Degree Name

Department

Spanish and Portuguese

College

Humanities

Defense Date

2019-12-11

Publication Date

2019-12-19

First Faculty Advisor

Anna-Lisa Halling

First Faculty Reader

Cristina Cowley

Honors Coordinator

Gregory Stallings

Keywords

Portugal, poetry, Sophia de Mello Breyner Andresen, Revolução dos Cravos, Estado Novo

Abstract

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 as political instability followed. The symbol of paper also asserts the importance of writing, which is a direct comment on the nation’s censorship prior to the revolution in 1974. An analysis of the dynamic metaphors in significant poems from before, immediately following, and some time after the Revolução dos Cravos reveals the importance of Andresen’s politically themed writing in highlighting the voice of the Portuguese people.