Utopias of Otherness: Nationhood and Subjectivity in Portugal and Brazil

214 Pages·2003·0.67 MB·English

by  Fernando Arenas

Utopias of Otherness
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Utopias of Otherness
Nationhood and Subjectivity in
Portugal and Brazil
Fernando Arenas
University ofMinnesota Press
Minneapolis
London
An earlier version ofchapter 3 appeared as “Writing after Paradise and before
a Possible Dream:Brazil’s Caio Fernando Abreu,”Luso-Brazilian Review36
(1999):13–21;reprinted by permission ofthe University ofWisconsin Press.
Parts ofchapter 3 also appeared in “Small Epiphanies in The Night ofthe World:
The Writing ofCaio Fernando Abreu,”in Lusosex: Gender and Sexuality in the
Portuguese-Speaking World,edited by Susan Canty Quinlan and Fernando Arenas
(Minneapolis:University ofMinnesota Press,2002).An earlier version ofchapter
4 appeared as “For Time That Passes:Subjectivity,Nation,and Utopias in the
Fiction ofMaria Isabel Barreno,”ellipsis1 (1999):25–44;reprinted by permission
ofellipsis,the journal ofthe American Portuguese Studies Association at the
University ofIllinois,Champaign/Urbana.
Lyrics by Caetano Veloso are reprinted here with permission ofthe artist.
Copyright 2003 by the Regents ofthe University ofMinnesota
All rights reserved.No part ofthis publication may be reproduced,stored in
a retrieval system,or transmitted,in any form or by any means,electronic,
mechanical,photocopying,recording,or otherwise,without the prior written
permission ofthe publisher.
Published by the University ofMinnesota Press
111 Third Avenue South,Suite 290
Minneapolis,MN 55401-2520
http://www.upress.umn.edu
Library ofCongress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Arenas,Fernando,1963–
Utopias ofotherness :nationhood and subjectivity in Portugal and
Brazil / Fernando Arenas.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 0-8166-3816-0 (HC :alk.paper) — ISBN 0-8166-3817-9 (alk.
paper)
1. Portugal—Civilization—21st century. 2. Brazil—Civilization—
21st century. 3. Identity (Psychology). 4. Portuguese fiction—
20th century—Criticism and interpretation. 5. Brazilian fiction—
20th century—Criticism and interpretation. 6. Utopias in literature.
7. Literature and myth. 8. Difference (Psychology) in literature.
I. Title.
DP681 .A74 2003
869.3'4209353—dc21 2002014513
Printed in the United States ofAmerica on acid-free paper
The University ofMinnesota is an equal-opportunity educator and employer.
12 11 10 09 08 07 06 05 04 03 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
To Greg,Maria João,Jorge,Beatriz,Juanpa,and Tico.
Family in the World
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[eu quero] um colo ou um berço ou um braço quente em torno ao
meu pescoço...uma voz que canta baixo e parece querer fazer-me
chorar...o ruído de lume na lareira...um calor no inverno...um
extravio morno da minha consciência...e depois sem som,um
sonho calmo num espaço enorme,como a lua rodando entre estrelas
[I wish for] a lap or a cradle or a warm arm around my neck...
a softly singing voice that seems to want to make me cry...the
crackling offire in the fireplace...heat in the winter...a listless
wandering ofmy consciousness...and then a calm soundless dream
in a huge space,like the moon turning among the stars
—Livro do desassossego(The book ofdisquietude),Fernando Pessoa
de onde nem tempo nem espaço
que a força mande coragem
pra gente te dar carinho
durante toda a viagem
que realizas no nada
através do qual carregas
o nome da tua carne
from where neither time nor space
may a force bring with it courage
so that we may give you love
throughout the journey
you undertake within nothingness
and through which you carry
the name ofyour flesh
—“Terra”(Earth),Caetano Veloso
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Contents
Acknowledgments xi
Introduction xv
ONE
Portugal:Ideas ofEmpire and Nationhood 1
TWO
Brazilian National Identity:
Intellectual Debates and Changing Cultural Realities 22
THREE
Subjectivities and Homoerotic Desire in Contemporary Brazilian Fiction:
The Nation ofCaio Fernando Abreu 42
FOUR
Women’s Difference in Contemporary Portuguese Fiction:
The Case ofMaria Isabel Barreno 66
FIVE
Worlds in Transition and Utopias ofOtherness 87
Conclusions 126
Notes 131
Bibliography 161
Index 175