Machado de Assis & Carolina
Brazil's saddest sonnet
Brazil's greatest writer — mixed-race and grandson of freed slaves — and Carolina, his Portuguese wife: 35 years of marriage whose end inspired "A Carolina," one of the most celebrated love sonnets in the Portuguese language.
01Why it matters
It is the great love story of Brazilian letters and an icon of 19th-century intellectual Afro-descendant love.
02The conflict
Racial and social prejudice against the union; Carolina's death in 1904.
03The iconic moment
Machado writing "A Carolina" at his wife's grave.
04What survived
The sonnet "A Carolina"; the Brazilian Academy of Letters he founded.
05Where to travel
06Frequently asked questions
Why is the story of Machado de Assis & Carolina famous?
It is the great love story of Brazilian letters and an icon of 19th-century intellectual Afro-descendant love.
How does the story of Machado de Assis & Carolina end?
Machado writing "A Carolina" at his wife's grave. The sonnet "A Carolina"; the Brazilian Academy of Letters he founded.
Where can you visit the story of Machado de Assis & Carolina?
You can visit Rio de Janeiro, in Río de Janeiro. The city of all his work.
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