Machado de Assis:

the law and the lawyers

Resumo

Machado de Assis’ fiction, novels and short stories, abounds with legal terms and allusions. The number of lawyers and bureaucratic
staff is impressive. Advocacy is by far the profession most exercised by the numerous characters, followed by politicians and members of the Church. In a rather unequal slave society these métiers were preferred by the bourgeoisie of Rio de Janeiro for social ascension at any cost or means, whether lawful or not. Ironically the vast majority of this plethora of fictional characters is not endowed with good ethical and moral principles. In general, they are mediocre professionals and cunningly exploit their peers to take advantage of their credulity and good faith. For the purposes of this essay, I chose only two lawyers, or rather two law graduates, protagonists and narrators of the two of the most acclaimed novels of Machado de Assis: Brás Cubas and Bento Santiago, “Bentinho” for the family, and “Dom Casmurro” by nickname. Brás Cubas, the main character of Posthumous Memoirs of Brás Cubas (1881), is graduated in law from the prestigious University of Coimbra, where wealthy families used to send their children to study. But his tedium for academic life led  him not to fulfill himself professionally. Bento, the protagonist of Dom Casmurro (1900) is also a bachelor of law without having any enthusiasm for the profession. Law and literature are closely intertwined in this novel.
The titles of some chapters of the book evidence the interdisciplinary use of the blending of law and artistic creation: “The law is beautiful”, “The private audience”, “Oath at the well”, “The treaty”, “Third party claim proceeding”, “Legal papers”, “The speech”, etc. This aesthetic procedure demonstrates that Machado de Assis was very attentive to the shortcomings of the bachelors’ society of his time, writing with wit and irony two of the best novels ever produced in Brazil.