O Cortiço

O Cortiço (titled The Slum in English) is an influential Brazilian novel written in 1890 by Aluísio Azevedo. The novel depicts a part of Brazil's culture in the late Nineteenth century, represented by a variety of colorful characters living in a single Rio de Janeiro slum.

Azevedo's The Slum tells the stories of Portuguese and other European immigrants, mulattos, and former African slaves living and working together in a single community. It explores the author's intensely naturalistic beliefs, having various characters being defined and changed by their environment, race and social position.

Examples are: the division between the lackadaisical, yet passionate, mulattos and the hard-working, driven portuguese immigrants, how the climate and culture of Brazil can slowly transform these immigrants' behavior in atavistic ways. In addition the role of women is a key theme, with all female characters in one way or another revealing their purpose in the slum.

Additional information

• ISBN 0195121872