Small bursts of sharp laughter: the form and content of satire in Jacob e Dulce

Melo e Castro, P. (2012) Small bursts of sharp laughter: the form and content of satire in Jacob e Dulce. Portuguese Studies, 28(1), pp. 32-49. (doi: 10.5699/portstudies.28.1.0032)

Abstract

Jacob e Dulce by Francisco João da Costa (better known by his pen name, Gip) was first published in book form in 1896 after serialization in the Goan newspaper O Ultramar. A stinging depiction of an arranged marriage between members of the native Catholic elite, the work achieved great success with the readers of its day, caused no little scandal amongst the same, and has passed into history as perhaps the most popular and influential work in Portuguese to have emerged in Asia. This article analyses for the first time Jacob e Dulce's often-assumed generic status, arguing that the form and content of Gip's work is tailored to the situation of Goa at the time he was writing and provides a double-satire (Palmeri, 1990) spearing colonized and colonizer alike, one that can be read as ‘pre-postcolonial’ (Sousa Santos, 2002).

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Castro, Dr Paul
• Authors: Melo e Castro, P.
• College/School: College of Arts & Humanities > School of Modern Languages and Cultures > Hispanic Studies
• Journal Name: Portuguese Studies
• Publisher: Modern Humanities Research Association
• ISSN: 0267-5315
• ISSN (Online): 2222-4270