ROUTES ON IRONY IN POSTHUMOUS MEMOIRS OF BRÁS CUBAS: A SLIT IN THE VOICE OF THE NARCISSISTIC NARRATORAbstract
This article proposes a reading of Posthumous Memoirs of Brás Cubas, by Machado de Assis, from the narrator's ironic perspective, a theme already widely studied by critics of Machado's work. A review of the literature on irony in this Machado's work is presented, as it is a basic concept for the interpretation of the narrative. The ironic passages touch upon themes of Brazilian society in the 19th century and unfold to concepts that make us problematize modernity, a time in which the dictatorship of ultranarcissistic patterns is perceived. The concepts of "irony", "laughter", as well as the theoretical subsidies brought by the critical fortune of the author were fundamental for the development of the ideas proposed in this analysis, which even suggest the polyphony present in the text and in the narrative voice itself.
Keywords: irony; Machado de Assis; Posthumous Memoirs of Brás Cubas; laughter; polyphony