Despite the evident differences between Machado de Assis and Lima Barreto, the portrayal of Brazilian history constitutes a topic upon which both worked. InEsaú e Jacó (1904), by Machado de Assis, andNuma e a Ninfa (1915), by Lima Barreto, even using different narrative processes, the characterization of Brazilian politics is coincident, suggesting a continuity between the sociopolitical structure of the Imperial and Republican periods. This paper studies the different formal construction of both novels, which nevertheless indicate the permanence of certain structural features of Brazilian society, such as patrimonialism and the dissociation of State and society, among others.
Esaú e Jacó; Numa e a Ninfa; Machado de Assis; Lima Barreto; Brazilian political process