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A world of euphemism : representação de Macau na obra de Austin Coates
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O início da representação de Macau na Literatura Inglesa data do século XVI, fenómeno que se acentua no romance inglês a partir da fundação de Hong Kong (1841). A obra literária de Austin Coates (1922-1997), pouco estudada até à data, presta-se a uma análise no âmbito dos Estudos Anglo-Portugueses, sobretudo no que diz respeito à imagem do referido enclave no poema inédito «Macao» (1950) e no romance City of Broken Promises (1967), que classificamos simultaneamente como romance histórico e Bildungsroman feminino. As imagens de cariz realista da Cidade do Santo Nome de Deus de Macau presentes nessas obras, bem como na Literatura Inglesa em geral, aproximam-se de referentes extratextuais que o leitor informado reconhece como específicos desse espaço histórico, como revelamos através da análise da documentação da East India Company (1600- 1793) e de inúmeros relatos de viagem, de forma a estudar quer a ficcionalização das relações anglo-portuguesas e a presença inglesa no Sul da China entre os séculos XVII-XVIII quer a inter-relação entre História e Literatura na obra de Austin Coates. O presente trabalho tem, assim, como objecto de estudo a representação de Macau na obra literária de Coates através da comparação da mesma com os estudos historiográficos do autor sobre o território, do cruzamento de fontes portuguesas, inglesas e chinesas e de uma abordagem pluridisciplinar (Estudos Literários, História, Antropologia, Estudos Urbanos, Sociolinguística), pois a natureza híbrida do texto enquanto romance histórico assim o exige. A representação da cidade histórica em City of Broken Promises é conseguida, como comprovamos, através do recurso a temáticas e estratégias literárias como: o diário (ficcional) de Thomas Van Mierop, a descrição do contexto da acção (tempo e espaço históricos e simbólicos) e do processo de formação (Bildung) de Martha da Silva Van Mierop, figura histórica recuperada pelo romance; a toponímia; as figuras históricas; as fontes de arquivo; o exercício da intertextualidade; a dimensão etnohistórica e exótica do cronótopo urbano; a condição feminina e a vivência e as relações de classe, género e etnia, abordando o presente estudo também a recepção do romance em Macau e no espaço anglófono. A estrutura da cidade histórica associa-se à estrutura do processo de aprendizagem de Martha, enquanto as esferas doméstica e pública se abrem ao longo do processo de socialização da protagonista. A história pessoal, local e nacional, bem como a memória e a formação da jovem concorrem para a descrição da Macau setecentista, urbe, por sua vez, apresentada como intemporal no poema «Macao». Enquanto a referida composição poética remete para os Descobrimentos portugueses e para a dimensão luso-chinesa do enclave, City of Broken Promises assume-se como um romance inovador, na medida em que representa a estada dos sobrecargas da East India Company em Macau entre os intervalos das trading seasons de Cantão na segunda metade do século XVIII, sendo a primeira narrativa ficcional a ocupar-se da presença britânica no território sob administração portuguesa. O estudo desta última temática permite-nos, assim, contextualizar a representação realista da cidade na literatura anglófona e sobretudo na obra de Coates, nas quais o enclave se assume como um espaço histórico e simbólico da convivência secular de lusos, chineses e britânicos no Extremo Oriente, até onde se estende a aliança anglo-portuguesa.
Although the first depiction of Macao in English literature dates from the 16th century, it appeared more widely in English novels after Hong Kong was founded in 1841. The little studied works of Austin Coates (1922-1997) allow an analysis within the field of Anglo-Portuguese studies. More particularly, his work focuses on the enclave’s image through the unpublished poem “Macao” (1950) and the novel City of Broken Promises (1967), which I would classify as both a historical novel and a female Bildungsroman. The realistic images of the City of the Holy Name of God of Macao shown in these works, and in English literature in general, are similar to extra-textual references that the informed reader will recognise as specific to that historical location. This will be demonstrated through analysis of documents from the East India Company (1600- 1793) and countless travel reports, used to study the fictionalisation of AngloPortuguese relations and the English presence in Southern China in the 17th and 18th centuries, and the relations interrelating History and Literature in the work of Austin Coates. The aim of this work is to study the representation of Macao in the literary work of Coates by comparing it with his historiographic studies on the territory, crossreferencing Portuguese, English and Chinese sources and adopting a multidisciplinary approach (embracing Literary Studies, History, Anthropology, Urban Studies and Sociolinguistics), as required by the hybrid nature of the text as a historical novel. The portrayal of the historical city in City of Broken Promises is achieved by using literary themes and strategies such as: the (fictional) diary of Thomas Van Mierop, the description of the context of the action (historical and symbolic time and space) and of the process of the personal development (Bildung) of Martha da Silva Van Mierop, a historical character who is portrayed in the novel; the place-names; the historical figures; the archival sources; the use of intertextuality; the ethno-historical and exotic aspect of the urban chronotope; the female condition and experience and the relationships involving class, gender and ethnicity. This study also considers the reception of the novel in Macao and in the Anglophone space in general. The structure of the historical city is linked to the process of Martha’s development, as the domestic and public spheres open up throughout the process of the character’s socialisation. The personal, local and national history and the young woman’s memory and development combine to produce a description of 18th century Macao, a city that is in turn depicted as timeless in the poem «Macao». While the poem refers to the Portuguese discoveries and the Luso-Chinese nature of the enclave, City of Broken Promises appears as an innovative novel in that it represents the period when the supercargoes from the East India Company were in Macao during the time between the Cantonese trading seasons in the second half of the 18th century. The former is the first English fictional narrative that deals with the British presence in the Portuguese-ruled territory. The study of this theme allows us to contextualise the realistic portrayal of the city in Anglophone literature and especially in Coates’ work, where the enclave is depicted both as a historical and symbolic place for the long-established links between the Portuguese, Chinese and British in the Far East, a region that was reached by the Anglo-Portuguese alliance.
Although the first depiction of Macao in English literature dates from the 16th century, it appeared more widely in English novels after Hong Kong was founded in 1841. The little studied works of Austin Coates (1922-1997) allow an analysis within the field of Anglo-Portuguese studies. More particularly, his work focuses on the enclave’s image through the unpublished poem “Macao” (1950) and the novel City of Broken Promises (1967), which I would classify as both a historical novel and a female Bildungsroman. The realistic images of the City of the Holy Name of God of Macao shown in these works, and in English literature in general, are similar to extra-textual references that the informed reader will recognise as specific to that historical location. This will be demonstrated through analysis of documents from the East India Company (1600- 1793) and countless travel reports, used to study the fictionalisation of AngloPortuguese relations and the English presence in Southern China in the 17th and 18th centuries, and the relations interrelating History and Literature in the work of Austin Coates. The aim of this work is to study the representation of Macao in the literary work of Coates by comparing it with his historiographic studies on the territory, crossreferencing Portuguese, English and Chinese sources and adopting a multidisciplinary approach (embracing Literary Studies, History, Anthropology, Urban Studies and Sociolinguistics), as required by the hybrid nature of the text as a historical novel. The portrayal of the historical city in City of Broken Promises is achieved by using literary themes and strategies such as: the (fictional) diary of Thomas Van Mierop, the description of the context of the action (historical and symbolic time and space) and of the process of the personal development (Bildung) of Martha da Silva Van Mierop, a historical character who is portrayed in the novel; the place-names; the historical figures; the archival sources; the use of intertextuality; the ethno-historical and exotic aspect of the urban chronotope; the female condition and experience and the relationships involving class, gender and ethnicity. This study also considers the reception of the novel in Macao and in the Anglophone space in general. The structure of the historical city is linked to the process of Martha’s development, as the domestic and public spheres open up throughout the process of the character’s socialisation. The personal, local and national history and the young woman’s memory and development combine to produce a description of 18th century Macao, a city that is in turn depicted as timeless in the poem «Macao». While the poem refers to the Portuguese discoveries and the Luso-Chinese nature of the enclave, City of Broken Promises appears as an innovative novel in that it represents the period when the supercargoes from the East India Company were in Macao during the time between the Cantonese trading seasons in the second half of the 18th century. The former is the first English fictional narrative that deals with the British presence in the Portuguese-ruled territory. The study of this theme allows us to contextualise the realistic portrayal of the city in Anglophone literature and especially in Coates’ work, where the enclave is depicted both as a historical and symbolic place for the long-established links between the Portuguese, Chinese and British in the Far East, a region that was reached by the Anglo-Portuguese alliance.