Under The Sign of Evil: The Myths about The Jews in the Press and in the Fiction of the Nineteenth Century

Abstract

This study analyzes the representations of the Jewish people in the pages of Rio de Janeiro press during the mid-nineteenth century, from the historical image of the Israelites as wandering and marginal people, whose stateless condition offers a challenge to the identity ideals of the nation. In line with the traditional anti-Semitic discourse in Western literature, artistic and literary manifestations widely reported in newspapers contribute to set up the stereotypes that restrict the imaginary about the Hebrews, among which stand out the feuilletonistic novel O judeu errante (1844)[The Wandering Jew], by Eugène Sue, and the historical novel As minas de prata (1865) [The Silver Mines], by José de Alencar, works of considerable circulation and expression in Rio de Janeiro press and among the literate people at the time. We aim to investigate the critical framework on the Jew, represented not only in literary tradition, but also n the debates that nourished the moment of his production and serve as readings keys to interpret the possible meanings of such a theme.