“SHE WOULD WAKE UP HAPPY, IN A WORLD FULL OF PREÁS”: A STUDY OF THE CHARACTER BALEIA IN VIDAS SECAS

Abstract

This article analyzes the anthropomorphization of the character Baleia in Vidas Secas, written by Graciliano Ramos, examining how the dog is constructed as an affective and symbolic figure within the narrative. Initially, the study discusses the composition of the novel, its fragmented structure, and the representation of drought, poverty, and social exclusion in the Brazilian northeastern backlands. It also examines aspects related to the characters, linguistic limitations, and the precarious conditions experienced by the migrant family portrayed in the novel. This research is bibliographic and interpretative, based on critical studies about the work, especially the contributions of Antonio Candido and Fernando Cristóvão. The analysis demonstrates that Baleia surpasses the role traditionally attributed to a domestic animal, since she is portrayed with memory, fear, imagination, affection, and emotional complexity. By attributing human-like characteristics to the character, the novel challenges the boundaries between humanity and animality, emphasizing the effects of social degradation caused by hunger and exclusion. The study concludes that the anthropomorphization of Baleia constitutes an important critical strategy employed by Graciliano Ramos to denounce the dehumanization experienced by the northeastern migrants and to reaffirm the persistence of sensitivity amid violence and scarcity.