Spanish and Portuguese Language and Literature Commons^™

Pages Of The Revolution: Symbolism In Sophia De Mello Breyner Andresen's O Nome Das Coisas, Madalyn Alice Harper Lyman

Undergraduate Honors Theses

In the midst of political turmoil surrounding the Portuguese Revolução dos Cravos (Carnation Revolution), Sophia de Mello Breyner Andresen wrote the anthology O Nome das Coisas [“The Name of Things”] (1977). With this historically significant period as the background of her poetry, Andresen addresses the politics of the time with repeated metaphor, particularly the symbol of paper in various forms, such as a poster or a blank page. Through this repeated and evolving symbolism, she illustrates how the anxiousness and oppression of the Portuguese people turned first to relief and rejoicing after the dictatorship fell and then to disappointment …