CESAR LEAL: SYMBOLISM AND LANGUAGE. (PORTUGUESE TEXT).
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Title
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CESAR LEAL: SYMBOLISM AND LANGUAGE. (PORTUGUESE TEXT).
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Identifier
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AAI8103921
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identifier
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8103921
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Creator
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COUTINHO, JOSE DOMICIO.
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Contributor
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Gregory Rabassa | Carolyn Richmond
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Date
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1980
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Language
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English
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Publisher
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City University of New York.
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Subject
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Literature, Comparative
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Abstract
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Cesar Leal is one of the best poet-critics in Brazil today. During the last few years, his influence has been continuously growing in Brazil and abroad. Although many articles and short essays have been written on his individual poems, so far there is no full-length serious study on him or his writing technique as a whole. Consequently, this dissertation on "Symbolism and Language" of Cesar Leal focuses on the structure, aesthetic principles, and other elements which are present in his work. With this in mind, two important aspects are stressed: the dichotomy between "symbolism" and "language," and the search for unknown symbols which may express the solitude and distress of modern conscience. His poetry is characterized therefore by a certain mystery as it attempts to give form of expression to the eternal symbols dispersed in the universe and in the mind of man. The introduction of the thesis presents this objective, the definition of concepts, and the bio-bibliographic data of the poet. It continues with a study on Cesar Leal, the critic, followed by a list of commentaries on his works by some famous critics in Brazil. The introduction ends with a note on the aesthetic conscience of Cesar Leal, his roots, and the more significant influences on him, as well as his principal source of motivation, in contemporary literary trends.;The body of the thesis comprises the four books of poetry as they were published, "Invencoes da Noite Menor," "O Triunfo das Aguas," "Jornal do Verao," and "A Quinta Estacao," each as a separate chapter. In INM, it is noted that his poetic dream is formed with the imagery of symbolic-surrealistic inspiration creating the pattern of the early lyricism. OTA is characterized by technical development of verbal expression based on plurisignification and vagueness of terms. Here he introduces his colagens, one of his innovations and the great constellation Cygnus in the form of concrete poetry, signifying the sublimation of all waters, as a mythical element. JV is inspired by the seven stars of Ursa Major which frightens with its atomic chalice symbolically replacing the mushroom cloud, covering the whole page, a real enigma among the stars. The last part of the book evokes "Pantaju," a friendly dog from childhood. Its inclusion here implies a return to his first lyricism.;In AQE, the "Nove Elegias" institute the graphic signs of the typewriter keyboard as new poetic symbols also called linossignos. The last two parts of AQE are "Tambor Cosmico," here referred to as the "lyric universe" of Cesar Leal, and "Metalinguagem," called the "abolute poetic." In both, the image-sounds seem to convey the mythic instant of creation of the universe and birth of language. Repetition and monotony are used to achieve incantation. Starting with AQE in his work, a certain metaphysical preoccupation is apparent even though perhaps unintentional but in some ways responsible for the recurrence of major archetypes. Cesar Leal entertains a pattern of images obviously related to a strange "correspondence" whose reincidence proclaims a state of mental alertness little by little pacified by inner tranquility. Death is not portrayed as an alternative but as a natural transition to its antithesis: Life and Love. This theme seems to be the epitome of AQE and somehow of his work as a whole.;The thesis ends with an interview in which Cesar Leal gives unique insight into various aspects of his work and his method of writing poetry.
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Type
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dissertation
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Source
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PQT Legacy CUNY.xlsx
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degree
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Ph.D.
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Program
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Comparative Literature
