A viagen do elefante, post-colonial rewrite of José Saramago

Abstract

The objective of the present article is to analyze the strategies used by the narrator of José Saramago ‘s A viagem do elefante, published in 1998 and thus to propose an interpretation that explains the purpose that these strategies fulfill within the novel. The story deals with a minor fact in the history of Portugal and Austria, in which individuals from different cultures interact with each other. The resources used in this analysis are both the re-reading and rewriting of the historical event, as well as the metadiscursive reflection of the narrative voice, which comments on the consequences of such encounter. We consider that the strategies used by the narrator, when reflecting on the exchange produced by the contact of different cultures, seek to unveil the hegemony imposed on colonized individuals with gestures that deny their dignity. A viagem do elefante is studied from the Machado and Pageaux (2001) theory to carry out a comparative analysis, and the Bonnici (2012) studies to address the relationship between literature and postcolonialism.