Tag: Portuguese
By Stephen Basdeo on 2 Jan 2023
"It has always seemed impossible to me to write the mysteries of a land that has none, and, invented, nobody believes them. I was wrong. It is because I did not know Lisbon, or not able to calculate the power of a man's imagination."
By Stephen Basdeo on 4 Dec 2022
When the Emperor arrived 'a number of Brazilian residents in London crowded forward to meet them'. Who were these Brazilians resident in Victorian London? Can we know a little bit more about their histories?
Adelina, the Cigar-Seller from "Narrativas Negras" (2020) | Stephen Basdeo
By Stephen Basdeo on 9 Jul 2022
Adelina began to live a double life. She remained a slave. But her unique knowledge of the town and its environs, and especially of all the places where it was easy for a person to 'disappear', meant that she became valuable resource for abolitionists who were on the run from the police.
By Stephen Basdeo on 15 May 2022 • ( 1 Comment )
Luiz Guerra's new, and very fine, translation into English of Azevedo's Shadow of Don Juan ['Sombra de Don Juan'] is the first English translation of Azevedo's poem. With great skill, as is usual of Guerra's translations, he has largely preserved the original rhyme scheme while retaining Azevedo's meaning.
Desânimo ["Dejection"] | Álvares de Azevedo and Luiz Guerra
By Stephen Basdeo on 10 Dec 2021 • ( 1 Comment )
'Desanimo' [Dejection] first appeared in Álvares de Azevedo's posthumous collection of poetry titled Lira dos Vinte Anos (1853).
Já da Morte ["Already has Death"] | Álvares de Azevedo
By Stephen Basdeo on 27 Nov 2021 • ( 1 Comment )
None of these writings were to be published while Álvares was alive, however, for in true Romantic style, he died young. Having contracted tuberculosis while living in São Paolo, he moved to his family's country estate to recover. While travelling to his family's home he fell from his horse and died from his injuries.