IS MACHADO DE ASSIS A HISTORIAN? THE CHRONICLES “A SEMANA” AND MEMORIES OF SLAVERY, REPUBLIC AND CANUDOS

Abstract

Born as a feuilleton, the chronicle of the nineteenth century approached the most diverse topics, from trivial to serious from unimportant to more serious events. For a long time, Machado de Assis was misunderstood by his readers and a large number of reviewers dedicated to his work, because they had difficulty to find political engagement or concern in the production of this author. The Chronicles of “A Semana”, however, reveal not only an intense reflection on the important events of the nineteenth-century Brazil but also the development of narrative construction techniques like a mosaic, which thinking appears fragmented in various subjects which deal with the writer.