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| Dona Flor and Her Two Husbands | |
|---|---|
| Name | Dona Flor and Her Two Husbands |
| Author | Jorge Amado |
| Country | Brazil |
| Language | Portuguese |
| Genre | Novel |
| Publisher | Editora Civilização Brasileira |
| Pub date | 1966 |
| Pages | 288 |
Dona Flor and Her Two Husbands is a 1966 novel by Jorge Amado set in Salvador, Bahia during the 1940s, blending magical realism, social realism, romance novel, comedy, and elements of Brazilian folklore. The narrative follows the widowed cook Flor as she negotiates passion, propriety, and supernatural return in a cosmopolitan Brazilian port city, engaging with cultural currents from Carnival to Afro-Brazilian religions such as Candomblé.
The novel opens in Salvador, Bahia where Flor meets the roguish womanizer Vadinho at a party in the Pelourinho district, scenes resonant with Bahian cuisine, samba, and the social milieu of Praça Terreiro de Jesus. After a turbulent marriage marked by revelry linking to Carnival and encounters at local bars and brothels, Vadinho dies suddenly during a card game in a tavern near the Elevador Lacerda. Flor, skilled in recipes drawing on ingredients from Bahia (state) markets and marrying the city’s culinary traditions, is left a widow and later marries the respectable pharmacist Teodoro, whose demeanor evokes influences from European modernism and urban middle-class life around the Farol da Barra lighthouse. The plot escalates when Vadinho returns as a charismatic, hedonistic ghost who resumes conjugal relations with Flor, forcing her to reconcile her sensual past with bourgeois stability and notions of marital duty rooted in Catholic practices centered on Cathedral Basilica of Salvador. The narrative moves through episodes set in domestic kitchens, streets observing Candomblé terreiros, and legal and social gatherings referencing Brazilian law and municipal institutions, culminating in Flor’s synthesis of passion and respectability and inquiring into desire amid social change in Brazil.
Main figures include Flor, a culinary professional and widow whose character intersects with families from Pelourinho and patrons of local establishments; Vadinho, a rakish gambler and lover associated with bars, dance halls, and Mardi Gras festivities linked to Carnival traditions; and Teodoro, a diligent pharmacist and symbol of urban bourgeois respectability associated with institutional spaces like pharmacies and municipal offices. Secondary characters range across the social tapestry of Salvador, Bahia: Afro-Brazilian terreiro leaders recalling figures from Candomblé communities; neighbors connected to market life at Mercado Modelo; musicians of samba and axé music lineage; legal authorities reflecting Brazilian law; and visitors from São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, and foreign ports touched by transatlantic trade. The ensemble includes priests from local Catholic Church parishes, dancers tied to Carnaval schools, and tradespeople implicated in social networks around the Pelourinho historic center.
Major themes include the tension between desire and respectability as mediated by class structures in Brazil, the persistence of Afro-Brazilian spiritualities such as Candomblé against Catholic hegemony represented by the Catholic Church, and urban modernity manifested in architecture like the Elevador Lacerda and institutions in Salvador, Bahia. The novel interrogates gender roles vis-à-vis domestic labor and culinary craft, aligning Flor’s agency with traditions rooted in kitchens and markets like Mercado Modelo while also engaging with national debates following the Vargas Era and shifts in Brazilian society. Magical realism elements join with folkloric registers drawn from figures comparable to legendary characters in Brazilian literature and oral narratives circulating in Bahia (state), while comedic treatment of sexuality and death echoes satirical strains found in works by contemporaries and predecessors across Latin American literature and engages with modernization themes present in 20th-century Brazilian literature.
Written by Jorge Amado, a prominent figure linked to the Brazilian Modernism movement and member of the Brazilian Communist Party during parts of his career, the novel was first published in 1966 by Editora Civilização Brasileira, during a period of political flux following the 1964 Brazilian coup d'état. Amado’s life intersected with cultural institutions in Salvador, Bahia, literary circles in Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, and international reception in places such as Paris and Lisbon. The book drew on Amado’s longstanding interest in Afro-Brazilian culture and regional settings like the Pelourinho urban landscape, and it circulated amid debates involving censorship and publishing norms in Brazil during the late 1960s and early 1970s.
The novel inspired a 1976 film directed by Bruno Barreto starring Sônia Braga and José Wilker, with production links to Brazilian cinema movements and premieres at film festivals in Cannes Film Festival circuits and screenings in New York City and Los Angeles. A 1998 television miniseries adaptation aired in Brazil on major networks, and stage adaptations have been staged in theaters in Salvador, Bahia, São Paulo, and Rio de Janeiro. The story also influenced musical interpretations by artists connected to MPB and samba traditions and was involved in international translations appearing in publishing centers such as London and New York City.
Upon publication the novel achieved both popular success and critical debate, contributing to Amado’s international reputation alongside works like Gabriela, Clove and Cinnamon and cementing his association with depictions of Bahia (state). Critics engaged with its portrayals of Afro-Brazilian religion, gender politics, and urban life, prompting scholarly work across departments in universities such as University of São Paulo, Federal University of Bahia, and foreign institutions in Harvard University and University of Cambridge. The 1976 film increased global recognition for Brazilian cinema and boosted the international profile of actresses like Sônia Braga, linking the novel’s themes to broader conversations about national identity in Latin America. The book remains a staple in discussions of 20th-century Brazilian literature and popular culture, cited in literary surveys and curricula across academic programs internationally.
Category:Brazilian novels Category:1966 novels Category:Novels by Jorge Amado