Eros e Cronos na obra de Augusto Abelaira

The primary objective of this essay is to reflect on the connection between public and private scopes represented in Augusto Abelaira’s (1926-2003) work. Abelaira’s literary production was published along the second half of 20th century and consists mostly of novels in which dialogue is a privileged device, rather than action, in the creation and definition of its characters, emphasizing their debates and ideas as well as their relations. The author conceives his work as a «one book», of which every novel only stands for a part: in this framework, the focus on both erotic life and historical condition of their characters is always an essential part of the diegetic universe. Both individual and collective levels constitute a scenario in which the subject tries to react to the paralysis of Portuguese political, social, and cultural life during Salazar’s dictatorship: a reality that they perceive as stagnating and made of bolor (mould), quoting the title of one of the most iconic novels by Abelaira. The characters’ disenchantment about love and the possibility of reaching their fulfilment mirrors their incapability in understanding the reality that surrounds them and in transforming it. This situation generates a permanent tension between an ideal of plenitude and contingence, a conflict without any solution. The erotic universe and the utopic ideals are, then, the starting point for a reflection on the possibilities and value of human action in a reality that denies the subject a concretization of their ambitions.