Times in its mansa order according to expectations and sufferences: testimony and reading in Terra Sonâmbula by Mia Couto

Abstract

There is currently an increase in the interest in testimonial literature on the part of literary studies. This literary current, according to SELIGMANN SILVA (2003), more than a genre in itself, is a facet of literature, generally aimed at characterizing memories related to some trauma or experiences of suffering. In general, it is about fictionalization supported by the reading of a historical circumstance, using the symbolic as a form (and force) of expression that, although focused on the factual, remains free from the prison of trivial plausibility. An example of this situation occurs in the novel Terra Sonâmbula (2007) by Mia Couto, in which the center of the plot is the protagonist Muidinga's contact with the writings of Kindzu, found in the rubble of a war that tore apart the country where he lives. The affective relationship that the boy maintains with those notebooks – which tell, in a symbolic way, of his resistance – leads Muidinga to overcome the monotony and morbidity of the environment of devastation caused by the war. His reading ability allows him to visit other realities besides the suffering and challenges he is forced to face. From these notes, it is intended to observe and reflect on the effect of the testimonial writings on those who read them to the point that the memories present in them interfere in their individual identity construction.