Flowers of the sertão

women and their social representation in Ignez Mariz’s novel, A Barragem

Abstract

This article examines Ignez Mariz’s novel, A Barragem (1937). The article’s objective is to examine the representations of women found in the novel, beginning with the female archetypes circulating the narrative. Furthermore, it aims to ascribe to both the author and her work their position within Brazilian literary regionalism of 1930, and to highlight their place in Paraíba’s literary landscape. Based on the method of textual criticism, we indeed undertake the analysis of this novel subsidized by the theoretical-critical orientations of Bueno (2006), Sales (2005), Santos (1994) and Rago (2005). We hence conclude our article reiterating Ignez Mariz's pioneering spirit, in the process of reflection on the society of Paraíba, specially concerning the feminine condition in the first decades of the twentieth century.