SINGULARITIES OF A BLOND-HAIRED GIRL (1874)
Singularidades de uma rapariga loura
The Plot
t's a love story. The love of a hardworking honest young man, Macário, for a blonde girl who “had the blond character like the colour of her hair. Bearing in mind that blonde is a weak and faded she spoke little, always smiled with his white little teeth, said ‘yes’ to everything. She was very simple, almost indifferent, full of compromises. It is for this girl that is apparently docile and unwilling to love, that Macário decides to leave his uncle Francisco’s house, where he worked as a clerk, and goes to Cape Verde on business, only to deserve the hand of Luisa. However, Luisa is, in fact, a blonde and singular girl. Marcario decides to ask her to marry him. He takes the bride shopping and she steals a ring with two pearls.
The employee of the jewellry catches Luísa in the act. Macário apologizes to the employee and pays for the stolen ring, without losing his temper. When they leave the jewellery, the young man abandons Luisa, calling her a thief and the next day he calls off the wedding.
Our comment
This text surprised us due to its ending.
Eça de Queirós captivated the reader and, at the same time, deceived him because the end was unexpected, in spite of the clues he gives us during the text.
We considered the careful descriptions made about the characters really relevant. Eça put all the details necessary for the comprehension of this tale. When we finished the reading, we understood the utility of the characterizations made.
In this tale it is shown the persistence of Macário to get out of poverty, that is, his effort and willpower.
Giving up on our problems isn't the solution, we have to fight to overcome our difficulties.
We also think that it is pertinent the fact that the uncle helped Macário, although he was against the marriage.
At the beginning of this story the narrator tells the amazement of Macário when he saw the girl with such an expensive fan and later weird events are reported like the missing of a package of scarves from India and the golden coin. These little details indicate, indirectly, the character of the girl.
The message transmitted through this text is that "appearances can be deceiving" because Luísa was really pretty but also a thief, in other words, she had a bad personality.
We advise all the people to read this tale. It's a fantastic choice, because it transmits us a lot of feelings and moral messages that reflect our society.
We can’t judge by the appearances.
Sometimes, what’s outside doesn’t show what’s inside.
Contribution by Bruna Sousa, Sara Ribeiro, Beatriz Alves, Carolina Marques and João Silva, 10°A