Ranai Patterson - ‘Discuss the relationship between life and death in Morte e Vida Severina’

Throughout the play, death is presented as omnipresent and all-consuming force, that affects
everyone within Northeastern Brazil. Through the speaker’s introduction whereby he states
“como há muitos Severinos”, we recognise 'Severino’ as not just being an individual recalling his
own encounters with life and death, but also a spokesperson for a collective body of rural
workers who all possess the shared experience of life and death. Establishing death as a shared
experience amongst the speaker’s fellow rural workers allows us to understand the harsh
conditions of rural workers as being a source of death for many, given the largely agricultural
population of northeastern Brazil. Moreover, the emphasis on the collective ‘Severino’,
establishes death as not only being physical but also allegorical, whereby we see the death of
individuality driven by the imposition of landowners’ names onto workers. We continue to see
death being an allegory for the slavocracy seen in northeastern Brazil in the second section
where the retirante meets “irmaos das armas”, who are carrying the corpse of “Severino
Lavrador”. He is described as “um defunto de nada”, referring to him as a nobody, suggesting
that he has no significance after death. Consequently, this also draws onto the theme of life and
how it interplays with death, as him owning “uns hectares de terra” brought about his “morte de
bala” as his life was taken along with his land. The juxtaposition with land, which typically is a
source of life and nature as being the source of his death, further highlights the complex
relationship between both forces of life and death, and how they are unable to escape the
presence of death, like how they are unable to escape their lives on the land.

Joao Cabral de Melo Neto also interweaves life and death through the recurring theme of
survival. A key concern for the retirante and many of the characters he meets along the way is
survival, drawing attention to the idea of survival versus living as they are simply remaining
alive and avoiding death instead of truly experiencing the vitality of living. The futher into the
journey, we discover that this emphasis on survival rather than living, is driven by the harsh
conditions of northeastern Brazil where one must face physical, social, economic and emotional
survival amidst an environment where death is always looming. We see economic survival reveal
itself in Severino’s interaction with the lady in the window, where he finds his farm skills of no
use in the city as “pouco existe o que lavrar”, showing the desperation for economic survival and
the lack of opportunity given that “trabalho aqui nunca falta a quem sabe trabalhar”, thus
representing the caboclo who migrated to the city, finding their skills unfit for the urban
workforce.1 This consequently draws importance to the idea of emotional survival, as given
Severino’s farming skills are no use for the urban life, the woman repeatedly questions “que mais
fazia por lá?”, possibly providing a moment for self-reflection and existential questioning as it is
typical for Brazilian men to find their importance in society and their existence through work,
given the patriarchal society where a father’s honour is found in his duty to provide for his

1
Tolman, J. M. (1978). An Allegorical Interpretation of Joao Cabral de Melo Neto’s “Morte e Vida Severina.”
Hispania, 61(1), 57–68. https://doi.org/10.2307/339945
family.2 Instead, cultural survival manifests itself as being the foundation of identity and
belonging in society as in the city, as Severino is asked if “sabe tirar ladainhas, sabe mortos
enterrar?”, shifting the importance from agricultural skills to cultural skills in the city and how
one’s livelihood is made through cultural rituals for the dead, highlighting the ability for culture
to live on even through physical death.

The retirante’s perseverance throughout his journey opens discussion on the meaning of life.
Along his journey, he repeatedly encounters death, whether it be the death of his fellow rural
workers or the landscape surrounding him. He sees dead bodies & graves, highlighting the
fragility of life as he views the physical remains of life being sucked out of a person. The burials
also connect life and death as the characters’ dead bodies are being buried into the land, which
establishes the arid land which surrounds the retirante on his journey as linking with death. The
realisation on the impermanence of life also leads the retirante to reflect on his morality, whereby
he realises the inevitability of death. Upon reflecting on the inevitability of death and morality,
the retirante is also able to explore the meaning of life after death and the legacy he will leave
behind. He states that as a collective, “Somos...iguais em tudo e na sina”, creating a sense of
pessimism whereby everyone will end up living the same severino life, and face the same
severino death. He also states that “só morte tem encontrado quem pensava encontrar vida”,
suggesting that... Alternatively, we also see ... even after death, this slavocracy exists, infringing
on the workers’ legacy after death...

Joao Cabral de Melo Neto explores the idea of life amidst death through the retirante’s
search for hope. He reaches the zona da mata where “a terra se faz mas branda e macia
quanto mais do litoral a viagem se aproxima”, providing a contrast to the dry and stale sertao that
he set off from. By describing the land as “macia”, this creates a new admirable perspective of
the earth which we had not seen before, providing a glimmer of hope and also the retirante’s
ability to still discover beauty and appreciation for life even in the face of adversity and death.
We also see hope for the life and conditions for all rural workers through the description of the
zona da mata as “tao doce e rica, nao é presico trabalhar todas as horas...”, as throughout the
retirante’s journey, we see death brought about primarily from the difficult conditions of fellow
rural workers, highlighting the desire to break away from the exploitative land economy. The
birth of a baby provides a more explicit demonstration of hope, as he is a symbol of new life.
The baby is seen to purify the air and land, as “foi por ele que a maré está noite nao baixou”,
being symbolic of water and replenishment, representing the hope for a better future and the
resilience of the human spirit to survive. Upon the birth of the baby, “este rio...hoje enfeitou-se
de estrelas”, providing a more explicit illustration of the glimmer of hope as the night had
previously been described as "é o melhor lencol dos mortos noite fechada”, showing the
evolution of the night from being starless and attributed to death to now shining light,
representing a transformation into a renewed and improved world.

2
Tolman, J. M. (1978). An Allegorical Interpretation of Joao Cabral de Melo Neto’s “Morte e Vida Severina.”
Hispania, 61(1), 57–68. https://doi.org/10.2307/339945
Intro:

 Joao Cabral de Melo Neto presents life and death as interconnected, cyclical processes.

Omnipresent existence of death:

 difficult conditions of fellow rural workers

 harsh reality of life - impoverished northeaster n region of Brazil, where death is a
constant presence.
 the corpse died “a bullet death”, as “there’s always a bullet idle & flying” - the
bullet is a metaphor for landowners & their greed
 “will measures be taken against that gun?” - not person, but the gun responsible
for death
 The parodying chant (pg 78-79) - “o caixao, que ainda deves” - death is awaiting
his arrival, it is his debt
 physical death, metaphorical death

Survival

 poverty, disease, and exploitation, which contribute to the premature deaths of

many of his peers
 precariousness of life in this environment, where death is always looming
 The Severino death - characterisation “attacks” with hunger & sickness at any age
 Perserveres through His journey

Questions on the meaning of life

 life is fleeting
 Encounters w death – dead bodies & graves = fragility of life
 Reflections on morality – realises inevitability of death
 Religious/cultural rituals – funerals/mourning practices which emphasis the
cycle of life & death
 Interactions w other characters – convos about their experiences/losses &
hopes – importance of cherishing moments we have
 inevitability of death. The encounters with death along his journey serve as
reminders of his own vulnerability and mortality
 the death of hope
 reflect on the meaning of life and the legacy he will leave behind.
 Severino’s character
 Talks about “destiny” being the same
 “só morte tem encontrado quem pensava encontrar vida”
 Pg 79
 Pg 93 – value after death – still see hierarchy
  More time spent burying the dead
 Pg 97
 Morality

Life amidst death

 Pg 78. “mas nao vejo almas aqui, nem almas mortas nem vivas” - limbo
 hope
 Severino's journey represents a quest for a better life, a search for hope and
redemption
o Pg 80
 A zona de mata
o Pg 85 “ a terra se faz mas branda e macia quanto mais do litoral a viagem se
aproxima
o “uma terra doce”
o “os rios... tem a água vitalícia”
o “tao doce e rica, nao é presico trabalhar todas as horas...”
 resilience of the human spirit in the face of adversity and death.
o Pg 88. “viverás, e para sempre”
 Talks about emigration
 baby is born - “it is for him that the tide didnt go out tonight” & the “stench didn’t
rise”
o he is purifying the area & land
o “sent from the distant sea”
o “river…adorned itself with stars” - prev death shroud starless nights

Severina - symbol of life & renewal against death

 pregnant - continuity of life
 hope for new life

Symbolic elements (river, landscape, cultural rituals)

 2nd part - repetition of brother of souls after each line of dialogue- death is
haunting & lingering
 “driest of lands” “lands where not even wild plants will grow”

 pg 84 “como aqui a morte é tanta

 Só os rocados da morte compensam aqui cultivar
 Affirms
 Claims
