Memories of a Sergeant of Milícias: summary and analysis

Memories of a Militia Sergeant é um romance de folhetim originally published no Correio Mercantil between 1852 and 1853. Integrally, to work saiu in 1954.

Written by Manuel Antônio de Almeida, or free to tell the memories of Leonardo, a travessa criança who becomes a "thug" before stabilizing as a militia sergeant.

Analysis and interpretation

Context

O romance by Manuel Antônio de Almeida was published when heroic romance was on the move. A majority of two writers from the era seek, through literature, to give a noble origin for the formation of Brazil and its recent culture.

Another example of these works são os romances or indianista poems that we found the values ​​of medieval cavaleiro were transported for Brazilian natives. The result was personagens like I-Juca-Pirama, by Gonçalves Dias, an Indian man and warrior, a cheio with noble characteristics.

Memories of a Militia Sergeant It is a book that draws on the typical characteristics of the Brazilian romantic movement. Or his main character, Leonardo, is a thug with little nobility.

The first striking characteristic of Manuel Antônio's romance is to portray the middle classes in the lower part of Rio de Janeiro at the time of the Portuguese court. A majority of two romances of the period portrayed the aristocratic relations of the court, not the popular classes.

Consequently, it is a simpler language, which is close to the popular language, attached to the part of the narrator. Or romance can be divided into two parts. At first it was a less expensive romance, with markedly burlesque characteristics and a chronicle. E a second is of a romance in yes, with focus on the narrative of the main character.

During the first part, the events seem scattered, with little relationship to each other. various clippings of events that mark the middle and low society of Rio de Janeiro in the time of Dom João SAW. O tom of journalistic chronicles predominates, with events such as Leonardo's batizado (not what the authority of Major Vidigal espreita) and via-sacra do Bom Jesus.

The second part is a fictional romance, with a focus on Leonardo and his story. Either a chronically picturesque character is abandoned and the main character assumes the role of the narrative protagonist.

Second or critic Antônio Cândido, or who gives unity to a romance and what author is "In order to intuit, apart from the two fragments described, certain constitutive principles of society, a hidden element that represents two partial aspects as a totalizer. "

Analyze

A more difficult analysis of the work of Manuel Antônio de Almeida is to find a satisfying characterization for a romance that has been produced at the time. O tom de comicidade da obra also does not help to locate its genre.

O literary critic Alfredo Bosi chama as Memories from "picaresque romance", from "crônica de costumes", e ainda refers to o "Realism of Manuel Antônio de Almeida". São three different characteristics that can be found in the romance of Manuel Antônio de Almeida.

Or picaresque romance from a marginal tradition, classicist and renaissance of romances focused on rogue characters. Anti-heroes that every year you give misadventures, you try to throw vantage of all the situations, using unethical means for such a feito.

A chronicle of costume or portrait of two costumes of a society that is close to a journalistic tom. Or realism is a literary current that seeks to explain a society through literature, investing people with a psychological burden and portraying their relationships.

Although we found no romance various elements of the previous characterizations, it is not possible to define Memories of a Militia Sergeant using just one of them. Logo a continuous problem.

Ensaio Dialectic da Malandragem

A problem in the characterization of romance is of interest to two major Brazilian literary critics. Antônio Cândido escreveu um artigo in 1970 on this subject, chamado Dialectic da Malandragem.

O artigo by Antônio Cândido became one of the two most important Brazilian critics. Don't just peel your free analysis Memories of a Sergeant of Militias, as it peels his sociological analysis of Brazil and gives the figure of a thug.

A central question of artigo and characterization of the romance of Manuel Antônio de Almeida. As seen, this characterization is not easy. After discussing some possibilities, Antônio Cândido defines or free as a representative romance.

For Antônio Cândido, o livro possui two strata: um mais universal, which faces part of a cultural cycle mais amplo, which addresses "situations born da sina". And another more restricted, related to the Brazilian universe. It is not the second layer that Antônio Cândido looks at his analysis of him: a dialectic enters order and disorder.

This dialectic is what structure or freedom governs the relationships between people. There is an order, represented by Major Vidigal, which is surrounded by disorder. Both communicate constantly and define more relationships between the people. This representation is only possible because it has been found with various stories from the Joanina society of Rio de Janeiro.

O main personage is Leonardo, a filho of a footstep and of a beliscão. Seu pai e sua mãe was established on a ship departing from Lisbon in the direction of Rio de Janeiro. Or casal lived together like filho, porém não was married. Leonardo and filho de uma relação estavel, porém illegitimate. The country of his is a kind of equator that divides the narrative between two poles, one more ao north ordeiro, and one more ao sul disorder.

Leonardo oscillates between these two poles like em uma balance, tending more to or not to commence romance. Até that not end he gets married and becomes a militia sergeant, establishing-se mais ao norte. This pole feared as a representative or Major Vidigal, who also gave up some times for disorder. For Antônio Cândido, "Order and disorder are therefore solidly articulated; The hierarchical world in appearance reveals itself to be essentially subverted, when the extremes are touched (...) ".

Manuel Antônio de Almeida does not deixa to show no romance, no judgment of value between as ações das personagens. Isso face as the reader does not have a reference for or certain and or wrong within the romance. Trying to help Leonardo to marry Luisinha, his madrinha tells a lie about another applicant, but, as he is a ruim person, a lie is not even more internally.

Either right or wrong, it is mixed, not romance. Ainda second Antônio Cândido, "The moral principle of Memories seems to be, exactly as the facts narrated, a kind of balance between or beme or badly, compensated at every moment a hair another sem jamais will appear in a state of interest. "

It is this universe and nessa nova society of the Brazilian that is born as the figure of the malandro. Where the extremes do not exist or what matters is the action and or their results, not the moral. This is a portrait of a person who has a little relationship with a velha order that warns of the empire and that tries to enter either beme or badly tempting to affect his identity.

Interpretation

Memories of a Militia Sergeant It is a unique book. Much different from what was written at the time, it continues to draw attention to two literary critics with a peculiar character. Manuel Antônio de Almeira was a day laborer, and this perhaps explains in the first part of the romance, that he wrote chronicles of costume.

Porém, in the second part that is revealed or romancist. Nela, Leonardo was an adult, and he was balancing between an order and a disorder with a type of remorse or morality. The less thought about his actions, the more they seem to be a positive effect for him.

Or romance seems to refer to the situation of the society of Rio de Janeiro in the Johannine era. The city became the capital of the Empire, and, together with the court, a new order was traced from the ancient empire, therefore that "order" had no roots in the city.

O romance narrates the middle and lower societies, which live at the edge of the court, rather than also having few relationships like work. Recent societies, which are not seen in noble relations, but also free. This is Leonardo's experiences of participating in the current order and also in subverting it, as well as in the same society that still does not define its moral parameters.

Até same or maximum symbol of the order not romance (or Major Vidigal) opens exceções à regra and helps Leonardo in exchange of dwelling with his lover. Or that gives great value to the work and the author's ability to narrate this society of morality.

As social relations are moving away, independent of "right" or "wrong". You people seem to have deserved sanctions, just as their actions have been negative in some points. Assim we do not miss a happy ending from Leonardo, even though he has made several "wrong" actions in the long run.

I summarize

Leonardo Pataca and Maria das Hortaliças met on a ship departing from Lisbon in the direction of Rio de Janeiro. With a foot and a beliscão eles começam a relamento that Leonardo filho feared as a result. Or casal lives together, porém não é married na Igreja.

Leonardo filho had a lively batizado party, com direito à vigia do Major Vidigal. Seu padrinho é or barbeiro in front of the house and to madrinha and to parteira. Leonardo Pataca e um meirinho and began to distrust that Maria or brought enquanto to the ruas.

One day, he returned home and surprendered to a fugitive cult of Janela da sala. Leonardo Pataca loses head and attacks Maria and her filho, who will not be defeating a shot. O menino scared foge for a barbearia de seu padrinho and Leonardo Pataca sai pelas ruas.

When he decides to return home, he discovers that Maria fled to Lisbon as the captain of a ship, leaving the e or his filho. Leonardo Pataca is not happy about raising a child sozinho and also deixa Leonardo filho cares for the compadre.

Leonardo cresce being pampered with his father's hair and preparing a lot. A vizinha do barbeiro is a kind of inimiga do garoto, ao ficar predicting a future of failure for Leonardo. Já seu padrinho te sonhos de grandeza e quer o garoto as a father ou em Coimbra.

Or menino continue preparing na escola ou na igreja. On a certain day, to follow a process, I'll stop at a camp of ciganos, where it happens to noite in the middle of a party.

As a child is cared for by the godfather, Leonardo Pataca wraps himself as a cigar. To lose or love her, she travels to feitiçaria to win her back.

It turns out that feitiçaria was prohibited at the time and Leonardo Pataca ends up imprisoned. Depois the discovery that cigana is involved as father and planeja uma vingança. No anniversary of cigana, Leonardo pays for a thug to cause a confusion at the festa e deixa or Major Vidigal notice.

When or tumult comesça, or Major enters the party and finds the only father of ceroulas and sapato not quarto da cigana. Confused about how the father gave up seeing Cigana and Leonardo reconquered his lover.

Or compadre começa to frequent the house of D. Maria, a rich lady. As visits are angry for Leonardo Filho, I added that Luisinha, a niece of D. Maria, you are moving home from aunt após seu pai falecer. Leonardo began to be interested in Luisinha and a name began to emerge.

I told José Manuel, um homem more velho and interested in herança de Luisinha, enters at dinner and begins to woo young man. Leonardo's madrinha resolves to interfere in favor of the affiliate and account for Mr. Maria a lie about José Manuel for afastá-gives him home.

It turns out to be a lie, porém José Manuel also had his allies that helped to unmask Madrinha. Assim, he returned to visit Leonardo and his madrinha ficam frowned upon by Mr. Maria.

Leonardo Pataca turned to problems with cigana and was convinced by the comadre to join his filha, as he burned a child. Enquanto isso, or compadre morre e deixa uma boa herança for Leonardo. He will say that a barbeiro will be able to bet as money that a captain of the ship or trust to deliver to his family. Interested not dinheiro do filho, Leonardo Pataca face like Leonardo more like him.

Porém Leonardo filho and a stepmother with constant brigas. One day, after a great brigade, Leonardo filho and expelled pai hair. He came out walking around the streets and I found a group of young people playing a piquenique. Nesse is a group that recognizes a childhood friend.

Leonardo is coming to live with him. A casa e composta by two irmãs viúvas, each one with three filhos, being three homens and three women. Uma das mulheres é Vindinha, pela which Leonardo fades and begins to fall in love. Or problem that she was disputed by two of her cousins. They resolve to get together to throw Leonardo off dinner.

One day, in another piquenique, Major Vidigal warned the cousins ​​that Leonardo will be with him, that he is a vagabond (not working and also not afraid), or that it was forbidden at that time. Vidigal turns on Leonardo, but he manages to escape, gerando a fúria no Major.

Your madrinha gets a business for the real ucharia. This business prevents Major Vidigal from turning it on. Leonardo gets involved as a chef and has just been dismissed. This was the chance that Major Vidigal was waiting to turn it on.

Depois of prisoner, Major Vidigal places Leonardo not in army and or transforms into granadeiro. Nessa função, Leonardo feared to help or Major to fight the thugs and vagabonds of Rio de Janeiro. O Major imagined that, by Leonardo ter feito part dessa classe, he could help or regiment as his knowledge.

Leonardo does not resist the mischief of the malandragem, which is truly harmless, and, not a place to fight the thugs, ends up joining them. At the party of batizado da filha do seu pai, Leonardo is highlighted to turn on a party entertainer who faz imitações do Major Vidigal.

Leonardo ends up helping or folião to escape. Or Major Vidigal discovers and orders to arrest Leonardo, who also condemned me to carry chibatadas. A desperate fica comadre with the situation of her affiliated and procure D. Maria to remedy the situation.

A rich woman is procured by an old friend, Maria Regalada, a woman of past suspense and a former lover of Major Vidigal. As three hours go to the Major's house to ask forgiveness for Leonardo. Após implorar muito, Maria Regalada faced a promising years of Vidigal.

Or Major resolve, then, release Leonardo and ainda or promote Sergeant. Leonardo returned to visit D. Maria, where Luisinha is new, depois da morte de her husband. You will be in love, but Leonardo cannot marry as an army sergeant.

D. Maria e a comadre voltam to procure Maria Regalada so that the peça at Leonardo's dispensation for o Major Vidigal, but, checking at Maria Regalada's house, we found them his own Major, who happened to live as a lover. Essa was a promessa feita by Maria ao Major.

O Major Vidigal then highlights Leonardo for Sergeant of the Militias, a position ainda major. Assim Leonardo marries Luisinha. You two together já possuem a grande herança. Com a morte by Leonardo Pataca and by D. Maria, or casal ganha mais duas grandes heranças.

Personagens principais

Leonardo

É or memorandum, or personagem responsible for the narrative unit. He is filho de um beliscão e um pisão, passes into childhood, preparing the youth as a thug. Até that he becomes Sergeant of Milícias, he marries and wins four heranças.

Leonardo Pataca

Ella é meirinho e o pai de Leonardo. She was afraid of women. Despite being a Justiça official, she is also involved in suspense activities. Seu called pataca vem by ter dinheiro.

Maria das Hortaliças

She is me from Leonardo. In Lisbon she was a Camponese, and not Rio de Janeiro, she lives like Leonardo Pataca and her filho was that she returned to Lisbon as the captain of a ship.

Or compadre

É o barbeiro padrinho de Leonardo. Despite living humbly, he feared a great deal that he achieved unfairly. She is raising Leonardo na infância, pampering or garoto.

A comadre

She is a partira e madrinha of Leonardo. In spite of being very religious, she gosta de fofocas and is behind a lie about the pretending of Luisinha and concordant of Leonardo.

Major Vidigal

She is the symbol of the order in Rio de Janeiro and was probably inspired by a real personage. He fights malandragem and vagabonding of the city of the Johannine era. But she also gives me years without her lover, as she will live in a non-official relationship.

D. Maria

She is a rich widower, friend of the compadre and the comadre. She is Luisinha's aunt, who I see as Leonardo Filho's woman.

Conheça also

• A escrava Isaura, by Bernardo Guimarães
• Livro Senhora, by José de Alencar
• Livro Iracema, by José de Alencar
• Livro A Moreninha, by Joaquim Manuel de Macedo