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The Eruption of Insular Identities: A Comparative Study of Contemporary Azorean and Cape Verdean Prose By Brianna Medeiros B.A., Brown University, 2011. A.M., Brown University, 2015. A Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of Portuguese and Brazilian Studies at Brown University. Providence, Rhode Island May, 2017 © Copyright 2017 by Brianna Medeiros This dissertation by Brianna Medeiros is accepted in its present form by the Department of Portuguese and Brazilian Studies as satisfying the dissertation requirement for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Date ______________ ______________________________________________ Onésimo T. Almeida, Advisor Recommended to the Graduate Council Date ______________ ______________________________________________ Leonor Simas-Almeida, Reader Date ______________ ______________________________________________ Nelson H. Vieira, Reader Approved by the Graduate Council Date ______________ ______________________________________________ Andrew G. Campbell, Dean of the Graduate School ! iii! Curriculum Vitae Brianna Medeiros was born in Brockton, Massachusetts, where she was raised. She graduated in 2011 from Brown University, where she double concentrated in Portuguese and Brazilian Studies and International Relations. While she was an undergraduate at Brown, she spent a semester in Lisbon, Portugal, studying at the Universidade Nova de Lisboa, in 2010. In 2011 and 2012, she received funding from FLAD to travel to the Azores, with the Antero de Quental Mobilidade fund, and begin her research on Azorean literature. In September 2011, she began her graduate career in Portuguese and Brazilian Studies at Brown University. During her time at Brown, in addition to the support received from FLAD, she also received a Belda Research Fellowship to travel to Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, to conduct research on the Azorean presence and legacy in these two states, in 2014. In addition, she organized a trip to the Azores for the graduate student seminar on Azorean Literature in 2013, for which she planned cultural activities and meetings with Azorean writers and intellectuals, with the help of Prof. Onésimo Teotónio Almeida and funding from FLAD. She has articles published in Gávea-Brown and on the MIT Visualizing Portugal online project. She also has a memorialistic piece entitled “Na lembrança da Vavó” published in the Azores, as well as other pieces published in the Mundo Açoriano online journal. During her time at Brown, she has also been dedicated to her teaching practices, and over her four years teaching, she taught all levels of Portuguese-language acquisition classes. ! iv! Acknowledgements I would like to thank all of those who have helped form my experience at Brown University, in the Department of Portuguese and Brazilian Studies, for the last ten years. This department has been a space of immense growth for me, both professionally and personally, for which I will be forever grateful. I would like to thank the members of my committee. Thank you to Prof. Onésimo Teotónio Almeida, for his unwavering support since my freshman year. For introducing me to Azorean literature and connecting me to my Portuguese heritage, a part of me that was always incredibly present, but never complete. His dedication to my academic development, and to the writing process of this dissertation, questioning me and pushing me to explore further, have been invaluable. For believing in me, for pushing me, for teaching me so many lessons, both academically and personally, I am utterly thankful. His influence in my life is beyond description, and no words will suffice to express my gratitude. My thank you to Prof. Leonor Simas-Almeida, for, since day one, being a constant source of warmth, of encouragement, of intellectual engagement, and for the constant detailed, careful considerations of my work. I cherish your emotional support and friendship. I am so grateful to both for celebrating with me my victories, and being there in some of the hardest moments to help me get back on my feet. I must also sincerely thank my second reader, Prof. Nelson H. Vieira, for his enthusiasm and his support, both throughout the writing of this dissertation and my years in the graduate program. To the remaining faculty of the Portuguese and Brazilian Studies department, for the intellectual and professional stimulation, the academic guidance as well as for their friendship throughout my years at Brown—Prof. Luíz Fernando Valente, Prof. Patrícia Sobral, Prof. Maria Pacheco, Prof. Naomi Parker, and Prof. James Greene, as well as visiting faculty—I express my extreme gratitude. I must also thank scholars from other institutions who have played a key role throughout my academic journey. Thank you to Urbano Bettencourt, literary scholar of Azorean literature, for his guidance, the enriching conversation, and for being the one to inspire me to follow my interest in comparing Azorean and Cape Verdean literatures. To Vamberto Freitas, for the time taken to discuss Azorean literatures with me and his willingness to help with any question that arose. To Lélia Nunes, for introducing me to yet another, also “Azorean,” insular reality: that of Santa Catarina, Brazil. To Adelaide Freitas, for her beautiful novel Sorisso por Dentro da Noite, and for her visit to Brown University during my freshman year, which was, not merely coincidentally, the weekend that I became certain of my desire to pursue my doctorate in Portuguese and Brazilian Studies. And to the late and greatly missed Prof. Fátima Sequeira Dias, for the joyful laughter and the example of perseverance and strength that made even the most stressful moments seem more manageable. ! v! My sincerest gratitude to FLAD, for the financial support to take two trips to the Azores to explore Azorean literature, in the summers of 2011 and 2012. Also, for the support for a class-trip to the Azores in the summer of 2013, in which my classmates and I met with a variety of writers and scholars, and which I had the pleasure of organizing. To the many colleagues with whom I have crossed paths over the past ten years, who have been sources of inspiration, support, and endless laughs. In particular, I would like to thank Ana Letícia Fauri, Benjamin Legg, David Mittelman, Marcos Cerdeira, and Helena Rezende Ramires. Their friendships have made this journey all the more worthwhile. To Kate Beall, for her support to the department as a whole, and to me as a friend. Thank you (also for Google-ing everything for me). I could not write this section without acknowledging the important role the Portuguese community has played in my life over the past ten years, making Providence my home. I am so grateful to so many members of this community, for introducing me to so much of our culture, for providing me with extraordinary opportunities, for assisting me, both professionally and personally, and, above all, for the support, friendship, and for being my family away from home. My special thanks to Manuela Duarte, Graça Lambertson, Lourdes and José Francisco Costa, Maria Alice de Aguiar (and David White), Luísa Baptista, João Pacheco, Márcia Sousa, Daniel da Ponte, Matilde Relvas, Ana Almeida, Ermelinda Zito, and Sílvia Oliveira. Thank you Ana Catarina Teixeira, first my Portuguese teacher and now my best friend, who has never ceased to push me further, all the while providing unwavering support. I am so grateful for her guidance, her input, for providing a model of perseverance and determination and, above all, for her friendship. My deepest thank you to Armanda Silva, as well as her family. Words are insufficient to express the ways in which she has pushed me to be better, taught me, consoled me, and cheered for me. I treasure our friendship so very much, and want to thank her for the fundamental role she has played in both my professional and personal lives over the last ten years. Last, but certainly not least, I would much express my profound love and appreciation for my family, who has been by side, who inspires me, who celebrates with me, and who is there to catch me. I would not be who I am today without the love and support of my parents, Carlos and Lisa, who have made all sacrifices necessary to see their children succeed. Finally, and above all, obrigada to my paternal grandparents, João and Aida, who made the difficult decision to emigrate from São Miguel more than forty years ago so that their children and grandchildren could have greater opportunities. It is in their honor and out of my love for them that I have made the return to their homeland, further cultivating my roots in a country and, especially, an island that has become my second home. ! vi! Table of Contents Introduction …………………………………………………………………………… 1 Claridade and the writers of the Azores: The Cape Verdean Influence in Azorean Literature ……………………………. 5 Açorianidade and Caboverdianidade ………………………………………….. 11 Regional versus National Identity ……………………………………………... 17 Aim of Project and Organization of Chapters …………………………………. 22 Chapter 1: Race and Politics: Similar Trajectories, Contrasting Results ………… 30 Race in Cape Verdean Literature: 1930s – 1980s ………………………………34 Political Rhetoric in Cape Verdean and Azorean Literature: 1930s – 1970s …. 54 Transition to Modernity in Azorean and Cape Verdean Literature: 1980s – present 72 Conclusion ……………………………………………………………………... 94 Chapter 2: Expressing açorianidade and caboverdianidade: The uses and functions of local