O NECESSÁRIO RESGATE HISTORIOGRÁFICO DE MARIANA ALCOFORADO, A PRIMEIRA ROMANCISTA LUSÓFONA DO MUNDO

Abstract

This article is the result of a bibliographic survey stemming from a basic research with a
qualitative approach and an exploratory objective, presenting the life and Magnum Opus attributed to
Sor Mariana Alcoforado in light of the theory of epistemicide, proposed by the sociologist Boaventura
de Souza Santos (2016) and the literary critics René Wellek and Austin Warren (1976). It addresses
the social role of women within the Portuguese literary canon, the importance of female writing, and
its historiographical recovery. We conclude that in the time of our writer, in the 17th century, women
were seen as extremely inferior beings in their writing, presenting difficulties in the recognition of
their literary productions. Although we have made several advances in this regard, there is still
resistance to recognize female writing and its social role, as well as the attribution of the authorship of
As Cartas Portuguesas to Mariana Alcoforado, considered the first female writer in the Portuguese
language. As a pioneer, her legacy was ostracized, but it has been brought to light through researches
like this and many others that have been taking her out of the limbo to which she was thrown.