O MEU NOME É LEGIÃO:

RUINS OF THE EMPIRE TO THE MARGINS OF LISBON

Abstract

ABSTRACT: This article presents some aspects and theoretical perspectives selected for the analysis of the novel Meu nome é legião (2007), by António Lobo Antunes. This novel is based on the initial argument of a group of young offenders from the outskirts of Lisbon, who get out in stolen vehicles committing crimes. From this initial argument, the novel focuses on stories of abandonment, incommunicability, loneliness and violence of various characters who have some kind of relationship with the  youngsters involved with crime. This “legion” personifies the social and economic decay resulting from Portugal's long and problematic relationship with its former colonies. Among the author's narrative strategies, the intertextuality established with other canonical works of Portuguese literature stands out: Jorge Amado's Capitães da Areia (1937) and Soeiro Pereira Gome’s  Esteiros (1941). These three novels share the same narrative category: the intermediate space, the beaches and the port areas, recognized here as a transitory place where the sea view presents ambivalent meanings.