Helena Morley (pseudonym Alice Dayrell Garcia Brant) was born on August 28, 1880, in Diamantina, in the state of Minas Gerais. When she was 12 years old, she started writing a diary, which was published decades later in 1942. The work soon achieved great success.
The author, who died on June 20, 1970, in Rio de Janeiro, she wrote only one book: the diary my girl life. This work has great historical value, as it records the culture, customs and prejudices of Minas Gerais society at the end of the 19th century. In addition, it highlights the female universe of a teenager at that time.
See too: Anne Frank — juvenile author of a diary written in the context of World War II
Topics of this article
- 1 - Summary about Helena Morley
- 2 - Biography of Helena Morley
- 3 - Characteristics of Helena Morley's work
- 4 - Works by Helena Morley
Summary about Helena Morley
- Brazilian author Helena Morley was born in 1880 and died in 1970.
- In addition to writing her diary, she also acted as a teacher.
- my girl life It is the only literary work written by the author.
- Her diary brings the reality of a 19th century teenager.
Helena Morley biography
Helena Morley is pseudonym of Alice Dayrell Garcia Brant, who was born on August 28, 1880, in Diamantina, in the state of Minas Gerais. She was of English descent on her father's side: the miner Felisberto Moirell Dayrell.
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At the end of the 19th century, influenced by her father, she decided to write a diary, where she recorded her experiences between 1893 and 1895. She also attended Normal School and worked as a teacher. In 1900, she married her cousin, journalist and future deputy Augusto Mário Caldeira Brant (1876–1968), with whom she had six children.
Alice Dayrell lived in Rio de Janeiro when, in 1942, at her husband's suggestion, she decided to publish her diary my girl life. Thus, she chose Helena as a pseudonym and added her maternal grandmother's surname: Morley. The author was surprised by the enormous success of the book, a success that accompanied her until the end of her life.
She died on June 20, 1970, in Rio de Janeiro, at almost 90 years of age, and became patron of chair 13 of the Academia Feminina Mineira de Letras (Afemil). Furthermore, on the centenary of his birth, the poet Carlos Drummond de Andrade (1902–1987) wrote a chronicle in her honor entitled Helena and Alice in a centenary. The text was published in Jornal do Brasil, on August 30, 1980.
Characteristics of Helena Morley's work
- Memorialistic or autobiographical writing.
- Protagonism of the female voice.
- Elements of the diary genre.
- Portrait of mining society at the end of the 19th century.
- character of chronic.
- Everyday facts.
- Simple and objective language.
- Regionalism.
- Humor.
- Social criticism.
Know more: Carolina Maria de Jesus — Brazilian writer for a diary that makes profound social critiques
Works by Helena Morley
Helena Morley wrote only one work: the famous diary my girl life.
→ My girl life
my girl life it is a diary that portrays the adolescence of Helena Morley. More specifically, it shows the girl's life between 12 and 15 years old. The story takes place right after the abolition of slavery and in full republic. Thus, it begins to be written on January 5, 1893 and ends on December 31, 1895.
In the work, Alice Dayrell not only changed her name, but also that of her mother, father, brothers, sister and cousin, who in the book are called, respectively, Carolina, Alexandre, Renato, Nhonhô, Luisinha and Leontine. One of the prominent characters in her diary is her maternal grandmother, Teodora, a wealthy widow who seems to love Helena more than her other grandchildren.
Another character who also draws attention is his paternal grandfather, not because of the recurrence, but because of his cultural importance. He was a Protestant, so he did not have his body buried in the church and went to “English heaven”. This fact generates comments in the city:
My grandfather was not buried in the church because he was a Protestant; she went to the door of the Casa de Caridade and to this day people talk about it in Diamantina.
Despite having a rich grandmother, her parents are poor. The father is a miner, but he is not successful. During the three years of the diary, the girl weaves reflections on various daily events in Diamantina. She mentions rumors, customs and superstitions of the city. She also makes comments about members of her family and tells about things that happen in the neighborhood.
In addition, something recurrent in the work is the reference to black people. In this case, the emphasis on difference and on the prejudices of the time. The maternal grandmother is a slave owner, and, according to the girl, in the farm,
there are still many black men and women from the time of captivity, who were slaves and did not want to leave with the Law of 13 May. Grandma supports everyone.
In another moment, Helena comments that she and her sister are very fond of children and when
we didn't find a white boy, we even carried the little black ones from Chácara.
In addition, the neighbor Siá Ritinha does not let Helena play with her “dark classmates” and says:
This is to get you out of the niggers' charola. I already told you that you are not a girl to play with them!.
There are many reports in the work that demonstrate the strong racism of the time.When Helena starts teaching at her aunt Madge's school, but thinks about giving up, she hears this comment from her aunt:
What? Won't you come back? So you want to disappoint me and convince me that a mulatta like Zinha is more capable than you?
The book my girl life he has great historical importance. After all, it portrays the culture, customs and prejudices of the time. It shows not only the female universe, but the place occupied by women in society at that time, in addition to to explain racism and the strong religiosity present in the lives of the inhabitants of Diamantina, Minas Gerais General.
→ Video class on the literary analysis of my girl life
image credit
[1] Companhia das Letras (reproduction)
By Warley Souza
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