Lispector and Confronting our Mortality
“Because there's the right to scream. So I scream.” This novel is not supposed to have you gripping your seat with anticipation, it is a story of a mundane, normal life of someone who you might not have previously paid attention to. Rodrigo is using his voice, one of a higher status than Macabéa because people will listen to it. It is his duty to use that voice to encourage others to listen to her story and have empathy for others like it. Through highlighting this disconnect between classes, Lispector reminds the reader of their duty to break down the barrier of stigma and put themselves in another's shoes in order to understand. Rodrigo discusses this duty of his to write Macabéa’s story and bring it to the attention of others as it is the story of many. “What I write is more than mere invention, it’s my obligation to tell about this one girl out of the thousands like her.” (Page 5, Kindle Edition). As he navigates the storytelling of an otherwise mundane life, Rodrigo attem...