Quincas Borba (Library of Latin America) - Hardcover

Machado De Assis, Joachim Maria

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0195106814 ISBN 13: 9780195106817

Publisher: OUP USA, 1999

Synopsis

Machado de Assis is considered the pre-eminent writer of Brazil. Quincas Borba is one of his four most important novels and features some of the same characters as Memorias Postumas de Bras Cubas.
The main character of this novel is a well-meaning country fellow who moves to the city with his dog, Quincas Borba, named after the mad philosopher who was his previous owner. As the dog's new owner explores the social, political, and commercial world of the city, he also tries to come to grips with the motives that lie behind every human action and begins to ponder what madness really is. Despite the "heavy" messages behind this book, the narration is light-hearted, allowing readers to laugh both at the foibles of society and at themselves.

About this title

About the Author

Joaquim Machado de Assis (1839-1908), the descendent of African slaves, is considered one of the greatest Latin American authors of the last century. His novels include The Posthumous Memoirs of Bras Cubas, and Dom Casmurro. Gregory Rabassa is the preeminent American translator of Spanish and Portuguese, whose works include One Hundred Years of Solitude and The Posthumous Memoirs of Bras Cubas. Celso Ravaretto teaches at the University of Sao Paolo. David T. Haberly teaches at the University of Virginia.

From the Back Cover

When the mad philosopher Quincas Borba dies, he leaves to his friend Rubiao the entirety of his wealth and property, with a single stipulation: Rubiao must take care of Quincas Borba's dog, who is also named Quincas Borba, and who may indeed have assumed the soul of the dead philosopher. Flush with his newfound wealth, Rubiao heads for Rio de Janeiro and plunges headlong into a world where fantasy and reality become increasingly difficult to keep separate. We encounter roses that speak to each other, discussing the character and actions of their owner, Sofia; even the stars above occasionally comment, sarcastically, on the humans below. When Rubiao falls in love with the wife of his best friend, we see adultery as yet another betrayal of reality. Rubiao's own hold on reality becomes ever more tenuous as he makes elaborate plans for his marriage, even though he has no bride, and fantasizes that he has become Napoleon III. The very nature of reality, the novel seems to he saying, is an agreed-upon fiction told by an unreliable narrator.

Edition details

• Publisher: OUP USA
• Publication date: 1999
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0195106814
• ISBN 13: 9780195106817
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 320
• Editor: Favaretto Celso, Haberly David T.