Conference A NOVÍSSIMA FICÇÃO PORTUGUESA (Colóquio Internacional em homenagem a Teresa Veiga) in Lisbon

Abstract: In the novel Myra (2008) by Portuguese writer Maria Velho da Costa, a narrative is constructed that develops around the protagonist, the figure of a Russian immigrant recently left childhood and displaced in Portugal, Myra, who, in the company of a fighting dog, Rambo, begins a trip, which feels more like an escape than a tourist experience. Myra and Rambo are two survivors with a common destiny, the two become increasingly closer, which affects the own narrative discourse, in which their voices, that of the girl and that of the dog, are confused. Reveal- if still how, inscribing itself in a post-modern poetics, in this novel the escape-journey is presented as a double allegory: of the utopia of the reunion of the lost paradise and of the realization that the only way out of the escape is to put an end to it. In Myra, the protagonist changes her name and her past in each new stage of her life. The romance addresses the multiple, not only with regard to identity, but also with regard to the experiences of characters, which are repeated with small changes. The exact repetition of phrases in different moments of the narrative, as well as the use of minimally altered expressions also reveal the paradoxical and multiple character of the work. During part of the trip, Myra pretends to be a roma girl. This fact brings a special perspective on the roma ethnicity to Portuguese literature, which is otherwise portrayed in a relatively stereotypical way. My analysis focuses on the construction of an identity alternative. The difficulty in identifying oneself or the difficulty in knowing, feeling and imposing consciousness of an individuality. The theoretical foundation is based, among others, on the concepts of metafiction and parody by Linda Hutcheon.