Chilean Letters is work written by the Arcadian poet Tomás Antônio Gonzaga (1744-1810). It is one of the most emblematic satirical works of that period.
It is composed of several poems that became known in the city of Vila Rica (now Ouro Preto), Minas Gerais, in the context of the Inconfidência Mineira.
For this reason, the texts that circulated in the city at the end of the 18th century were marked by the anonymity of their author. For a long time, the letters were analyzed to find out who the real writer was.
The work receives this name because Critilo (the writer's pseudonym) lives in the city of Santiago, Chile, which is actually Vila Rica, in Minas Gerais.
This change of names also appears in other passages, where Spain would be Portugal, and Salamanca, Coimbra.
Structure of the Work
Made up of 13 cards, the Chilean Letters were written by Tomás Antônio Gonzaga, under the pseudonym Critilo.
He writes to his friend Dorotheus, who is actually the Arcadian writer Cláudio Manuel da Costa.
The work is composed of decasyllable verses (ten poetic syllables) and
white (no rhymes). The language used is satirical, ironic and sometimes aggressive.Characters of the Work
Critilo is the sender of the letters, and Dorotheus the receiver. In addition to them, the text makes reference to Fanfarrão Minésio: governor of Chile.
Work Analysis
Chilean Letters they reveal, through a satirical tone, problems related to the context in which they were written.
Thus, the work points out themes that were evident in the period of Mining Inconfidence.
They are: injustice, corruption, tyranny, abuses of power, government administration, high taxes, government narcissism and cases of nepotism.
The central focus of the work is to reveal the corruption of Luís da Cunha Meneses, governor of the Captaincy of Minas Gerais. He governed the state between 1783 and 1788.
In the cards, he is referred to as the “Banfarrão Minesio”.
Summary of Letters
Below are the subtitles (in italics) and a summary of the themes found in each letter:
Letter 1st: In which the entry that made Fanfarrão in Chile is described. Description of the governor's arrival.
Letter 2nd: In which is shown the piety that Fanfarrão feigned at the beginning of his government, to call to himself all business. Description of the centralization of government business.
Letter 3: In which are counted the injustices and violence that Fanfarrão executed because of a prison, which he started. Description of government injustices.
Letter 4: In which the same subject continues. Description of the governor's injustices and violence.
Letter 5: In which are counted the disorders made at the festivities that took place at the wedding of our most serene Infanta, with the most serene Infanta of Portugal. Governor's wedding party.
Letter 6: How do you count the rest of the festivities. Description of the confusion caused at the wedding party.
Letter 7: Without subtitle, the seventh letter points to the decisions of the braggart governor.
Letter 8: When it comes to the sale of orders and contracts. Ironically, the author describes the corruptions of the governor.
Letter 9: What are the disorders that Fanfarrão wrought in the government of the troops. Description of government disorders.
Letter 10: What are the biggest disorders that Fanfarrão made in his government. As a sequel to the ninth letter, the author describes the government's greatest disorders.
Letter 11th: In what counts the bravado of Fanfarrão. Description of the governor's malicious methods.
Letter 12: Without a subtitle, the twelfth letter points to the government's nepotism, that is, the favoring of people close to the governor.
Letter 13th: No subtitle, the last letter was unfinished. In the existing excerpt, the author writes about the system and the perversity of the government.
Check the entire work by downloading the pdf here: Chilean Letters.
Excerpts from the Work
To better understand the language used by Tomás Antônio Gonzaga, check out some excerpts from each of the Chilean Letters:
Letter 1
“Friend Doroteus, dear friend,
Open your eyes, yawn, extend your arms
And clean, from the loaded eyelashes,
The sticky mood that sleep brings together.”
Letter 2
“The bright stars were already falling
And the third time the roosters were already crowing,
When, dear friend, I put the seal
In the voluminous letter, in which I tell you"
Letter 3
“How sad, Dorotheus, the afternoon has gone by!
Blows the south wind, and dense cloud
The horizons cover; the heavy rain,
Falling from the toes of the roofs"
Letter 4
"Damn, Dorotheus, damn you
The addiction of a poet, who, taking
Between teeth someone while finding
Matters that you talk about, don't rest."
Letter 5
"You already have, Doroteu, heard stories
That can move the sad tears.
The dry eyes of the cruel Ulysses.
Now, Dorotheus, wipe your face,
That I will tell you beautiful things.”
Letter 6
"Yesterday, Dorotheus, I closed the letter
In which I told you about the feasts of the church.
And how it worked, for remembering
Of the rest of the festivities barely barefoot.”
Letter 7
"There is time, Dorotheus, that I have not continued
From our Buck the long story.
Do not seek to cover them with such a cover,
Who is still persuaded than most men"
Letter 8
“The great ones, Dorotheus, of our Spain
They have several farms: one of them
They give wheat, they give rye and they give barley,
The others have waterfalls and orchards,
With many other pieces, which only serve,
In calm summers, for some recreation.”
Letter 9
"Now, Dorotheus, now it was
Bamboo, in the lazy hammock
And taking, in the fine porcelain,
The tasty mate, when I hear it
From thick artillery, the hoarse bang."
Letter 10
"I wanted, my friend, to compose meanings in verses
To a long absence and to fill me
With tender expressions, sad images,
The board went to sit down, with a project.”
Letter 11
"In the middle of this land there is a bridge,
At whose two extremes they rise
From two large tenants the abodes;
And only Dorotheus, the sun declines."
Letter 12
"He who boasts of a gentleman
Does not stop counting parents
Of the race of the Swabians, more of the Goths;
the brave soldier spends the day
Speaking of battles, and show us
From the wounds, which cherishes, the body is full; "
Letter 13
“Still, dear friend, there are still
The remains of the sumptuous temples
May the religious hand of the good Numa
He raised Mars and raised Jano.”
Read too:
- Arcadianism in Brazil
- The Language of Arcadianism
- Tomás Antônio Gonzaga
