My
daughter,
Wladênia,
arrives
home
and
says
that
her
teacher
Neide
Pimenta
wants
me
to
give
a
speech
to
her
students
at
the
St.
Joseph
high
school.
The
day
and
hour
have
already
been
scheduled
according
to
my
available
time.
At
the
auditorium
will
be
over
one
hundred
students
of
different
grades,
everything
indicating
that
they
are
very
interested
in
knowing
a
little
more
about
“Marília
de
Dirceu”,
particularly
in
relation
to
Thomás
Gonzaga’s
conflicting
writing
styles.
It
is
because
Gonzaga,
as
well
as
Machado
de
Assis
later
on,
was
in
the
habit
of
absorbing
writing
influences
of
his
own
century,
and
then
going
back
in
time
and
having
adventures
in
the
future,
the
writing
then
seeming
Baroque,
Neo-classical
and
incorruptibly
Pre-romantic.
From
the
very
start,
I
know
that
Neide,
an
excellent
Portuguese
and
Literature
teacher,
should
have
already
taught
them
everything,
or
almost
so,
and
only
wants
me
to
give
a
complimentary
class,
to
help
stimulate
their
enthusiasm.
I
ask
Wladênia
about
the
indicated
theme,
and
possible
variations
to
it,
about
the
interest
of
her
classmates
in
the
subject,
their
tastes
in
literature,
and
also
about
their
relationship
with
their
teacher.
I
go
even
further:
As
Neide
had
already
introduced
the
subject
to
her
class,
I
ask
what
her
opinion
is
of
the
different
writing
styles
reigning
at
the
time,
which
differences
she
notes
from
one
to
another
as
elements
of
instructive
emphasis.
I
continue:
Which
book
is
used
in
the
literature
courses
at
St.
Joseph,
and
what
degree
of
attention
have
her
students
given
to
this
particular
book?
Wladênia
goes
on
filling
me
in
about
her
teacher
and
classmates.
I
am
not
completely
satisfied,
and
ask
to
see
her
class
notebook,
because
I
wish
to
know
Ms.
Neide’s
suggested
or
imposed
order.
She
gives
me
the
notebook
and
all
her
additional
written
instructions.
It
seems
to
be
an
exaggerated
exigency
on
my
part,
but
my
experience
as
an
old
politician
tells
me
that
I
should
first
familiarize
myself
with
all
facts
possible
before
entering
the
auditorium,
particularly
the
ones
pertaining
to
St.
Joseph,
a
school
for
which
I
maintain
the
deepest
respect.
Having
all
necessary
information
at
hand,
and
having
all
necessary
conditions
fulfilled,
the
final
date
and
hour
adjusted,
I
confirm
and
take
the
responsibility
for
the
speech.
At
this
moment,
for
me,
a
new
battle
has
begun,
the
most
complicated
part
being
the
search
for
details
that
will
enrich
the
short
sixty
minutes
that
I
will
share
with
my
young
listeners.
By
weight
of
my
professional
decision,
Thomás
Gonzaga,
whom
I
have
studied
many
times,
though
considering
his
writing
style
somewhat
passive
on
paper,
remains
a
loyal
counselor
still,
spiritually
speaking,
as
he
has
been
in
my
many
years
of
study
and
teaching.
I
immediately
search
for
my
copy
of
the
book
“Marília
de
Dirceu”,
completely
covered
with
pencil
notes,
“Introduction
to
Brazilian
Literature”,
of
Afrânio
Coutinho,
a
literature
dictionary,
a
book
of
gods
and
heroes
of
the
ancient
world
of
the
Greeks
and
Romans,
and
I
also
pick
out
a
few
junior
high
school
books,
besides
the
original
class
text.
Now
starts
the
research
phase
and
all
my
disposable
time
will
be
encumbered
with
this
new
project.
What
a
great
pleasure
it
is
to
go
back
to
“Marília
de
Dirceu”!
With
what
urgency
I
speed
to
the
rhythm
and
musicality
of
Gonzaga’s
poetry!
How
grateful
is
this
dream
of
work,
this
search
of
poetry,
this
trip
of
reencountering
with
what
is
most
beautiful
in
the
lyrical
literature
of
our
language!
How
important
it
is
to
see,
feel,
understand
and
follow
the
joys
and
the
sorrows
contained
in
this
marvel
of
poetry.
I
am
now
ready
to
closely
analyze
love,
the
plot
of
the
lyrical
and
the
