The multiple and complex meanings of hunger in the novel O quinze, by Rachel de Queiroz: a historical-literary analysis

Abstract

Introduction: The novel O quinze, by Rachel de Queiroz, published in 1930, is a landmark in the literature on drought in Brazil. Objective: To conduct a historical-literary analysis of the novel O quinze, seeking to identify the meanings of the concept of hunger, as well as to understand how the author portrayed aspects of the food environment, habits, and food practices in the temporal context and setting of the work. Method: The analysis was based on a theoretical-conceptual framework from the field of Nutrition, complemented by a bibliographic review. Results: The word "hunger" was used with multiple and complex meanings, the most frequent being: dying of hunger due to food deprivation (caused by drought and misery); a momentary biological sensation of not having anything to eat; chronic or long-lasting hunger; hunger as a subject or evil entity; and hyperbolic meanings: growling stomach from hunger, crying from hunger, drunk from hunger, and going mad from hunger. The description of the biological and social consequences of hunger denotes the author's affinity with the literary movements of naturalism and social realism. The author accurately addressed the basic diet of families of migrants from the backlands. Using resources of literary realism, in a simple and colloquial way, the writer sought to portray the degrading consequences of hunger and misery. Therefore, she followed the path of novels that inaugurated the drought literature. Conclusion: Although not explicitly stated the historical, social, and political determination of hunger and its forms of challenge in the state of Cearáin the framework of the 1915 drought, the novel seeks to address the subject from a critical-social perspective.