TRABALHANDO FEITO LOUCO

WORKING LIKE CRAZY: work, spatial dimension and mental illness in the short story “The Alienist”

Abstract

The text is a literary-geographical approach to the short story “The Alienist” by Machado de Assis. It analyzes mental illness as a result of the alienist’s work in the landscapes of Itaguaí. It discusses how mental illness is represented based on the alienist’s theories and the impacts of his work on the territorial configuration and socio-spatial dynamics of the town of Itaguaí. It highlights the changes in the landscape as the story unfolds, up until the final act, when the alienist self-imprisons himself in the Green House.