Extra-European literatures in anthology during the Estado Novo (1933–1974)

During the right-wing dictatorship (Estado Novo) that governed Portugal from 1933 to 1974, collectionism (covering anthologies, collections and libraries) was the preferred way of organizing and divulging international literature in Portugal. This study looks at literary anthologies from outside the European space, namely from countries/cultures with which Portugal had developed a special relationship after the Discoveries. Indeed, in the light of the national identity adopted by the Estado Novo, the ideology of Empire generated expectations as to how the literary production of those countries would be accepted. As this corpus could not really include Brazil and Africa, the focus was on short story anthologies translated (mostly indirectly) from Indian, Chinese, Asian and Japanese literature. Drawing on historians such as António Hespanha, these anthologies are contextualized against the background of Orientalism in Portugal. Every anthology found is described and commented upon with regard to the selection of authors and texts as well as the image of the respective culture conveyed to the reader through the work. Judging by the small number of anthologies found, it appears that the interest shown by publishers in these cultures was no more than an afterthought and reflected a lack of demand on the part of the reading public. Nonetheless such anthologies accomplish an ideological function à contrecoeur because they de-historise literary history and follow a universalising trend, thus de-characterising or, in some cases, stereotyping, at times naively, what these respective cultures may give.