Miguel torga and his native geography: inscribed landscapes

Abstract

Miguel Torga's work (1907-1995) is of recognized importance in the context of 20th century Portuguese literature. This is evidenced by the reception of the Camões Prize in 1989 and the already extensive critical fortune published in Portugal and Brazil. One of the recurring themes in these critical works is the writer's relationship with the land, the telluric force in both his prose and poetry. In this article, we will deal with this relationship from the Diary of Miguel Torga (vols. I to VIII), from 1934 to 1959.In many of his notes, the writer demonstrates the importance of Trás-os-Montes geography for the configuration of his literary writing, especially his native land, S. Martinho de Anta (Sabrosa Municipality) and nearby spaces. In Torga's relationship with this landscape, we will be able to examine certain lines of understanding of his humanist and solidary literary work. Not for nothing, in its authorial pseudonym, “torga” stands out, mountain vegetation that clings to the rocks, with its strong roots and straight stem, as well as its writing deeply linked to the rural, rigorous and ethical landscape, harsh many times, but deeply sensitive to the human in his misery or greatness.