"Did she cheat or not?" - ask a brazilian without a context; get an answer as natural as sunlight, without hesitation, cause everyone knows what it's about.
I totally agree with your perspective when you said “I think he’s one of the best authors period.” People tend to diminish colonized societies’ value by always saying that “it’s good, for their standards”. It’s really frustrating to see reviewers read European or North American books and say that their authors are great, but when they appreciate African/Latin American/Asian art, they either say “it was unexpectedly good”, as if being good in art demanded being born in a metropolitan country, or they say “it’s good, for a (insert a non-European and non-American nationality here) author”, implying that these countries should always get lower expectations. It’s simply disgusting and I’m so glad you mentioned it in your video.
Exactly! There are always subcategories, as if those authors are supposedly held by lower standards. It's a very poor and stiff way of perceiving Literature. Brazil, for example, produces Literature as good and as full of identity as Russian, French or English, but is very underappreciated in the international academia and with the general public. Pity.
@@gv5884 So true! I am Brazilian myself, and even though some of us know very little of our literature value, I guess it is common sense here that our author are really good. To me, personally, I have such an intimate and loving relationship with Brazilian literature, almost as if it was a part of who I am. In some ways, it really is. So that’s why I think this kind of prejudice towards colonized societies (specially Brazil, for obvious reasons) really gets me. Anyways, thanks for your comment.
@@marcoantunes1813 The key thing is that Brazil is not a global power. Even during the Empire, which, as far as I am aware, was the period when the country was in its pinnacle of power, and an epitaph of stability under the Emperor, whilst the rest of Latin America, for instance, was the opposite of order, it wasn't a global power, though it was a regional power. During the 19th century and beggining of the 20th, the UK, France and Germany were the main global - and intelectual - powers. Since the works of Machado were published in Portuguese, it isn't astonishing that his works, and the works of many other Portuguese-speaking authors, aren't generally known in the rest of Western Civilization, and more especifally in the English-speaking world. Let's see if that changes with the progress of time
Fun fact: a good Brazilian university once studied this book to try to find out if there was more evidence that Capitu betrayed or that she did not. And guess what, there is exactly the same amount of evidence that she betrayed and did not betrayed.
actually, a lot of law colleges do that, even my old school did that too, was like a acting and a judment like thing, everyone was called to watch, and if I remember well, she betrayed
It's no coincidence that Bento is a lawyer. Dom Casmurro is basically an old man's effort to defend himself from his consciouness and from his reader's judgment after the horrible things he did. This is why Machado de Assis chose to let his protagonist narrate his book.
And also, we never heard Capitu's version of the story, maybe saw by other eyes everything would be different. That's the magic with Dom Casmurro, the doubt!!!
Great point! And also there is some love in his heart; that scene where Bento describe their first kiss is simply sublime! That's why it is an enormous book ever!! 😍
Este é um falso dilema. Machado é muito inteligente, ele joga com o leitor, desafiando-o a ficar do lado de Capitu numa sociedade que desconsidera o olhar feminino. A única voz é a de Bentinho, não conhecemos a de Capitu.
Espero que chegue o dia em que todo mundo vai parar com isso e entender que essa pergunta é só pro povo ter a sensação de que conhece a literatura do Machado. NÃO IMPORTA, VÉI! MACHADO SABIA DISSO E O PONTO CENTRAL NÃO É ESSE!
Man! I'm Brazilian. And teacher of Literature. I'm amazed by finding this video about one of my favorite books ever!! My favorite part is when Bento describes Capitu in front of the mirror, her hair and finally the kiss!! Breathtaking, for sure!! I don't know if you're aware, but there is an amazing TV version of the book named (here in Brazil) "Capitu" (it was produced by TV Globo). Really great! Congrats from Brazil!
@@inarticulado Esses são os livros mais estúpidos que eu tive o desprazer de ler. São livros medíocres e muito, mas muito superestimados se comparados com grandes obras. É triste pagar por educação e ser obrigado a ler essas porcarias. Por causa de livros como estes, perdi totalmente a vontade ler na minha época de colégio.
"Dom Casmurro" seems to be a response to "O Primo Basílio" (Eça de Queiroz), which is also about adultery. Machado famously criticized Eça's novel in a review published in 1878, which sparked a sort of feud between the authors.
Machado is the best writer of Brazil's History. He founded The Brazilian Academy of Letters who is the base for modern Portuguese language. I'm glad to see people from other countries appreciating his talent. ;)
it's interesting to know that for decades since Dom Casmurro's release Brazilian critics were sure that Capitu did in fact cheat on Bento. It goes to show the "readers mirror" theory that you mentioned... The first person to suggest that Capitu didn't cheat on Bento was an American critic named Helen Caldwell; applying feminist criticism to Dom Casmurro in her 60's book "The Brazilian Othello of Machado de Assis", she paved the way for the modern interpretations of Machado's masterpiece.
@@patriciagss2024 Before Helen Caldwell, all critics were sure that Capitu cheated on Bento. There was even less room for interpretation back then. It was only through the feminist critique lens that people started to consider other options
Por isso que os gringos nos acham tóxicos e até evitam de citar o Brasil só pra não chamar a nossa atenção. Enche o saco as vezes! Brasileiro não tem simolcol as vezes.
If one day you get to learn portuguese, please give Dom Casmurro a reread! The way Machado uses our language is incredible, so many hidden clues between the words will make you see the book clearer!
One of the most interesting and somewhat hidden themes in the book is the clash between the traditional rural classes (Bentinho) and the new Brazilian urban bourgeoisie (Escobar). Capitu is in many ways the representation of what the urban bourgeoisie have supposedly stolen from the Brazilian aristocracy - but, most of all, the resentment of the rural classes after all the developments in Brazil during the second half of the 19th century. Dr. André Boucinhas talks about it in the article “O Segredo de Escobar” (The Secret of Escobar).
What saddens me is that in Brazil the focus on "Dom Casmurro" is the "did she cheat" section in the last 50 pages or so, totally missing the larger themes of the book about a man who holds NOTHING sacred (including his wife and best friend at the end). This is an amazing book, and the name and style purposefully parallels Cervantes' "Dom Quixote" but the opposite, where Casmurro is the lord of assholes instead of the errant-knight of chivalry. Every chapter is an instance of him disrespecting something else sacred. There's a whole wonderful chapter where he invents a shitty-ass algorithm for poetry and decides that he has basically solved poetry for good. XD He abandons his childhood home for a better location and then builds a new version-an exact replica!-totally disrespecting the actual location where he was raised. Even God, whom he believes in, he disrespects, by not only shirking his duties as a to-be priest, but also creating his own I.O.U. system with God to put off ever having to pay penance. The question of Capitu's faithfulness is fun and very cultural, but also really short-sighted in my opinion for what amounts to such a deep and brilliant character study.
The sacred aspects of the book are there and we brazilians know this. Thing is this is so recurrent in our culture and yet such a paradox, we tend to see this as part of our lives and end up identifying ourselves with every instance of madness in his life. Just for instance, I was supposed to be a priest, both grandma and my mother liked the idea. Yet I'm anything but, I hate religion even.
you should read "O Aliensta" (the alienist) by machado too, short but genius book... very much ahead of its time and a msut read to understand how come "alternative facts" are a thing nowadays
The best of Machado, for me, is his "The Mirror" short story. It reminded me of Kafka's Metamorphosis -- taking away someone's image for them to realize, after raw scrutiny, that it was all a social construct, and that maybe there was nothing else left. So powerful and it definetly made me cry.
Chapter 9 - The Opera is my favorite chapter from any book i’ve ever read, the way he compares the earth and the cosmos to an opera almost makes me cry. I still have this chapter memorized word by word
Sad part is that this and other masterpieces from our culture tend to be presented in schools in a way that makes everyone feel like these books are boring and meaningless, and many students never read other books because they think everything from brazilian literature sucks. I recommend you read The Time and the Wind, by Érico Veríssimo.
Generally 14/15 years old kids are forced to read it, and OF COURSE out of a class of 30, maybe one or two will enjoy. This is definitely not a book for young teenagers... It ruins all the future love for literature they could have. I remember I hated it when I read it when I was 15. But years later I watched the tv series Capitu, and HAD to read it again, and then I understood how great the book was!
I think it's a poor translation, but how would you translate it? The two meanings I know are hangover and a big storm along the shore. I couldn't decide which meaning Machado meant; if she had 'stormy' eyes or eyes that made mean feel "drunk."
@@carlrenzi It's not a storm, it's a return flow when the waves crash on the sea. And yes, that is what he meant. It's pretty clear by context. Oh, and undertow is the correct word for that.
@@crazy1tad1pole1 Here in Rio de Janeiro when the sea batters the shore, usually destroying any boats that are unfortunately anchored off shore. Undertow here is called "contracorrente". Anyway I remembered I had a rather old dictionary and went to check if there was a change in the meaning of ressaca. The new dictionary says it's a coastal storm or a hangover. The older one has no mention of storm, but one of the meanings is something like a flow that is constantly changing back and forth, also inconsistency. I'm beginning to think this last one is what Machado was referring to. Anyway leads to interesting discussions.
honestly, I couldn't translate better ... i'm not a translator and I really admire this work of translating keeping meanings and contexts .. I imagine it is an extremely difficult job! I think it's because the phrase has so much meaning and even mysticism in Brazilian literature that it ends up looking like is "missing" something in the English translation ... just something strange to Brazilian ears 😊
"Undertow eyes" is good translation, as it is exactly what Machado meant. "Ressaca" meant the current that pulls inwards, into the sea. What Bentinho says right after make it clear that this is the correct meaning, as he describes looking at Capitu's eyes as being "pulled in." However, I do get what you mean... it doesn't have the same _oomph_ to it, does it?
Machadian irony is one of the best things about this book. It's been a while since I first read it but the sensation remains the same until now, a true masterpiece.
You should read the small novel by Machado called “O Alienista”. It’s a beautifully crafted critique on the pseudo science and determinism of the 19th century.
It's so strange how people from outside Brazil like you are able to value brazilian artists. Mostly the big part of the population don't even know our own art. And when they know, they close their eyes because that confronts their meaning of their shallow existence in some level. Cheers, and thanks for the divulgation.
I believe Machado de Assis is not well known in the Anglo universe because his early translations were so mediocre. I remember reading "Epitaph" (dumb title choice right off the bat) and not recognizing his voice in any paragraph. The impression I had was that the translator had a 'job' to do, and did a bureaucratic translation without any involvement with the book. I haven't read the new translations, but I urge anyone interested in Machado to read the short stories, which are brilliant.
Actually, Machado de Assis and many many other brazilian autors are not well known and recognized because of Brazil being a non-developed country on financial matters, surprisingly, literature and economics are surely really tied to each other. For example: Africa has, by far, one of the best literature pieces of all time. And again, Europe, US, Germany, etc., are countries that show a lot of sucess in what concearns book language. About the translation, I do think Epitaph is not a good translation also, but it is convenient of a book to have a brief and short title, it looks far more appealing to the person who is looking to buy something to read. As a translator myself, I can assure that every translator is always different from one another, and their "writing personalities" also affect a lot on their choices along a certain translation. Also, the briefing given by the person who is asking for the translation of a material of some sort is one of the most important thing for a translator (sometimes we really try to change something that we think is not that good, but we have to obey to a client's final word, and the idea of "the client knows it all" culture is very upsetting for everyone on the long term).
I believe you'll enjoy reading "A Night in the Tavern", it is an anthology (fix-up) with gothic and horror tales, written by Alvares de Azevedo in 1850.
I hate that book. Don't get me wrong, but for me it's just an attempt to reproduce that dark melancholy from european romanticism. Like, there's nothing brazilian in that book, as far as I remember, you could easily locate the story in a 18th century european tavern and that's it.
@@brunovasconcelos1671 Você não gostar, ok... mas sobre o resto: e daí? A questão é a qualidade literária, que é gigantesca. Brasil é muito amplo pra gente ficar nessa coisa de "genuinamente" brasileiro, sabe? Machado mesmo bebe muito da literatura francesa e inglesa. Não precisa ter índio ou se passar no RJ pra ser "genuinamente brasileiro". Ariano Suassuna dizia que os clássicos ingleses eram inevitáveis hahahahahah E eu tô falando isso como escritora de terror que se passa aqui no Pará/Amazônia, minha terrinha hahahahahah porque apesar de eu querer escrever sobre essa parte da cultura brasileira (que eu vivo), sei que o Brasil não é só ela, mas sim plural demais pra gente acertar que existe só um "genuinamente brasileiro".
@@LiaCavaliera kkkkk eu concordo contigo. Mas realmente eu não vejo nada demais nas histórias. A qualidade na escrita existe, mas o conteúdo não me impressiona. Na verdade, a impressão que as histórias me deixam é que há ali um quê de vontades reprimidas do escritor, o que me faz achar a coisa toda meio nojenta. Pra fazer algum elogio, contudo, acho o fechamento da história legal e tem um ou dois contos que são bem legais também, mas passa longe de ser um livro que eu recomendaria pra alguém (e não estou te criticando por isso, é só opinião pessoal mesmo). Beijão, Lia! 💛
@@brunovasconcelos1671 hahahahah ai, acho complicado isso de imaginar que um autor de terror/horror/suspense/gore tem algum tipo de desejo sobre o que está escrever, eu vivo nesse meio e não é assim que funciona, não acontece só no terror. Já vi também escritoras de livros eróticos serem abusadas e assediadas por acharem que, pelo conteúdo dos livros, elas gostariam daquilo ou pensavam o tempo todo em sexo. E eu não me senti atacada de forma alguma, opinião é sempre algo pessoal mesmo. Só "rebati" por detalhes na fala que me pareceram meio definitivos demais.
You mention one of his other works "philosofer or dog", in Brazil this book is called "Quincas Borba" which is an amazing name, in the book there are two characters with this name a self proclaimed philosofer and a dog, but it's unclear after which the book is named, and obviously there is evidence for both, truly amazing work
There's also a popular theory/interpretation of the novel that Bento was actually not jealous of Capitu, but rather of Escobar. It claims that, though he did like Capitu, Bento was also secretely and unrequitedly in love with his best friend but couldn't declare his love because, well, you know, 19th century Brazil and all. There are so many layers and possible interpretations to Dom Casmurro. It's an absolute masterpiece.
A new historicist reading of the book would confirm this interpretation, parallel with Iago's love for Othello as a motivator for his jealousy. Marriage with Capitu could have been the socially sanctioned redirection (in the time period) of Bento's affection for his friend.
This book is so famous in our country that it has series and movies inspired, and in my last year of high school the class were divided in q group that was on his side against group on her side, and we had to do very serious research and presentation. My Portuguese teacher even said that his final college presentation were a theses about the book. Machado for us brazilians is like Shakespeare.
I'm 15 and reread this masterpiece a few times, always falling more in love whit this big man that was Machado💛 greatings from Brazil🇧🇷 And oh, great review as always :)
I am from Brazil and it makes me really happy to know that other countries, maybe, is reading one of the famous books of our history. Very good video!! Congrats on choosing this work!
It brings me so much joy to see this book and this author getting the recognition they deserve, I truly hope you get to read some more Brazilian authors :)
Eu amo toda a Obra de Machado de Assis. Seus contos são maravilhosos também. Faça um video sobre O Alienista , A cartomante, O Espelho...Tenho muito orgulho da literatura brasileira que Machado de Assis nos deixou como legado.
PLEASE read “O Alienista” (The Alienist)! It is a small book, but with an extremely rich content. I re-read it recently and, in my opinion, it fits perfectly the current situation the world is going through. After all, who can affirm that the alienated isn’t the alienist?
can confirm, it's great and it shockingly resembles today's post-truth society, which is a problem deeply tied to social media IMO... it's crazy (literally)
Alienista é um termo em desuso para psiquiatra. Não tem nada a ver com alienação, apesar que o personagem principal é........................ spoilers, lol
Great review! And let's not forget to take our hats off for the translator! To be able to put Machado's wit and intensity into English requires talend and a lot of effort! Kudos to John Gledson!
@@edsonemilio8841 Yes, I am aware! In the book, there is a passage where Dom Casmurro goes to see a staging of the play, where he remarks on the people cheering on the death of Desdemona as a sign that maybe he should attack Capitu.
@@fernandafernandes1315 Which cleary reffers to the character transition in the story, from the young naive boy that was meant to be a priest, to the jealous man, that destroys his family and becomes reclusive and solitary, because of his insecure and obsessive mind.
He might have been tormented by his thoughts and fears, but he certainly didn’t stop there. I would hate to be married to a man who constantly suspects and treats me as if I were a cheater. It’s not fair to pay for something you didn’t do. If he’s gonna exile his wife for cheating than at least let her have some fun with Escobar.
mano é muito fácil ser gringo e hittar é só falar sobre qualquer coisa brasileira que os BR vêm correndo. ps. a qualidade dos vídeos do better than food melhorou muito, to surpresa. tá cada vez melhor o canal!
Excellent review! Dom Casmurro was the trigger for me starting to embrace and love my country's literature as a teenager years ago. Greetings from Brazil!
"Epitath of a small winner" is a freaking AWESOME title for an english translation of Memórias Póstumas de Brás Cubas. I concede it kills the main point of the original title - the whole memoirs after you are dead thing - but it also eliminates the portuguese words to be pronounced from the title, and stays true to the narrator's view of himself. Also, it's cool as heck. Love it.
Dom Casmurro was the first book by Machado de Assis that I read and it is still my favorite from all time. I'm so happy that people outside Brazil are descovering it more 😊
AHHHHHHHH Que amor gente! obrigado por fazer uma análise desse clássico brasileiro.
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Great review... I am a brazilian Literature teacher and you went straight to the point. I like the way you dealt with the story and the focus on highlighting the characteristics of the book. I've been studying Machado for a while... Thank you for bringing our best author to the spotlight.
"Philosopher or Dog?" ("Quincas Borba") is also wonderful, although in terms of structure it's the less daring of the trilogy (the only one narrated in 3rd person). It reminds me a bit of "Dangerous Liaisons"; the main female character, Sofia, might be my favourite among Machado's "femme fatales".
Cara, eu estou lendo agora. Não sei se é por estar lendo digitalmente (normalmente assim me prendo menos) mas eu não senti a genialidade desse, pra mim o unico dele que não estou gostando tanto. Essa coisa do cachorro, não peguei.
Hi, I randomly stumbled on this video probably because "Brazil".. TH-cam knows how to summon us. In highschool our teacher made us read Dom Casmurro and is one of my favorite brazilian books. I still have the copy almost 20 years later. I think teenagers love the drama in it and discussing whether or not Capitu cheated on Bento. So, besides every quality you highlighted in your beautiful review, I'd like to add the fact that it's a book that can be read by different age audiences. I'll definitely check other reviews you made to pick some recommendations. Thank you.
Besides his skillfulness regarding irony, part of Machado's grandiose is due to his knowledge and use of the Portuguese language. He is a legend on that point, for he was able not only to use it correctly (VERY correctly) but also to reinvent it. Each of his paragraphs is full of new patterns, different compositions of phrases, etc., and is that characteristic that makes me, a humble writer, admire him. Nice video! Greetings from Brazil.
Man, when you say it tells not only about the main caracter, but also about the reader, I think you got it perfectly! This is my favorite book of brazilian literature.Great analysis!
Dom Casmurro é realmente um ótimo livro. Muito bom ver obras primas da nossa leitura sendo apreciadas por pessoas de outros países! Parabéns pelo vídeo, amei!!
Notice that the history of their childhood is also told by an older Bentinho already convinced of the betrayal of Escobar, reading it again, the begining is totally different
Dude! You GOT Machado!! Wow. I admire how you use exact words to pin point your thoughts to us. Great. Thanks for helping to showcase one of the best works in brazilian literature.
The chapter I remember liking the best is "The Last Superlative", where Bento's uncle(?), known for his way of talking using superlatives all the time, dies. I fear this is one of those things that may be lost in translation. I say that because the superlative form isn't really used as much nowadays in pr-br, outside pompous writing - e.g. "belo" (beautiful) would become "belíssimo" (*"beautifulest"), while nowadays people not only would prefer the analytic way of talking instead of the synthetic, but would also use another word with the same meaning ("bonito"), like "o mais bonito" (the most beautiful).
José Dias isn't Bento's uncle, he just lived at his family's house because he did a favor to his father when he was alive, and ended up becoming some kind of member of the family. We say "agregado", and I don't know how to say it in english. Also, I don't think it's right to say that the superlative form isn't common nowadays, since we do hear things like "muitíssimo obrigado" or "ela é riquíssima", spoken even out of this pompous writing that you mentioned. In fact, even at that time, the superlative wasn't the most common thing in people's speech, except for José Dias, who tended to use it a lot more often.
@@abraaodefreitas24 That's why I've put the "?" next to "uncle" haha, I couldn't remember it since I've read the book back in highschool, about 16 years ago, so a couple details were certainly forgotten. (Vou continuar falando em inglês caso alguém queira se juntar à discussão lol). I think that depends on who you usually talk to, to be honest, some people may use it in their idiolects more than others, just like José Dias himself (I've just searched "superlativo" on Google Scholar to find any linguistics study on that and there was one "Adjetivo superlativo na fala de homens gays: uma discussão sociolinguística", so its use could also be related to different social groups). But having worked as a proofreader (revisor de textos) for a couple years, I don't remember ever seeing superlative written. The examples you mentioned I'd say are akin to idioms / expressions (always with the same adjectives), and people will prefer using the analytical form of the superlative with "muito" (very) or "tão" (so) - like in "eu fiquei muuuuuito de cara", while "eu fiquei de caríssima" would be more funny than anything else -, unless they're using "words that you mostly use on synthetic form if the context allows" hahaha
I read it back in the high school for some essays. I remember liking it a lot even though I felt like I did not understand shit. So I see your video and immediately want to come and comment. Thanks for appreciating our writers, culture, etc. Its very nice of you.
Estou me divertindo com esse vídeo de um gringo resenhando Dom Casmurro. Reli ele no fim do ano passado. O momento que o Bentinho trança o cabelo da Capitu, quando ambos eram crianças, é muito precioso - aliás, muitas passagens são 😭❤️
13:26 “I wonder if Dom Casmurro is a reference to Don Quixote” Hm, not quite sure, but “Dom” is the Iberic (and colonies) equivalent of the Norman“Lord”, becoming every sort of tittle of respect/authority/nobility... some times used ironically to refer to someone who bosses people around too much with some unreasonable expectations, or someone that thinks himself more important than he truly is. So, it could be a reference... or it could just be a common slang back in the times of romanticism
You should also read "The Brothers: A Novel", by Milton Hatoum. It's a relatively recent book (first impression still), but already considered one of the Brazilian classics.
Nice review of one of the greatest books of all time. A subtle detail in the title is that "casmurro" means headstrong, obstinate, and also self-absorbeb. A touch of genius.
When we talk about Dom Casmurro in Brazil, we usually Just want to know If Capitu cheated or not, and It may seem harmless, but I think It dristract us from the fact that the narrator manipulates what we know, and It makes us put in question the woman's character. Anyways, seems like a metaphor for society. Loved your Review.
Considering the content distribution of the book, the emphasis becomes visible through the psychoanalytic lens and Bento's mother fixation. +The reason for the focus on adultery comes from Machado himself. He frames the story with allusions to Othello which direct/shape our thinking.
Hi! Very good to see a channel, dedicated to literature. Especially if he brings literature from my country! It would be interesting to bring more writers and their works! Congratulations, and you remind me of Robbie Basho.
I love “Dom Casmurro”. I recomend you reading “Grande Sertão: Veredas” - Guimarães Rosa and “São Bernardo” - Graciliano Ramos. I hope the translation made could achive the perfection we see in Portuguese.
spoiler: it can't(to GSV or The Devil to Pay in the Backlands). It's like Joyce, who loses a lot by being translated :( It's a shame, but it's impossible to replicate Guimarães in any other language :(
You should really get into his tales, so much golden stuff. One of the most famous and personal favorite is "The Alienist", is one of most unique story mixing comedy and great insights into the limits between normality and madness. Really recommend.
Haha Man, I loved your rewiew! 🇧🇷 I can say, as Brazilian, that the word underdog is perfect to describe Machado, the most of the Brazilians know him (at least his name) but have never read nothing from him. The problem is, in here we get in touch with his work totally on the wrong age, when we're too young to understand and delight with his books. I don't if the English speakers have the same problem with Shakespeare, Hemingway, Poe etc. I wouldn't say Twain because he's like our Monteiro Lobato, his books are more accessible to everybody, doesn't matter the age range. Anyways thank you a lot for this rewiew! I got proud for our native Masters and you've got a new subscriber! 0/
I also sensed his relationship with Escobar was a bit... how can I say... complex, there was something hidden, untold going on, and he felt betrayed when the two obsessions and passions of his life (Capitu and Escobar) seemed like they could have betrayed him together. He was very fond of Escobar with a sort of extremely infatuated admiration that borders on passionate, sensual love. Was his excessive jealousy and insecurity maybe caused by his own unconfessed internal troubles and doubts, lashing them viciously on both Capitu and Escobar? Food for thought...
Absolutely my favorite of all times!! Impossible to deny Machado's talent. I've got no words to describe it, Machado took them all! Great review! One more proud Brazilian o/
I asked my husband to read Dom Casmurro (he's british, I'm brazilian) and he loved it! The next one will definitely be Memórias Póstumas de Bras Cubas, and I'll make sure to send him your review videos.
First question :yes she did Second question : I don't think so
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Great review about an amazing book, Machado de Assis is a national treasure. And this may sound pretentious, but you noticed some nuances that takes some people 2 or 3 readings to understand. Is always cool to see people from outside Brazil to talk about Brazil 😂
Check out Tolstoy’s “Kreutzer’s Sonata” which I believe was a great influence for this book. Also, never believe in Bento because he can change the meaning of anything like his nickname.
booktuber on a brazilian book:
brazilians: we've been summoned.
HUEHUEHUEHUEHUEHUEHU
Me, a cultured swine reading the term "booktuber" for the first time: Barbari!
🗣🗣🗣
HUE HUE BR
Me, a portuguese girl that sees lots of brazilian content: well I guess they've summoned me too
"Did she cheat or not?" - ask a brazilian without a context; get an answer as natural as sunlight, without hesitation, cause everyone knows what it's about.
not everyone
Unfortunately not everyone. And most of the ones who'll know what it's about won't have read it. :(
I don't
She didnt, of course
Of course she cheated. An Escobar with green eyes?
I've been waiting for this review! Greetings from Brazil 🇧🇷
me too.....
Dale Brasil galera!
Dale daleeee
❤️🇧🇷
Muito bacana encontrar este vídeo! Machado é demais!!
I totally agree with your perspective when you said “I think he’s one of the best authors period.” People tend to diminish colonized societies’ value by always saying that “it’s good, for their standards”. It’s really frustrating to see reviewers read European or North American books and say that their authors are great, but when they appreciate African/Latin American/Asian art, they either say “it was unexpectedly good”, as if being good in art demanded being born in a metropolitan country, or they say “it’s good, for a (insert a non-European and non-American nationality here) author”, implying that these countries should always get lower expectations. It’s simply disgusting and I’m so glad you mentioned it in your video.
Boy, preach!
Exactly! There are always subcategories, as if those authors are supposedly held by lower standards. It's a very poor and stiff way of perceiving Literature. Brazil, for example, produces Literature as good and as full of identity as Russian, French or English, but is very underappreciated in the international academia and with the general public. Pity.
@@gv5884 So true! I am Brazilian myself, and even though some of us know very little of our literature value, I guess it is common sense here that our author are really good. To me, personally, I have such an intimate and loving relationship with Brazilian literature, almost as if it was a part of who I am. In some ways, it really is. So that’s why I think this kind of prejudice towards colonized societies (specially Brazil, for obvious reasons) really gets me. Anyways, thanks for your comment.
@@marcoantunes1813 The key thing is that Brazil is not a global power. Even during the Empire, which, as far as I am aware, was the period when the country was in its pinnacle of power, and an epitaph of stability under the Emperor, whilst the rest of Latin America, for instance, was the opposite of order, it wasn't a global power, though it was a regional power. During the 19th century and beggining of the 20th, the UK, France and Germany were the main global - and intelectual - powers. Since the works of Machado were published in Portuguese, it isn't astonishing that his works, and the works of many other Portuguese-speaking authors, aren't generally known in the rest of Western Civilization, and more especifally in the English-speaking world. Let's see if that changes with the progress of time
There is literally nobody that ever said the words "it's good, for their standard".
Fun fact: a good Brazilian university once studied this book to try to find out if there was more evidence that Capitu betrayed or that she did not. And guess what, there is exactly the same amount of evidence that she betrayed and did not betrayed.
This is incredible! I didn't know that! :O
actually, a lot of law colleges do that, even my old school did that too, was like a acting and a judment like thing, everyone was called to watch, and if I remember well, she betrayed
@@gabriellegal4496 Not the same.
Cheated*
Pq vcs tão falando inglês caramba ? É claro que ela traiu ele.
Arthur Shelby resenhando Dom casmurro é algo que eu vivi pra ver
ME ENGASGUEI KW 2OSBWOAHWHWWIAJOAGAODBWOWVSOSBWP2V2OWBJWJ
Culto e calculista kkk
It's no coincidence that Bento is a lawyer. Dom Casmurro is basically an old man's effort to defend himself from his consciouness and from his reader's judgment after the horrible things he did. This is why Machado de Assis chose to let his protagonist narrate his book.
And also, we never heard Capitu's version of the story, maybe saw by other eyes everything would be different. That's the magic with Dom Casmurro, the doubt!!!
Great point! And also there is some love in his heart; that scene where Bento describe their first kiss is simply sublime! That's why it is an enormous book ever!! 😍
it's funny to see some brazilian people discussing in english on the internet.
@@thales365 kkkk
@@thales365 We are everywhere... 🤣🤣🤣
Vídeo sobre o Brasil:
Brasileiros:quem nos invoca?
hahahah ... adorei!
😂😂😂
@Rafael Ferreira Machado Né?
@Rafael Ferreira Machado ksjakak vdd
AHHAHAHA que coisa mano, brazuca é foda
This is one of the biggest controversies in Brazilian literature: "Capitu betrayed bentinho?"
Centuries later, we still don't know... Thanks Machado
Traiu nada
quem acha que traiu é otário
@@joselandim3142 , meu professor dizia que se não traiu então não foi Machado que escreveu.
Este é um falso dilema. Machado é muito inteligente, ele joga com o leitor, desafiando-o a ficar do lado de Capitu numa sociedade que desconsidera o olhar feminino. A única voz é a de Bentinho, não conhecemos a de Capitu.
Espero que chegue o dia em que todo mundo vai parar com isso e entender que essa pergunta é só pro povo ter a sensação de que conhece a literatura do Machado. NÃO IMPORTA, VÉI! MACHADO SABIA DISSO E O PONTO CENTRAL NÃO É ESSE!
My favorite quote in the book is “Conhecia as regras do escrever, sem suspeitar as do amar; tinha orgias de latim e era virgem de mulheres.”
Que triste 😔😢
Cliff, you'd love the book Capitães da Areia (Capitains of the Sands) written by Jorge Amado. Also one of Brazil's most read books ever.
He would f**king love it
I was about to suggest Jorge Amado. He is amazing.
Jorge Amado 🤩
This is one of my favorite books!
this book is amazing
Man! I'm Brazilian. And teacher of Literature. I'm amazed by finding this video about one of my favorite books ever!! My favorite part is when Bento describes Capitu in front of the mirror, her hair and finally the kiss!! Breathtaking, for sure!!
I don't know if you're aware, but there is an amazing TV version of the book named (here in Brazil) "Capitu" (it was produced by TV Globo). Really great! Congrats from Brazil!
He really should watch Capitu! Just as the book is a masterpiece of literature, Capitu is a masterpiece of tv.
@@livialimaastrologia Absolutamente de acordo! Gosto especialmente da Capitu mais jovem, do elenco e da linguagem visual como um todo!! 😃
@@inarticulado Esses são os livros mais estúpidos que eu tive o desprazer de ler. São livros medíocres e muito, mas muito superestimados se comparados com grandes obras. É triste pagar por educação e ser obrigado a ler essas porcarias. Por causa de livros como estes, perdi totalmente a vontade ler na minha época de colégio.
@@marcosmansour3256 acho que você tá confundido de que livro estão falando
"Dom Casmurro" seems to be a response to "O Primo Basílio" (Eça de Queiroz), which is also about adultery. Machado famously criticized Eça's novel in a review published in 1878, which sparked a sort of feud between the authors.
rinha de autor, amoooo
mds eu morreria sem saber disso
@@MarcelleLeiturasPreguicosas kkkkkkkkkk perfeito.
Legal! Eu não sabia dessa
Conta mais, sobre essa fofoca!
Machado is the best writer of Brazil's History. He founded The Brazilian Academy of Letters who is the base for modern Portuguese language. I'm glad to see people from other countries appreciating his talent. ;)
it's interesting to know that for decades since Dom Casmurro's release Brazilian critics were sure that Capitu did in fact cheat on Bento. It goes to show the "readers mirror" theory that you mentioned... The first person to suggest that Capitu didn't cheat on Bento was an American critic named Helen Caldwell; applying feminist criticism to Dom Casmurro in her 60's book "The Brazilian Othello of Machado de Assis", she paved the way for the modern interpretations of Machado's masterpiece.
O próprio Roberto Schwarz
@@joselandim3142 kkkkk obg
Nowadays people say that Bento had feelings for Escobar lol
THERE ISN'T AN ANSWER TO THIS. IT'S HER INTERPRETATION
@@patriciagss2024 Before Helen Caldwell, all critics were sure that Capitu cheated on Bento. There was even less room for interpretation back then. It was only through the feminist critique lens that people started to consider other options
The "did she betray or not" is literally a centenary meme
Once again, thanks Machado
It really is
Brasileiros: você disse Brasil?
Somos piores que o Jubileu do Pica-pau ouvindo a palavra pipoca kkkkk
Sem graça.
@@kimjongun-ii294 conte-nos uma piada então , já que vc é praticamente um novo “ Chico Anysio “ 💁🏻♂️
Na manteiga?
@@bernardoxbm ela é coberta de açúcar.
Por isso que os gringos nos acham tóxicos e até evitam de citar o Brasil só pra não chamar a nossa atenção. Enche o saco as vezes! Brasileiro não tem simolcol as vezes.
If one day you get to learn portuguese, please give Dom Casmurro a reread! The way Machado uses our language is incredible, so many hidden clues between the words will make you see the book clearer!
One of the most interesting and somewhat hidden themes in the book is the clash between the traditional rural classes (Bentinho) and the new Brazilian urban bourgeoisie (Escobar). Capitu is in many ways the representation of what the urban bourgeoisie have supposedly stolen from the Brazilian aristocracy - but, most of all, the resentment of the rural classes after all the developments in Brazil during the second half of the 19th century. Dr. André Boucinhas talks about it in the article “O Segredo de Escobar” (The Secret of Escobar).
It's similar in a way to Wuthering Heights; the bourgeois Heathcliff and landlord Linton
What saddens me is that in Brazil the focus on "Dom Casmurro" is the "did she cheat" section in the last 50 pages or so, totally missing the larger themes of the book about a man who holds NOTHING sacred (including his wife and best friend at the end). This is an amazing book, and the name and style purposefully parallels Cervantes' "Dom Quixote" but the opposite, where Casmurro is the lord of assholes instead of the errant-knight of chivalry.
Every chapter is an instance of him disrespecting something else sacred. There's a whole wonderful chapter where he invents a shitty-ass algorithm for poetry and decides that he has basically solved poetry for good. XD
He abandons his childhood home for a better location and then builds a new version-an exact replica!-totally disrespecting the actual location where he was raised.
Even God, whom he believes in, he disrespects, by not only shirking his duties as a to-be priest, but also creating his own I.O.U. system with God to put off ever having to pay penance.
The question of Capitu's faithfulness is fun and very cultural, but also really short-sighted in my opinion for what amounts to such a deep and brilliant character study.
The sacred aspects of the book are there and we brazilians know this. Thing is this is so recurrent in our culture and yet such a paradox, we tend to see this as part of our lives and end up identifying ourselves with every instance of madness in his life.
Just for instance, I was supposed to be a priest, both grandma and my mother liked the idea. Yet I'm anything but, I hate religion even.
you should read "O Aliensta" (the alienist) by machado too, short but genius book... very much ahead of its time and a msut read to understand how come "alternative facts" are a thing nowadays
I love this one
I think it helps a lot to understand how people as Átila Iamarino get so much respectability in spite of being an idiot
Machado debochado
boa.
@@lucianaalves5635 ... no?
The best of Machado, for me, is his "The Mirror" short story. It reminded me of Kafka's Metamorphosis -- taking away someone's image for them to realize, after raw scrutiny, that it was all a social construct, and that maybe there was nothing else left. So powerful and it definetly made me cry.
Chapter 9 - The Opera is my favorite chapter from any book i’ve ever read, the way he compares the earth and the cosmos to an opera almost makes me cry. I still have this chapter memorized word by word
Sad part is that this and other masterpieces from our culture tend to be presented in schools in a way that makes everyone feel like these books are boring and meaningless, and many students never read other books because they think everything from brazilian literature sucks. I recommend you read The Time and the Wind, by Érico Veríssimo.
Generally 14/15 years old kids are forced to read it, and OF COURSE out of a class of 30, maybe one or two will enjoy. This is definitely not a book for young teenagers... It ruins all the future love for literature they could have. I remember I hated it when I read it when I was 15. But years later I watched the tv series Capitu, and HAD to read it again, and then I understood how great the book was!
I used to love western movies and coutry ameerican stuff, then I realized that our "western"(cangaço) are way richer than I tought.
@Alice Teenagers are usually not interested in analyzing characters at all... =/
Yay, acknowledgement of brazilian literature! I liked that book a lot when I had to read in high school, thanks for reviewing it! :D
As a Brazilian, it is very strange to hear that "olhos de ressaca" translates to “undertow eyes” ... 👀
I think it's a poor translation, but how would you translate it? The two meanings I know are hangover and a big storm along the shore. I couldn't decide which meaning Machado meant; if she had 'stormy' eyes or eyes that made mean feel "drunk."
@@carlrenzi It's not a storm, it's a return flow when the waves crash on the sea. And yes, that is what he meant. It's pretty clear by context. Oh, and undertow is the correct word for that.
@@crazy1tad1pole1 Here in Rio de Janeiro when the sea batters the shore, usually destroying any boats that are unfortunately anchored off shore. Undertow here is called "contracorrente". Anyway I remembered I had a rather old dictionary and went to check if there was a change in the meaning of ressaca. The new dictionary says it's a coastal storm or a hangover. The older one has no mention of storm, but one of the meanings is something like a flow that is constantly changing back and forth, also inconsistency. I'm beginning to think this last one is what Machado was referring to. Anyway leads to interesting discussions.
honestly, I couldn't translate better ... i'm not a translator and I really admire this work of translating keeping meanings and contexts .. I imagine it is an extremely difficult job! I think it's because the phrase has so much meaning and even mysticism in Brazilian literature that it ends up looking like is "missing" something in the English translation ... just something strange to Brazilian ears 😊
"Undertow eyes" is good translation, as it is exactly what Machado meant. "Ressaca" meant the current that pulls inwards, into the sea. What Bentinho says right after make it clear that this is the correct meaning, as he describes looking at Capitu's eyes as being "pulled in." However, I do get what you mean... it doesn't have the same _oomph_ to it, does it?
Machadian irony is one of the best things about this book. It's been a while since I first read it but the sensation remains the same until now, a true masterpiece.
Vc por aqui
@@jessievictory8190 Olha onde a gente se encontra haha saudades 💞
You should read the small novel by Machado called “O Alienista”. It’s a beautifully crafted critique on the pseudo science and determinism of the 19th century.
And it is hilarious, too. I'd say it is his funniest work.
Hi, Cliff. In Brazil we know philosopher or dog by the name of "Quincas Borba".
NOSSA EU PASSEI MUITO TEMPO TENTANDO ENTENDER DE QUE LIVRO ELE TAVA FALANDO, MTO OBRIGADA
Eu também tava numa ansiedade tentando lembrar qual era
@Lucas Silva Eu infelizmente nem tive essa menção, muito menos "fui obrigada" a ler algum clássico no ensino médio. Li por conta depois de adulta :(
To the winner the potatoes
It's so strange how people from outside Brazil like you are able to value brazilian artists. Mostly the big part of the population don't even know our own art. And when they know, they close their eyes because that confronts their meaning of their shallow existence in some level. Cheers, and thanks for the divulgation.
I believe Machado de Assis is not well known in the Anglo universe because his early translations were so mediocre. I remember reading "Epitaph" (dumb title choice right off the bat) and not recognizing his voice in any paragraph. The impression I had was that the translator had a 'job' to do, and did a bureaucratic translation without any involvement with the book. I haven't read the new translations, but I urge anyone interested in Machado to read the short stories, which are brilliant.
Wait, would Epitaph be "Memórias póstumas de Brás Cuba"? What an awful translation! Even though I like the word "epitaph" and its meaning.
Actually, Machado de Assis and many many other brazilian autors are not well known and recognized because of Brazil being a non-developed country on financial matters, surprisingly, literature and economics are surely really tied to each other. For example: Africa has, by far, one of the best literature pieces of all time. And again, Europe, US, Germany, etc., are countries that show a lot of sucess in what concearns book language.
About the translation, I do think Epitaph is not a good translation also, but it is convenient of a book to have a brief and short title, it looks far more appealing to the person who is looking to buy something to read.
As a translator myself, I can assure that every translator is always different from one another, and their "writing personalities" also affect a lot on their choices along a certain translation. Also, the briefing given by the person who is asking for the translation of a material of some sort is one of the most important thing for a translator (sometimes we really try to change something that we think is not that good, but we have to obey to a client's final word, and the idea of "the client knows it all" culture is very upsetting for everyone on the long term).
@@pintinho732 exactly.. it has very little to do with bad/good translations
@@pintinho732 -"B
finally some brazillian literature recognition!!! probably the most iconic novel in our country, amazing review!!
You should also read the plays by Ariano Suassuna, he's one of our most beloved playwrights
Yes and review the movie adaption of “ Auto da Compadecida” along with the book play, it would be nice.
OMG YES
nah, he's awful
I'm happy the whole world enjoys Dom Casmurro and not only Brazilians, truly is a genius' book.
I believe you'll enjoy reading "A Night in the Tavern", it is an anthology (fix-up) with gothic and horror tales, written by Alvares de Azevedo in 1850.
@@baxyka_3079 Yeah, I really think it's his kind of book! I think he'll love it! Livrão!!
I hate that book. Don't get me wrong, but for me it's just an attempt to reproduce that dark melancholy from european romanticism. Like, there's nothing brazilian in that book, as far as I remember, you could easily locate the story in a 18th century european tavern and that's it.
@@brunovasconcelos1671 Você não gostar, ok... mas sobre o resto: e daí? A questão é a qualidade literária, que é gigantesca. Brasil é muito amplo pra gente ficar nessa coisa de "genuinamente" brasileiro, sabe? Machado mesmo bebe muito da literatura francesa e inglesa. Não precisa ter índio ou se passar no RJ pra ser "genuinamente brasileiro". Ariano Suassuna dizia que os clássicos ingleses eram inevitáveis hahahahahah
E eu tô falando isso como escritora de terror que se passa aqui no Pará/Amazônia, minha terrinha hahahahahah porque apesar de eu querer escrever sobre essa parte da cultura brasileira (que eu vivo), sei que o Brasil não é só ela, mas sim plural demais pra gente acertar que existe só um "genuinamente brasileiro".
@@LiaCavaliera kkkkk eu concordo contigo. Mas realmente eu não vejo nada demais nas histórias. A qualidade na escrita existe, mas o conteúdo não me impressiona. Na verdade, a impressão que as histórias me deixam é que há ali um quê de vontades reprimidas do escritor, o que me faz achar a coisa toda meio nojenta. Pra fazer algum elogio, contudo, acho o fechamento da história legal e tem um ou dois contos que são bem legais também, mas passa longe de ser um livro que eu recomendaria pra alguém (e não estou te criticando por isso, é só opinião pessoal mesmo). Beijão, Lia! 💛
@@brunovasconcelos1671 hahahahah ai, acho complicado isso de imaginar que um autor de terror/horror/suspense/gore tem algum tipo de desejo sobre o que está escrever, eu vivo nesse meio e não é assim que funciona, não acontece só no terror. Já vi também escritoras de livros eróticos serem abusadas e assediadas por acharem que, pelo conteúdo dos livros, elas gostariam daquilo ou pensavam o tempo todo em sexo.
E eu não me senti atacada de forma alguma, opinião é sempre algo pessoal mesmo. Só "rebati" por detalhes na fala que me pareceram meio definitivos demais.
You mention one of his other works "philosofer or dog", in Brazil this book is called "Quincas Borba" which is an amazing name, in the book there are two characters with this name a self proclaimed philosofer and a dog, but it's unclear after which the book is named, and obviously there is evidence for both, truly amazing work
O Bruxo do Cosme Velho é realmente "isso tudo" mesmo.
9:00
There's also a popular theory/interpretation of the novel that Bento was actually not jealous of Capitu, but rather of Escobar. It claims that, though he did like Capitu, Bento was also secretely and unrequitedly in love with his best friend but couldn't declare his love because, well, you know, 19th century Brazil and all. There are so many layers and possible interpretations to Dom Casmurro. It's an absolute masterpiece.
A new historicist reading of the book would confirm this interpretation, parallel with Iago's love for Othello as a motivator for his jealousy. Marriage with Capitu could have been the socially sanctioned redirection (in the time period) of Bento's affection for his friend.
Cliff chasing the Brazilian view counts and expanding my world literature knowledge. Everybody wins!
This book is so famous in our country that it has series and movies inspired, and in my last year of high school the class were divided in q group that was on his side against group on her side, and we had to do very serious research and presentation. My Portuguese teacher even said that his final college presentation were a theses about the book. Machado for us brazilians is like Shakespeare.
I'm 15 and reread this masterpiece a few times, always falling more in love whit this big man that was Machado💛 greatings from Brazil🇧🇷
And oh, great review as always :)
I am from Brazil and it makes me really happy to know that other countries, maybe, is reading one of the famous books of our history. Very good video!! Congrats on choosing this work!
It brings me so much joy to see this book and this author getting the recognition they deserve, I truly hope you get to read some more Brazilian authors :)
Eu amo toda a Obra de Machado de Assis. Seus contos são maravilhosos também. Faça um video sobre O Alienista , A cartomante, O Espelho...Tenho muito orgulho da literatura brasileira que Machado de Assis nos deixou como legado.
First time I read it was like "yes, of course she did it!". Second time was more like "that womanizing monster is just ridden with jealousy!".
Hahahaha Great comment! Thank you!
PLEASE read “O Alienista” (The Alienist)! It is a small book, but with an extremely rich content. I re-read it recently and, in my opinion, it fits perfectly the current situation the world is going through. After all, who can affirm that the alienated isn’t the alienist?
Muito de Poe no Alienista. Um dos meus preferidos ♥️
can confirm, it's great and it shockingly resembles today's post-truth society, which is a problem deeply tied to social media IMO... it's crazy (literally)
Alienista é um termo em desuso para psiquiatra. Não tem nada a ver com alienação, apesar que o personagem principal é........................ spoilers, lol
Great review! And let's not forget to take our hats off for the translator! To be able to put Machado's wit and intensity into English requires talend and a lot of effort! Kudos to John Gledson!
Not sure about Machado referencing Dom Quixote, but, as my literature teacher once pointed out, "Santiago" has an "Iago" inside itself.
Indeed! Had never thought about it!
@@edsonemilio8841 Yes, I am aware! In the book, there is a passage where Dom Casmurro goes to see a staging of the play, where he remarks on the people cheering on the death of Desdemona as a sign that maybe he should attack Capitu.
Iago: Shakespeare ♥️
the santiago is a pun with saint(in portuguese SANTo) and Iago,from othello...
@@fernandafernandes1315 Which cleary reffers to the character transition in the story, from the young naive boy that was meant to be a priest, to the jealous man, that destroys his family and becomes reclusive and solitary, because of his insecure and obsessive mind.
Anyone in the world: *something remotly related to Brazil*
We Brazilians: *the magic word has been spoken, we shall be summoned*
E só tem BR aqui, tô querendo achar comentários de outros países sobre a história e não tem haha
@@rockBRUNO6 Pse, eu vim aqui procurar e não achei. E incrível como os Brs invadem qq vídeo sobre algo brasileiro
@@rockBRUNO6 pode ter ctz q a meia dúzia de gringo que vc achar, vai ser Br fingindo ser gringo
Bento is so annoying I kind of hoped Capitu did cheat on him 😅
Exactly! Did Capitu cheat on Bentinho? No, but she should have.
We don't know exactly whether she cheated on him or not.
He might have been tormented by his thoughts and fears, but he certainly didn’t stop there. I would hate to be married to a man who constantly suspects and treats me as if I were a cheater. It’s not fair to pay for something you didn’t do. If he’s gonna exile his wife for cheating than at least let her have some fun with Escobar.
Same
@@luizappicanco Isso quando você considera a traição como algo que não aconteceu.
mano é muito fácil ser gringo e hittar é só falar sobre qualquer coisa brasileira que os BR vêm correndo. ps. a qualidade dos vídeos do better than food melhorou muito, to surpresa. tá cada vez melhor o canal!
Great review as usual! And thanks for the kind words, man!
Excellent review! Dom Casmurro was the trigger for me starting to embrace and love my country's literature as a teenager years ago. Greetings from Brazil!
2:38 Yes! It's too long. That's why we usually shorten it to "Brás Cubas" when talking about it. It's great to see your review🤗.
"Epitath of a small winner" is a freaking AWESOME title for an english translation of Memórias Póstumas de Brás Cubas. I concede it kills the main point of the original title - the whole memoirs after you are dead thing - but it also eliminates the portuguese words to be pronounced from the title, and stays true to the narrator's view of himself. Also, it's cool as heck. Love it.
OMG, I can´t believe this review finally happened!
Dom Casmurro was the first book by Machado de Assis that I read and it is still my favorite from all time. I'm so happy that people outside Brazil are descovering it more 😊
AHHHHHHHH Que amor gente! obrigado por fazer uma análise desse clássico brasileiro.
Great review... I am a brazilian Literature teacher and you went straight to the point.
I like the way you dealt with the story and the focus on highlighting the characteristics of the book.
I've been studying Machado for a while... Thank you for bringing our best author to the spotlight.
"Philosopher or Dog?" ("Quincas Borba") is also wonderful, although in terms of structure it's the less daring of the trilogy (the only one narrated in 3rd person). It reminds me a bit of "Dangerous Liaisons"; the main female character, Sofia, might be my favourite among Machado's "femme fatales".
it's my favorite Machado book too!! And I also love Sofia
Sofia is great, omg I love that little devil.
Sofia is the best and the worst
Cara, eu estou lendo agora.
Não sei se é por estar lendo digitalmente (normalmente assim me prendo menos) mas eu não senti a genialidade desse, pra mim o unico dele que não estou gostando tanto. Essa coisa do cachorro, não peguei.
@@felipecavalheiro7971 termina o livro e depois conta se gostou ehehhe confia
Hi, I randomly stumbled on this video probably because "Brazil".. TH-cam knows how to summon us.
In highschool our teacher made us read Dom Casmurro and is one of my favorite brazilian books. I still have the copy almost 20 years later.
I think teenagers love the drama in it and discussing whether or not Capitu cheated on Bento. So, besides every quality you highlighted in your beautiful review, I'd like to add the fact that it's a book that can be read by different age audiences.
I'll definitely check other reviews you made to pick some recommendations. Thank you.
"The Magical Glasses" (A Luneta Mágica) from Joaquim Manuel de Macedo is also a very nice book, very underrated even in Brazil.
Besides his skillfulness regarding irony, part of Machado's grandiose is due to his knowledge and use of the Portuguese language. He is a legend on that point, for he was able not only to use it correctly (VERY correctly) but also to reinvent it. Each of his paragraphs is full of new patterns, different compositions of phrases, etc., and is that characteristic that makes me, a humble writer, admire him. Nice video! Greetings from Brazil.
Gringo aleatório falando do Brasil: a
Brasileiros: 👀
Aleatório? Pensei q era o cara de Peaky Blinders kkkk
Parece aquele meme da Gretchen "atenta" kdhdjak
Mano a homepage do meu youtube anda bem aleatória.
Mais coincidente ainda que acabei de zerar AC Syndicate 👀
Man, when you say it tells not only about the main caracter, but also about the reader, I think you got it perfectly! This is my favorite book of brazilian literature.Great analysis!
This edition is so beautiful. You can see the painting of the cover at Pinacoteca, in São Paulo!
Dom Casmurro é realmente um ótimo livro. Muito bom ver obras primas da nossa leitura sendo apreciadas por pessoas de outros países!
Parabéns pelo vídeo, amei!!
Notice that the history of their childhood is also told by an older Bentinho already convinced of the betrayal of Escobar, reading it again, the begining is totally different
Dude! You GOT Machado!! Wow. I admire how you use exact words to pin point your thoughts to us. Great. Thanks for helping to showcase one of the best works in brazilian literature.
The chapter I remember liking the best is "The Last Superlative", where Bento's uncle(?), known for his way of talking using superlatives all the time, dies. I fear this is one of those things that may be lost in translation.
I say that because the superlative form isn't really used as much nowadays in pr-br, outside pompous writing - e.g. "belo" (beautiful) would become "belíssimo" (*"beautifulest"), while nowadays people not only would prefer the analytic way of talking instead of the synthetic, but would also use another word with the same meaning ("bonito"), like "o mais bonito" (the most beautiful).
José Dias isn't Bento's uncle, he just lived at his family's house because he did a favor to his father when he was alive, and ended up becoming some kind of member of the family. We say "agregado", and I don't know how to say it in english.
Also, I don't think it's right to say that the superlative form isn't common nowadays, since we do hear things like "muitíssimo obrigado" or "ela é riquíssima", spoken even out of this pompous writing that you mentioned. In fact, even at that time, the superlative wasn't the most common thing in people's speech, except for José Dias, who tended to use it a lot more often.
@@abraaodefreitas24 That's why I've put the "?" next to "uncle" haha, I couldn't remember it since I've read the book back in highschool, about 16 years ago, so a couple details were certainly forgotten.
(Vou continuar falando em inglês caso alguém queira se juntar à discussão lol).
I think that depends on who you usually talk to, to be honest, some people may use it in their idiolects more than others, just like José Dias himself (I've just searched "superlativo" on Google Scholar to find any linguistics study on that and there was one "Adjetivo superlativo na fala de homens gays: uma discussão sociolinguística", so its use could also be related to different social groups). But having worked as a proofreader (revisor de textos) for a couple years, I don't remember ever seeing superlative written.
The examples you mentioned I'd say are akin to idioms / expressions (always with the same adjectives), and people will prefer using the analytical form of the superlative with "muito" (very) or "tão" (so) - like in "eu fiquei muuuuuito de cara", while "eu fiquei de caríssima" would be more funny than anything else -, unless they're using "words that you mostly use on synthetic form if the context allows" hahaha
I read it back in the high school for some essays. I remember liking it a lot even though I felt like I did not understand shit. So I see your video and immediately want to come and comment. Thanks for appreciating our writers, culture, etc. Its very nice of you.
A literatura brasileira é maravilhosa 🇧🇷❤
Estou me divertindo com esse vídeo de um gringo resenhando Dom Casmurro. Reli ele no fim do ano passado. O momento que o Bentinho trança o cabelo da Capitu, quando ambos eram crianças, é muito precioso - aliás, muitas passagens são 😭❤️
I am a simple man: I see a book review channel talking about anything from my Country and I Subscribe.
I absolutely love when you review brazilian books, cause we have some of the greatest authors in history and not averybody gets to read them
I'm brazilian, and i have just met your chanel. superb work! Thanks for this review of the Great Machado de Assis.
fun fact, Dom Casmurro "translates" to Sir annoying
I would say more like stubborn
Or grouchy
This cracks me up every time 😂😂😂😂😂
Mr Grumbler
13:26 “I wonder if Dom Casmurro is a reference to Don Quixote”
Hm, not quite sure, but “Dom” is the Iberic (and colonies) equivalent of the Norman“Lord”, becoming every sort of tittle of respect/authority/nobility... some times used ironically to refer to someone who bosses people around too much with some unreasonable expectations, or someone that thinks himself more important than he truly is.
So, it could be a reference... or it could just be a common slang back in the times of romanticism
You should also read "The Brothers: A Novel", by Milton Hatoum. It's a relatively recent book (first impression still), but already considered one of the Brazilian classics.
I second this!
Nice review of one of the greatest books of all time. A subtle detail in the title is that "casmurro" means headstrong, obstinate, and also self-absorbeb. A touch of genius.
When we talk about Dom Casmurro in Brazil, we usually Just want to know If Capitu cheated or not, and It may seem harmless, but I think It dristract us from the fact that the narrator manipulates what we know, and It makes us put in question the woman's character. Anyways, seems like a metaphor for society. Loved your Review.
Excellent point of view!
@@marialuizamedeiros4522 well thank you
Considering the content distribution of the book, the emphasis becomes visible through the psychoanalytic lens and Bento's mother fixation. +The reason for the focus on adultery comes from Machado himself. He frames the story with allusions to Othello which direct/shape our thinking.
Hi! Very good to see a channel, dedicated to literature. Especially if he brings literature from my country! It would be interesting to bring more writers and their works! Congratulations, and you remind me of Robbie Basho.
I love “Dom Casmurro”. I recomend you reading “Grande Sertão: Veredas” - Guimarães Rosa and “São Bernardo” - Graciliano Ramos. I hope the translation made could achive the perfection we see in Portuguese.
spoiler: it can't(to GSV or The Devil to Pay in the Backlands). It's like Joyce, who loses a lot by being translated :( It's a shame, but it's impossible to replicate Guimarães in any other language :(
I am very happy to know that Brazilian books are being mentioned :)
Thank you, that really made my day.
You should really get into his tales, so much golden stuff. One of the most famous and personal favorite is "The Alienist", is one of most unique story mixing comedy and great insights into the limits between normality and madness. Really recommend.
Haha Man, I loved your rewiew! 🇧🇷
I can say, as Brazilian, that the word underdog is perfect to describe Machado, the most of the Brazilians know him (at least his name) but have never read nothing from him. The problem is, in here we get in touch with his work totally on the wrong age, when we're too young to understand and delight with his books. I don't if the English speakers have the same problem with Shakespeare, Hemingway, Poe etc. I wouldn't say Twain because he's like our Monteiro Lobato, his books are more accessible to everybody, doesn't matter the age range.
Anyways thank you a lot for this rewiew! I got proud for our native Masters and you've got a new subscriber! 0/
My theory: Bentinho was in love with Escobar. He's jealous, yes...but of whom? Look at how he describes Escobar throughout the book.
Oh my god I've never though of It, Genius !!
I also sensed his relationship with Escobar was a bit... how can I say... complex, there was something hidden, untold going on, and he felt betrayed when the two obsessions and passions of his life (Capitu and Escobar) seemed like they could have betrayed him together. He was very fond of Escobar with a sort of extremely infatuated admiration that borders on passionate, sensual love. Was his excessive jealousy and insecurity maybe caused by his own unconfessed internal troubles and doubts, lashing them viciously on both Capitu and Escobar? Food for thought...
YES. He was uncomfortably in awe of Escobar. He envied him too, of course, but he saw him like something more. And he also was obsessed with Capitu
Yep!!!!
SIMMM
It's so good to be able to say "I have this book at home!"
Also good to see Brazilian literature beeing appreciated
Love from Brazil 🇧🇷
"olhos de cigana oblíqua e dissimulada". It takes a special kind sensibility to come up with that description of a woman!
Great video!
Absolutely my favorite of all times!! Impossible to deny Machado's talent. I've got no words to describe it, Machado took them all! Great review! One more proud Brazilian o/
When you read Casmurro, never forget that he is the husband, so HE IS BIASED, it's his view of things.
We are already waiting for the extended review! By the way, loved your pronunciation! Greetings from Brazil! ❤️
I know your thing is books, but you should really watch "Capitu", the book adaptation. A beautiful work.
I asked my husband to read Dom Casmurro (he's british, I'm brazilian) and he loved it! The next one will definitely be Memórias Póstumas de Bras Cubas, and I'll make sure to send him your review videos.
The biggest question in Brazilian literature: Did she cheat on him or didn't she?
The second bigger question: Was Bentinho in love with Escobar?
A primeira a gente nunca vai saber, mas a respota da segunda é: sim, óbvio kkkkkkkkkkk
First question :yes she did
Second question : I don't think so
Great review about an amazing book, Machado de Assis is a national treasure.
And this may sound pretentious, but you noticed some nuances that takes some people 2 or 3 readings to understand.
Is always cool to see people from outside Brazil to talk about Brazil 😂
A highschool teacher of mine used to say, if Machado de Assis was born in europe, he would be one of the best writes ever..
And he is.
I found it funny when you compared Machado de Assis to Poe. That may be not just coincidence: Poe was first translated into Portuguese by Machado.
Check out Tolstoy’s “Kreutzer’s Sonata” which I believe was a great influence for this book. Also, never believe in Bento because he can change the meaning of anything like his nickname.
One thing brazilians love is to hear foreign people give their outsider's view of our culture, we learn a lot about ourselves.