“Missa do galo” hypertextual value

Abstract

This study investigates the aspects that led to the transformation of the narrative “Missa do galo” into a palimpsest. Almost eight decades after is publication, the work Missa do galo: variações sobre o mesmo tema is released, presenting six proposals for approximations to the original text, by Machado de Assis. Theoretical notions about intertextuality, as well as concepts formulated by the Reception Aesthetics, underlie the development of this analysis. The main reason to understand why certain literary creations receive the hypotext status is the fact that literature has a social role, which takes form through the prolific relationship between the reader and the text. The works are characterized by textual indecisiveness. Machado intentionally emphasizes them, as it is seen in “Missa do galo”. This practice stimulates textual productions that, in a certain way, seek to go on with the plot outlined by the carioca author.