Camilo Castelo Branco’s A brasileira de Prazins

Camilo Castelo Branco lived his life at a time during which the personal and the political were at times uncomfortably entangled. He was imprisoned for a period for adultery, but was also involved in politics at a time of profound national upheaval, marked by the loss of the empire in Brazil and a civil war at home. Personal and political instability are mirrored in the vicissitudes of the characters in this novel, A brasileira de Prazins [The Brazilian Woman from Prazins], published at the end of a long and turbulent career. Over the years, the author found himself on the wrong side of political events, was knighted, transitioned from the status of prime figure in the Romantic movement to proto-realist, and ultimately died by suicide.