The relic

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Relic ( Portuguese : A Relíquia ) is a picaresque novel by the Portuguese writer Eça de Queiroz , which was preprinted in the Rio de Janeiro's literary journal Gazeta de Notícias in 1887 and was published in book form by AJ da Silva Teixeira in Porto that same year .

Around 1877 in Portugal, Egypt and Palestine : the story of the first-person narrator, the Catholic Teodorico Raposo, ends happily. In the framework narrative (Chapters 1 and 5), the legacy sneak and hypocrite Teodorico only laughs at happiness after he has exchanged idleness for honest work as an accountant. Before the happy ending, Teodorico makes a pilgrimage to Jerusalem : In the internal narrative (chapters 2 to 4), Eça de Queiroz offers his ironic version of the Passion story during a sprawling dream sequence .

background

One of several trips took the author to Egypt in 1869–1870 to open the Suez Canal . On the occasion he visited Palestine. From 1870 his fragmentary story The Death of Jesus appeared in sequels. In it, Christ is contrasted as a simple man, rooted in the rural population, with the members of the high council , the rich, greedy merchants, and the Roman occupiers in corrupted Jerusalem.

Frame narration

Teodorico's father Rufino da Assunção Raposo comes from Évora and becomes director of the customs post in Viana . There in the floodplains between the Rio Minho and the Rio Lima , he met and fell in love on the Mosteiro estate, Dona Rosa, one of the two nieces of the wealthy Lisbon nobleman G. Godinho. The first-person narrator emerges from the connection between the couple. The young mother dies after Teodorico is born. When the boy was seven years old, his father died. From now on, the upbringing of the orphan is in the hands of Aunt Titi. This is the Lisbon Senhora Dona Patrocínio das Neves, the older of the nobleman's two nieces mentioned above. When he was nine years old, his aunt sent the boy to a school in Santa Isabel . Teodorico befriends Crispim at the school's boarding school. His parents are co-owners of a wool mill in Lisbon's Pampulha Alley.

G. Godinho dies. After studying law, Teodorico can impress his rich heir aunt Titi with a doctorate. The Bachelor is indeed held financially short of the aunt, but get her a horse to ride through Lisbon paid. The exaggerated godly aunt does not tolerate the slightest violation of the house rules she has drawn up. Titi's response to some faux pas is: “... I decide! Debauchery and filth, not as long as I live! If you don't like it, go out into the street! ”Teodorico has to be good and has to be grateful. Because he wants to inherit the "terrible old woman". After all, there is no other competitor in sight besides him, the poor nephew. Teodorico complains to his secret lover Adélia in the beautiful ear: "If the aunt would scratch it off now, I could furnish you with an apartment with all the chic!" To his grief, the young man realizes that he has a competitor: Jesus Christ, our Lord. Aunt Titi, concerned about her salvation, approves a pilgrimage to the Holy Land . Unfortunately, for health reasons, Titi has to wait in Lisbon until the nephew brings home the promised precious Jesus relic.

Teodorico travels, returns tanned, but confuses the gift package. The Lord's crown of thorns was accidentally exchanged for the “fragrant” negligee of Teodorico's Alexandrian lover MM - not Maria Magdalena , but Mary. Aunt Titi's threat comes true. The nephew finds himself with a suitcase full of junk - mostly false relics - on Lisbon Street. For a few months he stayed afloat as a relic dealer. Titi dies and previously bequeaths her considerable fortune to the Church. The lion's share of the inheritance was sneaked by Father Negrão from Torres during Teodorico's pilgrimage . The nephew receives a telescope from the estate. When the Portuguese relic market around the metropolis is saturated, Teodorico laughs at happiness. Schoolmate Crispim hires the doctor of rights as an accountant in his factory. From then on, Teodorico spent every working day in the Pampulha-Gasse and did everything right: he didn't even pretend once more, but fearlessly told his superior Crispim the truth in the face at the crucial moments. This courageous attitude is well received. Teodorico marries Crispim's sister, becomes a family man and becomes wealthy over time. With all this luck - there is still one nuisance. Father Negrão has acquired most of it. The “rascal” resides with Adélia on Titi's Mosteiro estate. Money makes the world go round. Teodorico buys the property from the legacy sneak and has his summer residence - the place from childhood days - back.

Internal narration

The pilgrimage takes the hero from Portugal via Malta and Alexandria to the Holy Land and back to Lisbon. In Malta, Teodorico met his travel companion Dr. Know and appreciate Topsius. The Bonn scholar belongs to the “Imperial Institute for Historical Excavations” and collects material for his work “The History of the Herod Dynasty”. Unfortunately, the German uses Teodorico's toothbrush on the way. In Alexandria, the Portuguese falls head over heels in love with Mary, a glove and wax flower seller from York . Then during the onward journey on the way to Jaffa , the happily singing Paulo Pote, a local who comes from Montenegro , joins the two Western Europeans. In Jerusalem, the three stay in the "Hotel Mediterranean". In contrast to the Herodian researcher Topsius, Teodorico is not so interested in the muddy Via Dolorosa , but more in the young Scottish woman Ruby in the next room - more precisely, in her breasts, which almost burst the serge dress . When trying to get closer, however, the Liebestolle receives a beating from the father of his Cybele and has to let Topsius climb the Mount of Olives alone the next morning for health reasons . In the evening Teodorico can get up from the sickbed, because Paulo Pote leads his two guests to the hip-swinging "Rose of Jericho". Teodorico, the cream of the Alentejan aristocracy, goes away empty-handed as a Catholic. The scholar from heretical Germany wins the race. Dr. Topsius on his victory with chest tone of conviction: “The shine that radiates from the German helmet, Dom Raposo, is the light that shows mankind the way!” Teodorico dismisses the talk as nonsense and refers to the great Portuguese - to Alfonso Henriques and Herculano .

On the way to the Jordan you pass the ruins of Jericho , Moab , the desolate Canaan and Machaerus . When it finally arrives at the Jordan, the beer is “well cooled in the holy waters”. The way to Jericho leads past Engedi , Gilgal and Moses' place of death Nebo . There in the desert comes the “divine enlightenment” to the young Iberian pilgrim. From a half-withered thorn tree on the road, he plucks the branches for his above-mentioned self-made crown - this "divine relic with supernatural powers". Meanwhile, Dr. Topsius at the source of Elisa after Herod's baths . When asked, the scholar suspects that the cripple he found was the Nabka. Also Lycium spinosum came as material for the abusive Crown in question. The German continues his search for Herod's fortress Cypron.

Teodorico's dream

In that biblical valley of the land of Canaan under Moab mountains, near the site where the thorn tree in the Jerichoer area, the pilgrims the message gets at night in the tent "next to the down fall in glow of the campfire" in the dream transmitted, Rabbi Yeshua Natzarieh aka Jesus of Nazareth was Arrested in Bethany and appeared before the council . After this worrying news, the dreamer and the German doctor went from the Jordan to Jerusalem in Gamaliel's house on the Ophel above the Rogelbrunnens. The gaunt patriarch is hospitable. Teodorico lights a cigarette. The scribe Gamaliel quickly had reasons to condemn the prisoner: “The rabbi has been thirty years and not married! What is his job Where is the field that he tills? ... He wanders on the streets ... When Rabbi Yeshua ... forgives an adulteress's sin ... his lax morality is the reason for it ... "" The rabbi must to die ... We are waiting for a Messiah who carries a sword and frees Israel , who, however, foolish and talkative, declares that he is only bringing the 'bread of truth'! "Topsius interferes; speaks to the harsh host to the mouth: "Truly ... Jesus and Judaism could never get along."

Teodorico goes among the Pharisees in Herod's Palace . Jesus, in front of Pilate , speaks: “My kingdom is not of this world”. Then someone shouts: “Then remove him from this world!” Pilate wants to know: “What are you looking for ... here?” Jesus replies that he wants the truth testify. Pilate replied: “ What is it, the truth? “Amazed by the answers given by the son of David and his messianic mission, the Prefect of Judea finds it innocent and sums it up:“ This man is simply a dream. ”

After Topsius, Teodorico now also intervenes in the course of the Passion story; settles a debt of Jesus with Roman gold pieces. The opponents of Jesus do not give up. Pilate does not allow himself to be spun into the web of religious disputes of the High Council and judges: “Go there and crucify him!” Then Teodorico describes the following part of his dream sequence: “And I saw the lovely rabbi from Galilee take his first step into death. "

With a heavy heart, Teodorico accompanies the doctor from Bonn on the Kalvarienberg . Because the Iberian has to experience a "rabbi dying" whose nailed body, tied to the cross, is neither made of ivory nor silver, as in Aunt Titi's Lisbon church, but rears up bleeding.

The Romans are not like that at all: Joseph von Aritmathia is allowed to bury the body of Jesus, "wrapped in fine linen oiled and perfumed with carnations and nard ", in his garden in a new rock grave. It is reported from Joseph's entourage that the pains of the crucified Christ were alleviated with a drink of grace to which poppy seed capsule juice was added, but they assure: “He suffered a great deal!” But the crucified one did not die at all, he was only anesthetized in the rock tomb and will be resurrected. Unfortunately, the Iberian and the German still have to take note of one fact. An eyewitness of the burial in the grotto reports that the rabbi - i.e. Jesus Christ - is dead.

Later - when we arrived back at Gamaliel's house - the question: "Was it the Messiah?" Teodorico says yes towards the end of his dream. On the other hand, the temple doctor Elieser von Silo , a natural scientist of the High Council, has to say no for formal reasons alone. Because, as the “benevolent gut doctor” explains, the right Messiah bears the name Menahem - the Comforter.

The next day - awakened from the difficult dream - Teodorico gets bored in the Holy Land. He begins the journey home. Via Bethel, past the Sea of ​​Galilee , Nazareth with a view of Carmel , Jerusalem, Jaffa and Alexandria, the driver of the Orient reached his Lisbon.

reception

German-language editions

  • José Maria Eça de Queiroz: The Relic. Kurt Wolff, Leipzig 1918. 366 pages
  • José Maria Eça de Queiroz: The Relic. Novel. Translated from the Portuguese by Richard A. Bermann . Aufbau-Verlag, Berlin 1958, 305 pages
  • José Maria Eça de Queiroz: The Relic. German by Andreas Klotsch . With an afterword by Óscar Lopes, translated by Horst Schulz. Aufbau-Verlag, Berlin 1984 (1st edition), 312 pages with notes (pp. 309–312) (edition used)

Web links

in Portuguese

annotation

  1. ↑ With Gamaliel the son of Simeon is meant (edition used, p. 142, 13. Zvo).

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Port. Gazeta de Notícias
  2. ↑ engl. AJ da Silva Teixeira at Open Library
  3. ↑ Óscar Lopes in the afterword of the edition used, p. 291 above
  4. ↑ Edition used, p. 51, 6. Zvo
  5. ↑ Óscar Lopes in the afterword of the edition used p. 295, 21. Zvo
  6. ↑ Óscar Lopes in the afterword of the edition used, p. 297 below to p. 298 above
  7. ↑ Edition used, pp. 25, 11. Zvo
  8. ↑ Edition used, p. 26, 14. Zvu
  9. ↑ Edition used, p. 30, 13. Zvu
  10. ↑ Edition used, p. 38, 8. Zvu
  11. ↑ Edition used, p. 104, 11. Zvo
  12. ↑ Edition used, p. 114, 6. Zvo
  13. ↑ engl. Gilgal
  14. ↑ engl. Lycium spinosum Hasselquist
  15. ↑ engl. En-rogel
  16. ↑ Edition used, p. 148, 20. Zvo
  17. ↑ Edition used, p. 151, 14. Zvo and 6. Zvu
  18. ↑ Edition used, p. 154, 14th Zvu
  19. ↑ engl. Herod's Palace (Jerusalem)
  20. ↑ Edition used, p. 164, 11. Zvo
  21. ↑ Edition used, p. 164, 10th Zvu
  22. ↑ Edition used, p. 167, 14. Zvu
  23. ↑ Edition used, p. 180, 12. Zvu
  24. ↑ Edition used, p. 215, 3. Zvo
  25. ↑ Edition used, p. 197, 16. Zvo
  26. ↑ The life of Jesus
  27. ↑ port. Óscar Lopes