The Posthumous Memoirs of Brás Cubas

Death is threaded into the fabric of the narrative, starting with the posthumous narration of Brás Cubas. Detached from the confines of earthly life, Brás initially embraces death as a form of liberation. Free from the scrutiny of society’s gaze and the relentless pursuit of material success, he finds solace in the absence of worldly pressures. Yet, amid this newfound freedom, a wistful longing for recognition persists. Brás yearns for a lasting legacy, a testament to his existence that transcends the boundaries of life. Recounting the story through a posthumous narrator allows Machado de Assis to explore what death can transform and redeem and what it cannot. Death, rather than being an abrupt end, becomes an integral part of Brás’s existence.

Brás’s death is not the only important one, however. Throughout the novel, references to mortality subtly shape the novel’s thematic landscape, forming a recurrent motif that underscores the fragility of human existence. Whether through personal anecdotes, philosophical contemplations, or the portrayal of others’ deaths, mortality lingers, highlighting the inescapable nature of death. The author emphasizes the way that death transforms the living both for better and worse. Death throws into relief the hypocrisies and cruelties of Brazilian society, as when Nhã-loló’s death reveals the shallowness of Brás’s feelings for her and the indifference of the upper classes to the deaths of those without power or wealth to be redistributed.