ABSTRACT
The essay proposes a retelling of the short story “Os óculos de Pedro Antão”, by Machado de Assis, published in Jornal das Famílias in 1874. As Machado did not incorporate the narrative into his compilations, the drama received unimpressive attention. It is suggested that the text parodically decomposes the detective story genre, in a possible dialogue with the literary production of Edgar Allan Poe. Furthermore, by indicating the narrator’s analytical ineptitude, “Bruxo de Cosme Velho” makes explicit the artificiality of literature.
KEYWORDS:
Machado de Assis; “Os óculos de Pedro Antão”; Detective story; Edgar Allan Poe