O Doutor Benignus

the origin of man in the conception of nature, by Augusto Emílio Zaluar

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to present the place addressed for human species, in the concept of nature presented in the novel Dr. Benignus. More specifically, I seek to show in this novel, how Zaluar understands the human species as a “product of Darwinian natural selection.” The references to Darwinism made by Zaluar, however, are greatly distant from the use that Darwin made of the epistemological system he created, that also led to the discovery of certain natural mechanisms, in particular, the natural selection. Zaluar is part of a generation known as the 1870’s Generation, at a time when the country was undergoing major social, cultural and economic changes. Individuals of this generation shared similar experiences and faced challenges that could together give voice to their concerns. For effectiveness of this action, members of the movement made use of the new intellectual perspectives from Europe as a repertoire of political action. The repertoire consisted of a set of analytical standards, concepts, theories stylistic forms of language, among other things. One of these theories is precisely the theory of evolution and its implications for understanding the origin and transformation of the human species in its history on earth.