Press, 1994.
  170. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  171. Traces the development of Machado’s skepticism, primarily through his novels.
  172. Find this resource:
  173. Riedel, Dirce Cortes. O tempo no romance machadiano. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: São José, 1959.
  174. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  175. Relationship between time and the interior consciousness of the characters.
  176. Find this resource:
  177. Riedel, Dirce Cortes. Metáfora, O espelho de Machado de Assis. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: Francisco Alves, 1974.
  178. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  179. Analysis of Machado’s figurative language, which constitutes entire levels of meaning in the novels.
  180. Find this resource:
  181. Saraiva, Juracy Assmann. O circuito das memórias em Machado de Assis. São Paulo, Brazil: Editora da Universidade de São Paulo, 1993.
  182. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  183. Examines Machado’s problematic narrators as negotiators of memory. Concentrates on Memórias póstumas, Dom Casmurro, and Memorial de Aires.
  184. Find this resource:
  185. Studies of Literary Qualities
  186.  
  187. Much attention has been given to literary factors such as the reader (Guimarães 2004), characterization (Nunes 1975, Nunes 1983, Passos 2007), satire (Rego 1989), indeterminacy (Tosta 2004), esthetics (Sena 1986), and allusion (Senna 2008).
  188.  
  189. Guimarães, Hélio de Seixas. Os leitores de Machado de Assis: O romance machadiano e o público de literatura no século 19. São Paulo, Brazil: Editora da Universidade de São Paulo, 2004.
  190. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  191. Based on extensive research, the author describes the reception of Machado’s novels at the time of their publication. Transcribes and discusses early reviews.
  192. Find this resource:
  193. Nunes, Maria Luisa. “Machado de Assis’ Theory of the Novel.” Latin American Literary Review 4.7 (1975): 57–66.
  194. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  195. Finds material in essays, reviews, and in the novels themselves. Machado was no servile follower of romanticism or realism. His primary commitment was to subtle characterization.
  196. Find this resource:
  197. Nunes, Maria Luisa. The Craft of an Absolute Winner: Characterization and Narratology in the Novels of Machado de Assis. Westport, CT: Greenwood, 1983.
  198. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  199. Strong analysis of Machado’s narrators; nuanced discussion of the complexities of the author’s characters.
  200. Find this resource:
  201. Passos, José Luiz. Machado de Assis: O romance com pessoas. São Paulo, Brazil: Editora da Universidade de São Paulo, 2007.
  202. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  203. Proposes that Machado’s primary project in his novels is the creation of free agents, who must grapple with ethical conundrums.
  204. Find this resource:
  205. Rego, Enylton de Sá. O calundu e a panacéia: Machado de Assis, a sátira menipéia e a tradição luciânica. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: Forense Universitária, 1989.
  206. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  207. Machado’s relation to the tradition Menippean satire, a fantastical, freely playful genre.
  208. Find this resource:
  209. Sena, Jorge de. “Machado de Assis and His Carioca Quintet.” Latin American Literary Review 14.27 (1986): 9–18.
  210. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  211. Discusses the last five novels as an aesthetic whole, and as an expression of a cultural milieu.
  212. Find this resource:
  213. Senna, Marta de. O olhar oblíquo do bruxo: Ensaios machadianos. 2d ed. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: Língua Geral, 2008.
  214. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  215. Focuses on Machado’s allusions in various fictional texts.
  216. Find this resource:
  217. Tosta, Antônio Luciano. “Machado de Assis: A obra entreaberta.” Luso-Brazilian Review 41.1 (2004): 37–55.
  218. DOI: 10.1353/lbr.2004.0022Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  219. Suggests a “semi-open” aesthetic for reading Machado’s fiction.
  220. Find this resource:
  221. Historical, Social, and Political Studies
  222.  
  223. Machado is famous for his interesting female characters, who are discussed in feminist studies such as Lisboa 1996 and Stein 1983. A very strong strain of criticism involves Machado’s engagement with social and political questions of his time, and this is exemplified in Chalhoub 2003, Muricy 1988, Param 1973, and Schwarz 2003.
  224.  
  225. Chalhoub, Sidney. Machado de Assis, historiador. São Paulo, Brazil: Companhia das Letras, 2003.
  226. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  227. Studies Machado’s texts as representations of social and political realities such as paternalism and dependency. Treats Helena, Iaiá Garcia, and Memórias Póstumas.
  228. Find this resource:
  229. Lisboa, Maria Manuel. Machado de Assis and Feminism: Re-reading the Heart of the Companion. Lewiston, NY: Mellen, 1996.
  230. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  231. Shows Machado to have more advanced attitudes than most contemporaries regarding women.
  232. Find this resource:
  233. Muricy, Kátia. A razão cética: Machado de Assis e as questões de seu tempo. São Paulo, Brazil: Companhia das Letras, 1988.
  234. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  235. Studies Machado’s ironic engagement with current political and social issues.
  236. Find this resource:
  237. Param, Charles. “Politics in the Novels of Machado de Assis.” Hispania 56.3 (1973): 557–568.
  238. DOI: 10.2307/339243Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  239. Panoramic exploration of an important theme in Machado’s fiction. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  240. Find this resource:
  241. Schwarz, Roberto. Ao vencedor as batatas: Forma literária e processo social nos inícios do romance brasileiro. 5th ed. São Paulo, Brazil: Duas Cidades, 2003.
  242. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  243. Detects “misplaced ideas” when a slaveholding society attempts to imitate the norms and values of European capitalism, using A mão e a luva, Helena, and Iaiá Garcia as primary examples. Frequently cited in other studies. Originally published in 1977.
  244. Find this resource:
  245. Stein, Ingrid. Figuras femininas nos romances de Machado de Assis. São Paulo, Brazil: Paz e Terra, 1983.
  246. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  247. A feminist treatment of the novels.
  248. Find this resource:
  249. Ressurreição (Resurrection)
  250.  
  251. As might be expected, Machado’s first novel, the only one as yet unpublished in English, is also perhaps the least studied. Nevertheless, MacAdam 1972 exemplifies the occasional essay of high quality. Ressurreição is interesting in that it anticipates the theme of jealousy in Dom Casmurro.
  252.  
  253. MacAdam, Alfred J. “Rereading Ressurreição.” Luso-Brazilian Review 9.2 (1972): 47–57.
  254. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  255. Proposes reading Machado’s first novel as a satire.
  256. Find this resource:
  257. A mão e a luva (The Hand and the Glove)
  258.  
  259. Already in this second novel, Machado is attracting attention to his strong female characters. Biscetti 1983, Newman 1983, and Suárez and Garay 1992 are all involved with the protagonist Guiomar.
  260.  
  261. Biscetti, Rita. “Guiomar: Un personnagio-paradigma di Machado de Assis.” Letterature d’America 4.18 (1983): 83–99.
  262. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  263. Makes a case for the exemplary nature of this early character among Machado’s female creations.
  264. Find this resource:
  265. Newman, Penny. “O lustre do meu nome: Uma leitura de A mão e a luva.” Luso-Brazilian Review 20.2 (1983): 232–240.
  266. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  267. Focuses on the protagonist, Guiomar, as a woman who exercises power within a restrictive society.
  268. Find this resource:
  269. Suárez, José I., and René P. Garay. “Characterization in Machado de Assis’s A mão e a luva.” Journal of Evolutionary Psychology 13.3–4 (1992): 322–327.
  270. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  271. Analyzes the motivations of primary characters.
  272. Find this resource:
  273. Helena
  274.  
  275. One of the tendencies in studying the novels is to equate individual characters with a larger class or even an entire society. Brayner 1989 demonstrates this line of thinking. Durand 2000 exemplifies the practice of comparing Machado’s texts with the classics of European literature.
  276.  
  277. Brayner, Sônia. “Helena ou na transversal do tempo.” Travessia 2.19 (1989): 39–55.
  278. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  279. Suggests an allegorical view of the protagonist.
  280. Find this resource:
  281. Durand, Alain-Philippe. “Quatre mariages et deux enterrements: Helena de Machado de Assis.” Romance Notes 41.1 (2000): 97–104.
  282. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  283. Compares Machado’s novel to Saint-Pierre’s Paul et Virginie.
  284. Find this resource:
  285. Iaiá Garcia
  286.  
  287. In Iaiá Garcia, Machado is already beginning to leave behind his romantic tendencies and to explore a form of social realism in which characters behave strategically to achieve personal advantages. Ginway 1995 and Suárez 2000 explore this transitional status. The strategic aspect, involving uncertain loyalties, is studied in Suárez 1996 and Passos 1997. Bagby 1975 uses the novel to weigh in on the question of Machado’s supposed pessimism.
  288.  
  289. Bagby, Alberto I., Jr. “Iaiá Garcia: More Optimism in Machado de Assis.” Revista interamericana de bibliografia 25 (1975): 271–284.
  290. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  291. Uses the novel to argue against Machado’s reputed pessimism.
  292. Find this resource:
  293. Ginway, M. Elizabeth. “Iaiá Garcia: Romance de transição na obra machadiana.” Hispania 78.1 (1995): 33–42.
  294. DOI: 10.2307/345189Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  295. Relates the novel to Machado’s “romantic” and “mature” phases. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  296. Find this resource:
  297. Passos, José Luiz. “A sintaxe da vida: Ação e dissimulação em Senhora e Iaiá Garcia.” Espelho 3 (1997): 89–105.
  298. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  299. Compares Machado’s novel to a work by José de Alencar with respect to the strategic behavior of female characters.
  300. Find this resource:
  301. Suárez, José I. “O casamento, a família e o amor: A esquematização triangular em Iaiá Garcia.” Espelho 2 (1996): 39–48.
  302. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  303. Examines the structure of competing affinities.
  304. Find this resource:
  305. Suárez, José I. “Machado de Assis’ Iaiá Garcia: A Break with the Canon.” Journal of Evolutionary Psychology 21.1–2 (March 2000): 85–90.
  306. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  307. Addresses questions of genre and ideology.
  308. Find this resource:
  309. Memórias póstumas de Brás Cubas (Epitaph of a Small Winner)
  310.  
  311. This is perhaps the novel on which comment has been most intense. With its unusual first-person narrator who is dead, and who ambiguously claims to be providing a completely disinterested and honest account from beyond the grave, Machado’s fifth novel has inspired several studies focused on this problematic voice. The novel has also prompted a wide range of other studies, both local and universal in their themes. The compilation of studies in Ramos and Motta 2006 shows the amplitude of interests involved.
  312.  
  313. Ramos, Celeste, and Sérgio Vicente Motta, eds. À roda de Memórias póstumas de Brás Cubas: leituras. Campinas, Brazil: Alínea, 2006.
  314. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  315. A collection of essays on the novel, including topics such as a comparison with Apuleius’s The Golden Ass, precedents in Machado’s literary criticism, experimental techniques, chapter 55, precedents in Machado’s newspaper columns, a comparison with Svevo’s La coscienza di Zeno, the relationship with the Book of Job, the implied author, and ironic treatment of life and death.
  316. Find this resource:
  317. Narratological Studies
  318.  
  319. The problematic nature of the narrator, and his relation with the implied author, has been an insistent topic in scholarship such as Moisés 1963, Baptista 1991, Cypess 1978, and Speck 1981. The self-evident narrative technique could not go unnoticed, as per Merquior 1972. Nor could the treatment of female characters, as in Lisboa 1997 (cited under Other Approaches). A continued source of fascination has been Brás Cubas’s narration of his deathbed delirium, discussed in Barbosa 1992 and Birchal 1981.
  320.  
  321. Baptista, Abel Barros. Em nome do apelo do nome: Duas interrogações sobre Machado de Assis. Lisbon, Portugal: Litoral, 1991.
  322. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  323. A long chapter on Memórias póstumas explains why the novel should not be used as evidence of Machado’s pessimism. A lucid examination of the problematic narrator.
  324. Find this resource:
  325. Barbosa, Maria José Somerlate. “Brás’s Delirium and G. H.’s Reverie: The Quest for the Origin of Time.” Luso-Brazilian Review 29.1 (1992): 19–27.
  326. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  327. Studies chapter seven in light of the archetype of the eternal return.
  328. Find this resource:
  329. Birchal, Hennio Morgan. “O delírio de Brás Cubas.” Minas Gerais suplemento literário 14 (3 October 1981): 7–8.
  330. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  331. Studies the oniric content of Brás’s deathbed delirium.
  332. Find this resource:
  333. Cypess, Sandra Messinger. “Machado de Assis vs. Brás Cubas: The Narrative Situation of Memórias póstumas de Brás Cubas.” Kentucky Romance Quarterly 25 (1978): 35–70.
  334. DOI: 10.2307/345189Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  335. Asserts that Cubas is an unreliable narrator and that his perspectives should not be confused with those of Machado. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  336. Find this resource:
  337. Merquior, José Guilherme. “Gênero e estilo nas Memórias póstumas de Brás Cubas.” Colóquio/Letras 9 (1972): 12–20.
  338. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  339. An often-cited essay about genre and style.
  340. Find this resource:
  341. Moisés, Massaud. “Nota preliminar (Preliminary note).” In Memórias póstumas de Brás Cubas. Edited by Machado de Assis, 11–18. São Paulo, Brazil: Cultrix, 1963.
  342. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  343. Proposes that Machado’s Utopian voice can be heard as an implied counterdiscourse to that of Cubas.
  344. Find this resource:
  345. Speck, Paula. “Narrative Time and the ‘Defunto Autor’ in Memórias póstumas de Brás Cubas.” Latin American Literary Review 9.18 (1981): 7–15.
  346. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  347. Analyzes the problematic narrator.
  348. Find this resource:
  349. Other Approaches
  350.  
  351. Some readers, such as Schwarz (Schwarz 1987, Schwarz 2001), have weighed in on the specifically local and historical references of the novel, while others, such as Dixon 2009, Barbosa 1992 (cited under Narratological Studies), and Sontag 1990 have emphasized the universal character of the narrative. Still others, such as Bosi 2006, Engler 1998, and Facioli 2002, have claimed an equilibrium between local and universal frames of reference. Lisboa 1997 offers a feminist reading of the novel.
  352.  
  353. Bosi, Alfredo. Brás Cubas em três versões: Estudos machadianos. São Paulo, Brazil: Companhia das Letras, 2006.
  354. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  355. Examines the narrator as a deceased author with an unimpeded style, as an underground man, and as a social type.
  356. Find this resource:
  357. Dixon, Paul. O chocalho de Brás Cubas: Uma leitura das Memórias póstumas. São Paulo, Brazil: Editora da Universidade de São Paulo, 2009.
  358. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  359. A phenomenological analysis of the novel, suggesting that a childhood memory of a rattle in chapter 10 constitutes a “center of crystalization” around which numerous factors converge.
  360. Find this resource:
  361. Engler, Erhard. “Memórias póstumas de Brás Cubas von Machado de Assis: Zwischen Brasilianität und Universalität. In Lusitanica et Românica. Edited by Martin Hummel and Christina Ossenkop, 355–360. Hamburg, Germany: Buske, 1998.
  362. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  363. Uses the novel to show that Machado’s fiction is both very Brazilian and very universal.
  364. Find this resource:
  365. Facioli, Valentim. Um defunto estrambótico: Análise e interpretação das Memórias póstumas de Brás Cubas. São Paulo, Brazil: Nankin, 2002.
  366. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  367. Relates the novel to the tradition of Mennipean satire and to the digressive novel. Shows that, although the novel provokes a sensation of strangeness, it is ultimately a realistic document portraying the social and political problems of Brazil.
  368. Find this resource:
  369. Lisboa, Maria Manuel. “Sei de uma criatura antiga e formidável.” Espelho 3 (1997): 45–65.
  370. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  371. Treats Cubas’s delirium, especially the encounter with Mother or Nature. Relates to Machado’s poem “Uma criatura.”
  372. Find this resource:
  373. Schwarz, Roberto. “Brás Cubas e o Cunhado Cotrim.” Remate de Males 7 (1987): 19–25.
  374. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  375. Examines a character involved in the slave trade.
  376. Find this resource:
  377. Schwarz, Roberto. A Master on the Periphery of Capitalism: Machado de Assis. Translated by John Gledson. Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 2001.
  378. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  379. A translation of Um mestre na periferia do capitalismo (São Paulo, Brazil: Duas Cidades, 1990). A highly influential book showing Machado’s condemnation of Brazil’s slaveholding elite as embodied in the brash and volatile narrator.
  380. Find this resource:
  381. Sontag, Susan. “Afterlives: The Case of Machado de Assis.” New Yorker 66 (7 May 1990): 102–108.
  382. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  383. A famous American writer acknowledges admiration and “posthumous influence,” with particular reference to Memórias Póstumas. Available online by subscription.
  384. Find this resource:
  385. Quincas Borba (Philosopher or Dog?)
  386.  
  387. A semantic fulcrum of the novel is Quincas Borba’s philosophy of humanitas, in which some are winners and some are losers, but all is for the best because life, on a more collective level, continues to affirm itself. Studies such as Chaves 1974 and Gledson 2003 position that philosophy in more immediate, Brazilian terms, while others, such as Jackson 2004–2005, Moreira 1964, and Vara 1976, see the matter in more general human terms. Literary technique is the focus of Estrella and Monteiro 1973. Silva 2010 is interested in what the novel’s first, serial publication, and the changes it later underwent, can tell us about the overall message of the novel. And the continued possibilities of comparative analysis are explored in Passos 2000.
  388.  
  389. Chaves, Flávio Loureiro. O mundo social de Quincas Borba. Porto Alegre, Brazil: Movimento, 1974.
  390. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  391. Studies the novel’s network of social relationships, with emphasis on exploitation.
  392. Find this resource:
  393. Estrella, Hairton Miceli, and Ivan da Costa Monteiro. A metalinguagem em Quincas Borba. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: Livraria Acadêmica, 1973.
  394. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  395. Explores literary self-reference.
  396. Find this resource:
  397. Gledson, John. Machado de Assis: Ficção e história. 2d ed. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: Paz e Terra, 2003.
  398. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  399. A historical reading of the novel, suggesting that the protagonist stands for the Brazilian monarchy. Originally published in 1986.
  400. Find this resource:
  401. Jackson, K. David. “The Cannibal Metaphor in Machado de Assis.” Portuguese Literary & Cultural Studies 13–14 (Fall 2004–Spring 2005): 219–226.
  402. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  403. On Machado’s poetic language of exploitation.
  404. Find this resource:
  405. Moreira, Thiers Martins. Quincas Borba ou o pessimismo irônico: Diálogo entre o filósofo e o Brás Cubas. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: São José, 1964.
  406. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  407. Studies continuities with Machado’s previous novel, in regard to Quincas Borba’s philosophy.
  408. Find this resource:
  409. Passos, Gilberto Pinheiro. O Napoleão de Botafogo: Presença francesa em Quincas Borba de Machado de Assis. São Paulo, Brazil: Annablume, 2000.
  410. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  411. Reviews allusions to France in the novel and the general influence of French culture on the thoughts of the characters.
  412. Find this resource:
  413. Silva, Cláudia Suriani da. Machado de Assis’s Philosopher or Dog? From Serial to Book Form. London: Legend, 2010.
  414. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  415. Evaluates the differences between the publication of the novel in installments (in a women’s magazine) and the book form. Shows how an understanding of the magazine, with its focus on fashion, helps illuminate the novel.
  416. Find this resource:
  417. Vara, Teresa Pires. A mascarada sublime: Estudo de Quincas Borba. São Paulo, Brazil: Duas Cidades, 1976.
  418. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  419. Focuses on the philosophy of humanitas.
  420. Find this resource:
  421. Dom Casmurro
  422.  
  423. Machado’s seventh novel is a showpiece of his storied ambiguity. Its narrator asserts that his wife, Capitu, has betrayed him with his best friend. The veracity of that assertion has prompted much commentary, including many studies examining its pros and cons and the literary and philosophical implications of such ambiguity. At the same time, it can hardly be said that the question of Capitu’s faithfulness has prevented productive studies along other lines. Saraiva 2005, a collection of essays, gives a sense of the breadth of interests of the critics.
  424.  
  425. Saraiva, Juracy Assmann, ed. Nos labirintos de Dom Casmurro: Ensaios críticos. Porto Alegre, Brazil: Editora da Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul, 2005.
  426. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  427. Contains essays by Abel Barros Baptista (“Theater,” “Tragedy,” “Ambiguity”), David Haberly (“Novel of Adultery”), Eliane Ferreira (“Allusion”), Hélder Macedo (“The Narrator”), Juracy Saraiva (“Language of Seduction”), Lucette Petit (“Book of EZEKIEL”), Maria Manuel Lisboa (“Narrator and His Reader”), Marta de Senna (“Machado and Dostoievsky”), and Paul Dixon (“Categories of Readers”).
  428. Find this resource:
  429. The Ambiguity of Capitu
  430.  
  431. Although, some authors, in works such as Santiago 1978, believe the real question is not about Capitu, it has been hard to get beyond this basic question in the plot. Famously, Caldwell 1960 shows that Capitu could be the innocent victim of her husband’s excessive jealousy. Gledson 1984 and Schwarz 1997 suggest the political implications of that reading: The narrator’s erroneous and abusive attitudes are those of an entire Brazilian elite. Other writers, in works such as Ellis 1962, Baptista 1994, Senna 2005, and Dixon 1985, point out that a reading defending Capitu’s innocence is also incomplete and that the point of the novel is its undecidability.
  432.  
  433. Baptista, Abel Barros. “O legado Caldwell, ou o paradigma do pé atrás.” Santa Barbara Portuguese Studies 1 (1994): 145–177.
  434. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  435. Gives a good overview of the history of Dom Casmurro’s reception. Criticizes both the “Capitu innocent” and “Capitu guilty” readings as partial and biased.
  436. Find this resource:
  437. Caldwell, Helen. The Brazilian Othello of Machado de Assis: A Study of Dom Casmurro. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1960.
  438. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  439. Traces Shakespearean influences in the novel, proposing an ironic reading of the narrator’s account, in which Capitu is innocent of adultery.
  440. Find this resource:
  441. Dixon, Paul B. Reversible Readings: Ambiguity in Four Modern Latin American Novels. Tuscaloosa: University of Alabama Press, 1985.
  442. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  443. One chapter analyzes the mechanisms of ambiguity in Machado’s novel.
  444. Find this resource:
  445. Ellis, Keith. “Technique and Ambiguity in Dom Casmurro.” Hispania 45.3 (1962): 436–440.
  446. DOI: 10.2307/337406Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  447. A pioneering study of the novel’s undecidability with respect to Capitu’s fidelity to her husband. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  448. Find this resource:
  449. Gledson, John. The Deceptive Realism of Machado de Assis: A Dissenting Interpretation of Dom Casmurro. Liverpool, UK: Francis Cairns, 1984.
  450. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  451. Proposes that Bento is a deceptive narrator. Provides a historical/allegorical reading of the novel.
  452. Find this resource:
  453. Santiago, Silviano. Uma literatura nos trópicos. São Paulo, Brazil: Perspectiva, 1978.
  454. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  455. Contains a well-known essay, “A retórica da verossimilhança,” which asserts that the behavior of the narrator should be suspiciously examined, more than that of Capitu.
  456. Find this resource:
  457. Schwarz, Roberto. Duas meninas. São Paulo, Brazil: Companhia das Letras, 1997.
  458. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  459. Compares Capitu with Helena Morley, a Brazilian diarist. Studies the narrator as a voice of unjust paternalism and Capitu as a victim of authoritarian abuse.
  460. Find this resource:
  461. Senna, Marta de. “Strategies of Deceit: Dom Casmurro.” Portuguese Literary & Cultural Studies 13–14 (2005): 407–418.
  462. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  463. Addresses the unreliability of the novel’s narrator.
  464. Find this resource:
  465. Other Studies
  466.  
  467. The novel hovers between local specificity (Chalhoub 1999) and universal themes such as the quest myth (Dixon 1989, Schüler 1978). The highly stylized language of the novel has received considerable attention (Filho 1978, Garcia 1984, Gill 1987, MacAdam 1999).
  468.  
  469. Chalhoub, Sidney. “Dependents Play Chess: Political Dialogues in Machado de Assis.” In Machado de Assis: Reflections on a Brazilian Writer. Edited by Richard Graham, 51–84. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1999.
  470. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  471. Discusses the figure of the dependent, or hanger-on, within well-to-do Brazilian families.
  472. Find this resource:
  473. Dixon, Paul B. Retired Dreams: Dom Casmurro, Myth and Modernity. West Lafayette, IN: Purdue University Press, 1989.
  474. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  475. Discusses the novel’s ironic relationship to the myth of the heroic quest and the role of the four master tropes in displacing that myth.
  476. Find this resource:
  477. Filho, Linhares. A metáfora do mar no Dom Casmurro. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: Tempo Brasileiro, 1978.
  478. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  479. Explores the novel’s figurative language, particularly relating to the sea and its sexual suggestiveness.
  480. Find this resource:
  481. Garcia, Ana Lúcia Gazolla. “Dom Casmurro: A obra como espelho da própria obra.” Hispanófila 27.3 (1984): 71–78.
  482. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  483. A study of the novel’s metafictional discourse.
  484. Find this resource:
  485. Gill, Anne Marie. “Dom Casmurro and Lolita: Machado among the Metafictionists.” Luso-Brazilian Review 24.1 (1987): 17–26.
  486. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  487. Compares Machado and Nabokov in terms of self-referential discourse.
  488. Find this resource:
  489. MacAdam, Alfred. “The Rhetoric of Jealousy: Dom Casmurro.” Hispanic Review 67.1 (1999): 51–62.
  490. DOI: 10.2307/474329Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  491. Discusses the novel’s satirical discourse. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  492. Find this resource:
  493. Schüler, Donaldo. Plenitude perdida: Uma análise das seqüências narrativas no romance Dom Casmurro de Machado de Assis. Porto Alegre, Brazil: Movimento, 1978.
  494. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  495. A structural analysis, with interesting insights on the novel’s digressive material.
  496. Find this resource:
  497. Esaú e Jacó (Esau and Jacob)
  498.  
  499. This novel is a juxtaposition of oppositions. Twins Pedro and Paulo recall Esau and Jacob from the Bible in that they are polar opposites of each other. They compete for the attentions of Flora while Brazil is hovering between opposing conditions—empire and republic. The contrasting tendencies of Machado’s project—local specificity and universal forms—are thus embodied in this novel. Some studies, such as Campos 1995 and Wasserman 2008, emphasize the former, while others, such as Dale 1990 and Dixon 1998, emphasize the latter or at least acknowledge an equilibrium between the two. As Peixoto 1980 shows, Machado seems to insist on playing tricks with narrators. Here it is a third-person narrator, but one who participates in the action of the novel. Hart 2004–2005 explores another Machadian constant—metafiction and representation of readers and reading.
  500.  
  501. Campos, Maria Consuelo Cunha. “Dançando sobre um vulcão: o baile, o fim de festa.” Espelho 1 (1995): 31–37.
  502. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  503. Discusses the novel’s treatment of the military coup installing a republic in Brazil.
  504. Find this resource:
  505. Dale, Leslie Thomas. “Self-Reference and Doubling in Machado de Assis’ Esaú e Jacó: A Parable of Reading.” Romance Languages Annual 2 (1990): 560–564.
  506. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  507. Studies symmetries and echoes, and their implied message, about the novel itself.
  508. Find this resource:
  509. Dixon, Paul. “Esaú e Jacó: O ‘falar dobrado.’” Espelho 4 (1998): 5–22.
  510. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  511. On the one hand, the novel is one of Machado’s most clearly historical fictions; on the other, it is one of the novels that tends most toward abstract design.
  512. Find this resource:
  513. Hart, Stephen M. “Four Stomachs and a Brain: An Interpretation of Esaú e Jacó.” Portuguese Literary & Cultural Studies 13–14 (2004–2005): 317–331.
  514. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  515. Studies the novel’s reference to a “ruminating” reader.
  516. Find this resource:
  517. Peixoto, Marta. “Aires as Narrator and Aires as Character in Esaú e Jacó.” Luso-Brazilian Review 17.1 (1980): 79–92.
  518. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  519. Discusses the novel’s complex narrative situation: a found manuscript and a third-person narrator who includes himself in the story.
  520. Find this resource:
  521. Wasserman, Renata R. Mautner. “Race, Nation, Representation: Machado de Assis and Lima Barreto.” Luso-Brazilian Review 45.2 (2008): 84–106.
  522. DOI: 10.1353/lbr.0.0029Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  523. A comparison of positions taken by two “mulato” writers. Also discusses Memorial de Aires and the short story, “Pai contra mãe.” Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  524. Find this resource:
  525. Memorial de Aires (Counselor Ayres’ Memorial)
  526.  
  527. Similar critical trends continue with studies of Machado’s last novel. Gledson 1985 asserts the historicity of the work. Salgueiro 2006–2007 encounters a clever play with the name of the narrator. The novel provides a special consciousness of time as both Gumbrecht 2004–2005 and Monteiro 2004–2005 point out.
  528.  
  529. Gledson, John. “The Last Betrayal of Machado de Assis: Memorial de Aires.” Portuguese Studies 1 (1985): 121–150.
  530. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  531. Relates an opportunistic love affair to Brazilian history.
  532. Find this resource:
  533. Gumbrecht, Hans Ulrich. “The Beautiful Form of Sadness: Machado de Assis’ Memorial de Aires.” Portuguese Literary & Cultural Studies 13–14 (2004–2005): 307–316.
  534. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  535. Relates chronology in the novel to Heidegger’s Being and Time.
  536. Find this resource:
  537. Monteiro, Pedro Meira. “Absence of Time: The Counselor’s Dreams.” Portuguese Literary & Cultural Studies 13–14 (2004–2005): 353–371.
  538. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  539. Discusses the uninvolved narrator and the sense of time.
  540. Find this resource:
  541. Salgueiro, Wilberth. “‘José da Costa Marcondes Aires’—Conselheiro, diplomata, escritor: Um nome-calidoscópio em Esaú e Jacó e Memorial de Aires.” Espelho 12–13 (2006–2007): 45–67.
  542. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  543. Onomastic observations relevant to the narrator/character of the two novels.
  544. Find this resource:
  545. Short Stories
  546.  
  547. Conventional wisdom has long held that Machado’s short stories are of equal quality to his novels, and that, indeed, he is one of the masters of the genre. That said, it is hard to understand why there was no book-length study of Machado’s stories until Dixon 1992. Earlier studies tended to be general overviews of the genre. But, lately, important work on the stories has been growing. Carbonera 2000, Weschenfelder 2000, and Cunha 1998 constitute books on the topic. Senna 2008, a book on the stories, includes analyses by some of Machado’s most skillful critics. Rosso 2008 is a catalogue on the corpus of stories. As with the longer fiction, studies tend to focus on the complexities of the narrator (Baptista 1997), on relativities in Machado’s worldview (Baptista 2004–2005), and on associations of the stories with other works of literature.
  548.  
  549. Baptista, Abel Barros. “Entre o rato e o beijo: Analista e segredo em ‘A causa secreta.’” Espelho 3 (1997): 5–35.
  550. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  551. Responds to Dixon’s book. Focuses on the final scene in Machado’s story.
  552. Find this resource:
  553. Baptista, Abel Barros. “The Paradox of the Alienist.” Translated by Anna Klobucka. Portuguese Literary & Cultural Studies 13–14 (2004–2005): 473–486.
  554. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  555. Focuses on Bacamarte’s final act—committing himself to his own insane asylum.
  556. Find this resource:
  557. Carbonera, Ildo. A emboscada machadiana. Foz do Iguaçu, Brazil: Editora da Universidade do Oeste and Cascavel, 2000.
  558. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  559. Reviews Machado’s penchant for fools, idiots, and dullards in the short stories.
  560. Find this resource:
  561. Cunha, Patrícia Lessa Flores da. Machado de Assis: Um escritor na capital dos trópicos. Porto Alegre, Brazil: Instituto Estadual do Livro and Editora da Universidade do Vale dos Sinos, 1998.
  562. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  563. Compares Machado’s practice of the short story with that of Edgar Allen Poe, showing the former’s originality and Brazilian spirit.
  564. Find this resource:
  565. Dixon, Paul. Os contos de Machado de Assis: Mais do que sonha a filosofia. Porto Alegre, Brazil: Movimento, 1992.
  566. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  567. Analyzes ten short stories, with comparative references to many others, discovering in each a different “law” to explain Machado’s unique consciousness of the world.
  568. Find this resource:
  569. Rosso, Mauro. Contos de Machado de Assis: Relicários e raisonnés. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: Editora da Pontifícia Universidade Católica-Rio and Loyola, 2008.
  570. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  571. Untangles the complexities of Machado’s short story production, revealing which texts were published in periodicals, which in books, and which in first one and then the other. Transcribes some undiscovered stories. A helpful step toward a compilation of Machado’s complete stories.
  572. Find this resource:
  573. Senna, Marta de, ed. Machado de Assis: Cinco contos comentados. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: Casa de Rui Barbosa, 2008.
  574. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  575. Sérgio Paulo Rouanet discusses “O alienista” in terms of inversions and lucid lunatics. Ivo Barbieri treats “Singular ocorrência” as a challenge to smug masculine certainties. Hélio de Seixas Guimarães studies corruption in “Conto de escola.” Silviano Santiago reads “A causa secreta” to discover doubled sadism. And Marta de Senna finds in “Missa do galo” the inscrutability of the other.
  576. Find this resource:
  577. Weschenfelder, Eládio Vilmar. A paródia nos contos de Machado de Assis. Passo Fundo, Brazil: Universidade de Passo Fundo, 2000.
  578. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  579. Traces Machado’s appropriation of classic texts for ironic, humorous, or satirical purposes.
  580. Find this resource:
  581. Poetry
  582.  
  583. Machado’s first literary efforts were in the genre of poetry. The commonly held opinion is that his poetry does not rise to the level of his fiction. However, his sonnet to his deceased wife is one of the most beloved poems in Portuguese (Sachet 1989). Some of the studies try to increase appreciation for Machado’s poems (Jobim 2004–2005, Leal and Guzmán-González 2004–2005), while others confirm their deficit (Bandeira 1985). Marques 2006 explores unexpected continuities with Brazil’s Indian poet, Gonçalves Dias.
  584.  
  585. Bandeira, Manuel. “O poeta,” In Obra completa. Vol. 3, Poesia, crítica, crônica, epistolário, apêndice. Edited by Machado de Assis, 11–14. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: Nova Aguilar, 1985.
  586. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  587. The famous Brazilian poet evaluates Machado’s production as medíocre and pessimistic.
  588. Find this resource:
  589. Jobim, José Luís. “Machado de Assis and Nationalism: The Americanas Case.” Translated by Andrew Jager. Portuguese Literary & Cultural Studies 13–14 (2004–2005): 571–583.
  590. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  591. Even in 1875, and in spite of appeals for a more psychological nationalism, Machado had not completely rejected the practices of the romantic generation.
  592. Find this resource:
  593. Leal, Cláudio Murilo, and Talía Guzmán-González, trans. “The Poetry of Machado de Assis.” Portuguese Literary & Cultural Studies 13–14 (Fall 2004–Spring 2005): 585–598.
  594. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  595. Claims that Machado’s poetry is underappreciated, and that it holds keys to fuller appreciation of his prose.
  596. Find this resource:
  597. Marques, Wilton José. “Machado de Assis e Gonçalves Dias: Encontros e diálogos.” Luso-Brazilian Review 43.1 (2006): 51–64.
  598. DOI: 10.1353/lbr.2006.0034Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  599. Compares Machado’s efforts with those of the principal Indian poet of Brazil. Available online by subscription.
  600. Find this resource:
  601. Sachet, Celestino. “Morrer a morte no viver da vida.” Travessia 2.19 (1989): 112–118.
  602. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  603. A reading of “Ela” (She) and “A Carolina” (To Carolina).
  604. Find this resource:
  605. Newspaper Writing
  606.  
  607. The newspaper column was the venue in which Machado dedicated himself most consistently throughout his life. Machado cultivated a free, witty, highly colloquial style, which Granja 2000 shows may be seen as a warm-up for some of his best novels. Gledson 2006 believes the columns show Machado’s engagement with social issues of his time. Chalhoub 2009 agrees, but the author acknowledges that the columns present special difficulties for today’s readers because of their topical references. Cruz Júnior 2002 shows that Machado’s narrators continue to be problematic, even in columns signed by the author.
  608.  
  609. Chalhoub, Sidney. “A crônica machadiana: Problemas de interpretação, temas de pesquisa.” Remate de Males 29.2 (2009): 231–246.
  610. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  611. Enumerates several contextual factors that are necessary to consider when reading the newspaper columns.
  612. Find this resource:
  613. Cruz Júnior, Dilson Ferreira da. Estratégias e máscaras de um fingidor: A crônica de Machado de Assis. São Paulo, Brazil: Nankin, 2002.
  614. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  615. Warns against identifying Machado as the voice of his columns, showing that he invents fictional narrators.
  616. Find this resource:
  617. Gledson, John. Por um novo Machado de Assis: Ensaios. São Paulo, Brazil: Companhia das Letras, 2006.
  618. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  619. Three chapters discuss Machado’s columns, claiming his engagement with current social problems.
  620. Find this resource:
  621. Granja, Lúcia. Machado de Assis: Escritor em formação (à roda dos jornais). São Paulo, Brazil: Mercado de Letras, 2000.
  622. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  623. Studies Machado’s earliest work as a columnist, between 1860 and 1864, showing that the playful and ironic tone he developed anticipates some of his best novels and stories.
  624. Find this resource:
  625. Drama
  626.  
  627. A good deal of Machado’s youthful energies were devoted to the theater. Not only did he write plays, only a few of which were produced, but he also was a prolific theater critic and belonged to a board of censors. Faria 2008 gives an accounting of Machado’s writing on the theater, while Pinheiro 2009 gives an overview of the plays he wrote.
  628.  
  629. Faria, João Roberto. Machado de Assis—Do teatro. São Paulo, Brazil: Perspectiva, 2008.
  630. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  631. Compiles Machado’s criticism about the theater, showing values relevant to his own production.
  632. Find this resource:
  633. Pinheiro, Gabriela Maria Lisboa. “Considerações sobre o teatro de Machado de Assis.” Machado de Assis em Linha 2 (2009): 141–151.
  634. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  635. An overview of Machado’s plays, answering the conventional wisdom that they were of poor quality.
  636. Find this resource:
  637. Essays
  638.  
  639. The two most important essays are “Instinto de Nacionalidade,” a discussion of what factors contribute to “national” literature, and a two-part review of O primo Basílio (Cousin Basilio), a novel by the Portuguese author Eça de Queirós. Baptista 1991 takes on the former as well as critics inclined to ascribe a narrowly historical “Brazilianness” to Machado. Perrone-Moisés 2001, discussing the same essay, finds similarities with the thinking of Jorge Luis Borges. Werkema 2012 detects Machado’s theory for his own practice in the essay. Dos Santos 2004–2005 sheds light on Machado’s review of Eça.
  640.  
  641. Baptista, Abel Barros. Em nome do apelo do nome: Duas interrogações sobre Machado de Assis. Lisbon, Portugal: Litoral, 1991.
  642. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  643. Analyzes “Instinto de nacionalidade,” in light of recent efforts to show that Machado was a truly Brazilian author.
  644. Find this resource:
  645. dos Santos, João Camilo. “Machado de Assis, Critic of Eça de Queirós: A Symptomatic Misunderstanding.” Portuguese Literary & Cultural Studies 13–14 (2004–2005): 105–128.
  646. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  647. Analyzes Machado’s scathing review of the Portuguese, author, suggesting some misunderstandings.
  648. Find this resource:
  649. Perrone-Moisés, Leyla. “Machado de Assis y Borges: Nacionalismo y color local.” Cuadernos hispanoamericanos 618 (2001): 53–64.
  650. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  651. Discusses “Instinto de nacionalidade (The Nationalist Instinct).” Finds correspondences between Machado and the Argentine writer regarding authentically national writing.
  652. Find this resource:
  653. Werkema, Andréa Sirihal. “Estratégias de leitura da tradição literária brasileira na crítica de Machado de Assis.” Machado de Assis em Linha 9 (2012): 165–174.
  654. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  655. Studies “Instinto de nacionalidade” as a justification of Machado’s own practices and as a proposal for a fictional program favoring characterization.
  656. Find this resource:
Advertisement
Add Comment
Please, Sign In to add comment
Advertisement
Public Pastes
Advertisement
We use cookies for various purposes including analytics. By continuing to use Pastebin, you agree to our use of cookies as described in the Cookies Policy.  OK, I Understand
Not a member of Pastebin yet?
Sign Up, it unlocks many cool features!