Joaquim Maria Machado de Assis (Portuguese: [ʒwɐˈkĩ maˈɾiɐ maˈʃadu d͡ʒ(i) aˈsis]), also known as Bruxo do Cosme Velho, was born on June 21, 1839, and died on September 29, 1908. He was a Brazilian writer, poet, playwright, and short story author, often considered the greatest writer in Brazilian literature. In 1897, he founded the Brazilian Academy of Letters and became its first president. He learned French, English, German, and Greek on his own later in life.

Machado was born in Morro do Livramento, Rio de Janeiro, to a poor family. His grandparents were freed slaves in a country where slavery was not abolished until 1888, nearly 50 years after his birth. He received little formal education and did not attend university. Using his intelligence and self-taught knowledge, he worked in public positions, including roles in the Ministry of Agriculture, Trade, and Public Works. He gained early recognition through his poetry and writings in newspapers.

Machado’s work helped shape the realist movement in Brazil. He was known for his sharp wit and honest critiques of society. His most famous works include Dom Casmurro (1899), Memórias Póstumas de Brás Cubas (also translated as Epitaph of a Small Winner), and Quincas Borba (also translated as Philosopher or Dog?). In 1893, he wrote A Missa do Galo (Midnight Mass), a short story often regarded as the greatest in Brazilian literature.

Biography

Joaquim Maria Machado de Assis was born on June 21, 1839, in Rio de Janeiro. At that time, Rio de Janeiro was the capital of the Empire of Brazil. His father was Francisco José de Assis, a wall painter who was the son of freed slaves. His mother was Maria Leopoldina da Câmara Machado, a Portuguese washerwoman from the Azores. He was born in a country house called Livramento, owned by Dona Maria José de Mendonça Barroso Pereira, a widow who protected his parents and allowed them to live with her. Dona Maria José became Joaquim's godmother, and her brother-in-law, Joaquim Alberto de Sousa da Silveira, became his godfather. Both were honored by being given their names to the baby. Machado had a sister who died when she was very young. He attended a public school but was not a good student. While helping to serve people, he met Father Silveira Sarmento, who became his Latin teacher and a close friend.

When Joaquim was ten years old, his mother died, and his father moved to São Cristóvão with him. Francisco de Assis married Maria Inês da Silva in 1854. Joaquim attended a school for girls only because his stepmother worked there and made candies. At night, he studied French with an immigrant baker. During his teenage years, he met Francisco de Paula Brito, who owned a bookstore, a newspaper, and a printing press. On January 12, 1855, Francisco de Paula published a poem called Ela ("Her"), written by Joaquim when he was 15 years old, in the newspaper Marmota Fluminense. The next year, he began working as a typographer's apprentice at the Imprensa Oficial, a government-run printing press. There, he was encouraged to write by Manuel Antônio de Almeida, the newspaper's director and a novelist. He also met Francisco Otaviano, a journalist who later became a liberal senator, and Quintino Bocaiuva, who later became a famous republican orator.

In 1858, Francisco Otaviano hired Machado to work as a proofreader for the newspaper Correio Mercantil. He continued writing for Marmota Fluminense and other newspapers, but he did not earn much money and lived a simple life. Because he no longer lived with his father, he often ate only once a day due to lack of money.

Around this time, he became friends with José de Alencar, a writer and liberal politician, who taught him English. He was influenced by English writers such as Laurence Sterne, William Shakespeare, Lord Byron, and Jonathan Swift. Later, he learned German and, in his later years, Greek. In 1860, Bocaiuva invited Machado to work at his newspaper Diário do Rio de Janeiro. Machado loved theater and wrote several plays, but Bocaiuva said, "Your works are meant to be read, not performed." Machado gained some recognition and began signing his writings as J. M. Machado de Assis, the name by which he would be known. He became involved with advanced Liberal Party circles by supporting religious freedom and defending Ernest Renan’s controversial book Life of Jesus, while criticizing the greed of the clergy.

In 1864, Machado’s father, Francisco de Assis, died. Machado learned of his father’s death through friends. He dedicated his collection of poems called Crisálidas to his parents: "To the Memory of Francisco José de Assis and Maria Leopoldina Machado de Assis, my Parents." When the Liberal Party gained power, Machado hoped to receive a government position that would improve his life. Instead, Emperor Dom Pedro II hired him as a director-assistant at the Diário Oficial in 1867 and knighted him as a honor. In 1888, Machado was made an officer of the Order of the Rose.

In 1868, Machado met Carolina Augusta Xavier de Novais, who was five years older than he was. She was the sister of his colleague Faustino Xavier de Novais, for whom Machado worked on the magazine O Futuro. Machado had a speech problem, was very shy, and was short and thin. He was also very intelligent and well-educated. He married Carolina on November 12, 1869. Her parents and siblings disapproved of the marriage because Machado was of African descent and she was a white woman. They had no children.

Machado advanced in his government job, first in the Agriculture Department. Three years later, he became the head of a section in that department. He published two poetry books: Falenas in 1870 and Americanas in 1875. These books were not well received, so he tried writing in other genres.

He wrote five romantic novels: Ressurreição, A Mão e a Luva, Helena, and Iaiá Garcia. These books were popular with the public, but critics considered them average. Machado suffered from repeated attacks of epilepsy, which may have been linked to the death of his friend José de Alencar. He became melancholic, pessimistic, and focused on death. His next book, Memórias Póstumas de Brás Cubas (also translated as Epitaph of a Small Winner), is widely considered a masterpiece. By the end of the 1880s, Machado had become well-known as a writer.

Although he opposed slavery, he never spoke against it publicly. He avoided discussing politics and was criticized by abolitionists like José do Patrocínio and Lima Barreto for not supporting the abolition movement or for marrying a white

Narrative style

Machado's writing style is unique, and many literary critics have tried to describe it since 1897. He is often called the greatest Brazilian writer of all time and one of the greatest novelists and short story writers in the world. His short writings, called chronicles, are not as highly regarded as his novels. His poems sometimes use strong language, which can lead to confusion and are sometimes compared to the negative style of another Brazilian writer, Augusto dos Anjos. Machado de Assis was listed by American critic Harold Bloom among the 100 greatest literary geniuses, along with writers like Dante, Shakespeare, and Cervantes. Bloom believes Machado is the greatest Black writer in Western literature, though in Brazil, Machado is seen as Pardo, a term for people of mixed race.

Scholars from many countries have studied Machado's work, including Giuseppe Alpi (Italy), Lourdes Andreassi (Portugal), Albert Bagby Jr. (US), Abel Barros Baptista (Portugal), Hennio Morgan Birchal (Brazil), Edoardo Bizzarri (Italy), Jean-Michel Massa (France), Helen Caldwell (US), John Gledson (England), Adrien Delpech (France), Albert Dessau (Germany), Paul B. Dixon (US), Keith Ellis (US), Edith Fowke (Canada), Anatole France (France), Richard Graham (US), Pierre Hourcade (France), David Jackson (US), G. Reginald Daniel (US), Linda Murphy Kelley (US), John C. Kinnear, Alfred Mac Adam (US), Victor Orban (France), Daphne Patai (US), Houwens Post (Italy), Samuel Putnam (US), John Hyde Schmitt, Tony Tanner (England), Jack E. Tomlins (US), Carmelo Virgillo (US), Dieter Woll (Germany), August Willemsen (Netherlands), and Susan Sontag (US).

Critics disagree about the style of Machado's writing. Some, like Abel Barros Baptista, say Machado is an anti-realist who challenges the idea of Realism and questions whether reality can be accurately described. Others, like John Gledson, believe Machado's work accurately reflects Brazilian life but uses creative methods. Daniel suggests Machado's novels show a growing ability to balance the personal focus of Romanticism with the objective focus of Realism-Naturalism. His early works are similar to a style called "Romantic Realism," while his later works share traits with a style called literary Impressionism. Historians like Sidney Chalhoub say Machado's writing reveals problems in late 19th-century Brazil. Critics agree that Machado used creative techniques to highlight the contradictions in Brazilian society. Roberto Schwarz argues that Machado's writing exposes the hidden problems in 19th-century Brazil by turning traditional storytelling methods upside down. Critics often reinterpret Machado's work based on their own views or the time period they study. Regardless of these differences, Machado's writing remains sharp and meaningful, connecting readers across time and place by showing both the humor and tenderness of human nature.

Machado's writing style has influenced many Brazilian writers. His works have been adapted for television, theater, and films. In 1975, the Brazilian Ministry of Education and Culture created the Comissão Machado de Assis ("Machado de Assis Commission") to publish critical editions of his works in 15 volumes. His major works have been translated into many languages. Famous 20th-century writers like Salman Rushdie, Cabrera Infante, and Carlos Fuentes, as well as filmmaker Woody Allen, have praised his writing. Despite support from well-known figures like Susan Sontag, Harold Bloom, and Elizabeth Hardwick, Machado's books remain less well-known in English-speaking countries, even compared to other Latin American writers.

In his stories, Machado often speaks directly to the reader, breaking the so-called "fourth wall," which means he ignores the imaginary barrier between the story and the audience.

List of works

Here is a list of works by Machado de Assis, organized by year of publication and including their English titles when available:

• 1872 – Ressurreição (Resurrection)
• 1874 – A Mão e a Luva (The Hand and the Glove)
• 1876 – Helena
• 1878 – Iaiá Garcia
• 1881 – Memórias Póstumas de Brás Cubas (The Posthumous Memoirs of Bras Cubas, also known in English as Epitaph of a Small Winner)
• 1891 – Quincas Borba (also known in English as Philosopher or Dog?)
• 1899 – Dom Casmurro
• 1904 – Esaú e Jacó (Esau and Jacob)
• 1908 – Memorial de Aires (Counselor Ayres' Memorial)

• 1881 – O alienista (The Psychiatrist, or The Alienist)
• 1886 – Casa velha (published as a book in 1944)

• 1860 – Hoje avental, amanhã luva
• 1861 – Desencantos
• 1863 – O caminho da porta and O protocolo (two plays)
• 1864 – Quase ministro
• 1865 – As Forças Caudinas (published 1956)
• 1866 – Os deuses de casaca
• 1878 – A Sonâmbula, Antes da Missa, and O bote de rapé (three short plays)
• 1881 – Tu, só tu, puro amor
• 1896 – Não consultes médico
• 1906 – Lição de botânica

• 1864 – Crisálidas
• 1870 – Falenas (including the dramatic poem Uma ode de Anacreonte)
• 1875 – Americanas
• 1901 – Ocidentais
• 1901 – Poesias Completas (complete poetry)

• 1870 – Contos Fluminenses
• 1873 – Histórias da meia-noite
• 1882 – Papéis avulsos (including O alienista)
• 1884 – Histórias sem data
• 1896 – Várias histórias
• 1899 – Páginas recolhidas (including A Missa do Galo and The Case of the Stick)
• 1906 – Relíquias de Casa Velha

• 1861 – Queda que as mulheres têm para os tolos, from the original De l'amour des femmes pour les sots, by Victor Hénaux
• 1865 – Suplício de uma mulher, from the original Le supplice d'une femme, by Émile de Girardin
• 1866 – Os Trabalhadores do Mar, from the original Les Travailleurs de la mer, by Victor Hugo
• 1870 – Oliver Twist, from the original Oliver Twist; or, the Parish Boy's Progress, by Charles Dickens
• 1883 – O Corvo, from The Raven, a famous poem by Edgar Allan Poe

• 1910 – Teatro Coligido (collected plays)
• 1910 – Crítica
• 1914 – A Semana (collection of articles)
• 1921 – Outras Relíquias (collection of short stories)
• 1921 – Páginas Escolhidas (collection of short stories)
• 1932 – Novas Relíquias (collection of short stories)
• 1937 – Crônicas (articles)
• 1937 – Crítica Literária
• 1937 – Crítica Teatral
• 1937 – Histórias Românticas
• 1939 – Páginas Esquecidas
• 1944 – Casa Velha
• 1956 – Diálogos e Reflexões de um Relojoeiro
• 1958 – Crônicas de Lélio

There are several published "Complete Works" of Machado de Assis:

• 1920 – Obras Completas. Rio de Janeiro: Livraria Garnier (20 vols.)
• 1962 – Obras Completas. Rio de Janeiro: W.M. Jackson (31 vols.)
• 1997 – Obras Completas. Rio de Janeiro: Editora Globo (31 vols.)
• 2006 – Obras Completas. Rio de Janeiro: Nova Aguilar (3 vols.)

Works in English translation:

• 1921 – Brazilian Tales. Boston: The Four Seas Company (London: Dodo Press, 2007).
• 1952 – Epitaph of a Small Winner. New York: Noonday Press (London: Hogarth Press, 1985; republished as The Posthumous Memoirs of Brás Cubas: A Novel. New York: Oxford University Press, 1997; Epitaph of a Small Winner. New York: Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 2008; UK: Bloomsbury Publishing, 2008).
• 1953 – Dom Casmurro: A Novel. New York: Noonday Press (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1966; republished as Dom Casmurro. Lord Taciturn. London: Peter Owen, 19

Honours

• Member of the Brazilian Academy of Letters from 1896 to 1908.
• Leader of the Brazilian Academy of Letters from 1897 to 1908.

• In the Empire of Brazil, he was awarded the title of Knight of the Order of the Rose in 1867.
• In the Empire of Brazil, he was awarded the title of Officer of the Order of the Rose in 1888.

On June 21, 2017, Google honored his 178th birthday with a special image called a Google Doodle.