Plantation Boy: Analysis of Major Characters
"Plantation Boy: Analysis of Major Characters" delves into the lives of pivotal figures in a narrative set against the backdrop of a sugar plantation in Brazil. The protagonist, Carlos de Mello, is introduced as a young boy whose traumatic childhood is marked by the violent death of his mother and the subsequent institutionalization of his father. Sent to live with his maternal grandfather, Colonel José Paulino Cazuza, Carlos is immersed in the complexities of plantation life and the expectations of becoming a plantation owner himself. Other key characters include Juca Cazuza, Carlos's uncle, who embodies the rough realities of plantation authority, and Maria Cazuza, an aunt who provides maternal care before her marriage.
Additionally, the story features Totonha, a storyteller that influences Carlos's imagination through folklore, and Sinhàzinha, a stern figure who enforces discipline. Zé Guedes serves as a mentor to Carlos, introducing him to lessons about life and sexuality, while Zefa Cajá plays a crucial role in a controversial moment that leads to Carlos's first sexual experience. The narrative is driven by themes of loss, sexuality, and the shifting dynamics of plantation society, reflecting both personal and broader social conflicts.
Plantation Boy: Analysis of Major Characters
Author: José Lins do Rego
First published: 1966: Menino de Engenho, 1932; Doidinho, 1933; Bangüê, 1934 (English translation, 1966)
Genre: Novel
Locale: Northeastern Brazil
Plot: Social realism
Time: Early twentieth century
Carlos de Mello (MEH-yoh), the protagonist and narrator, whose life in Recife, in the state of Paraíba, Brazil, comes to a sudden end when his father murders his mother in a rage of insanity. Carlos is only four years old when he sees his blood-covered mother dead and his father taken away to an asylum for the insane. He never sees his father again. Only three days later, he leaves the city for his maternal grandfather's sugar plantation in the country, Santa Rosa, where he learns to be a “plantation boy.” At the plantation, Carlos learns a new way of life and is initiated into the mysteries of sex at an early age. First, he watches animals procreate, then he experiments with animals himself. He has a precocious relationship with a girl named Judith and develops an abiding interest in masturbation. At the age of twelve, he first has sex with a woman and promptly gets a painful case of syphilis that requires extensive treatment. He is cured in time to go away to boarding school, but he takes with him his morbid fear of death and disease, his deep pessimism, and his nervous nature—all the result of the tragic events in his early years.
Colonel José Paulino Cazuza (hoh-SEH pow-LEE-noh kah-SEW-sah), Carlos' maternal grandfather, owner of the Santa Rosa sugar plantation, which has grown abundantly under his care. A patriarch and plantation owner in the grand old tradition that is now waning, he tries to rear Carlos to follow in his footsteps as a plantation lord.
Juca Cazuza (HEW-kah), Carlos' uncle, who works the plantation for his grandfather. He is a rough and ready man. As the patriarch's son, he does and takes what he wants on the plantation with impunity.
Maria Cazuza, the aunt who reminds Carlos of his mother. She cares for him like a mother until her marriage takes her from the plantation.
Totonha (toh-TOHN-hah), a dried-up old woman who goes from plantation to plantation telling stories from folklore and modified fairy tales. Her stories are always told in verse, from memory. Totonha is a remnant of a disappearing oral tradition and is a tremendous influence on Carlos' imagination.
Sinhàzinha (seen-AH-seen-ah), called Aunt, though no blood relationship is clear. She is a stern taskmaster who terrorizes everyone, young and old. She screams to get her way. She once beat Carlos with little provocation; it was the first time he had been punished physically. She is also capable of mild expressions of affection.
Zé Guedes (seh GWEH-dehs), a trustworthy plantation worker. He escorts Carlos to his reading lessons and gives him many life lessons on the way, including some about sex. He introduces Carlos to the whore with whom Carlos has his first human sexual experience.
Zefa Cajá (SEH-fah kah-HAH), the woman who finally gives in to twelve-year-old Carlos'pleas for sex. He contracts syphilis from her, and she is thrown in jail.
Chico Pereira (CHEE-koh peh-RA-rah), a plantation worker who is falsely accused of impregnating a young girl. The colonel puts him in the stocks to try to force him confess to his crime and marry the girl. After more than twenty-four hours in the stocks, Chico maintains his innocence. The colonel makes the girl tell the name of her victimizer with her hand on the Bible. Fearing for her soul, she confesses that it was Uncle Juca, and Chico is freed.