BETWEEN REAL AND UNREAL: THE TRACES OF THE FANTASTIC IN THE SHORT STORY "THE ANTS" BY LYGIA FAGUNDES TELLES

Abstract

This paper focuses on the space as a significant aspect for the establishment of the fantastic atmosphere in the tale "The ants" of the work Mysteries (1998) by Lygia Fagundes Telles. In the analysis of the chosen narrative, we defend the hypothesis that the fictional space and the setting are elements that anticipate traces of the plot to the reader, besides contributing decisively to the configuration of the characters, especially, concerning the irruption of the fantastic. In the story, two students witness the mysterious reconstitution of a dwarf skeleton in a sinister hostel, supposedly implemented by ants, at night. In the construction of the tale, there are thematic and formal procedures that stimulate the fantastic atmosphere, like the remarkable appreciation of the night, the obscure world and a possible return of the dead, such as Ceserani (2006) points out when regarding the fantastic. In this perspective, this study will take into consideration the definitions about the fantastic formulated by the mentioned scholar as guiding references, as well as the propositions of Todorov (1975), Garcia (2007) and Roas (2014). The work of Freud (1919) which postulates about the stranger is also part of our theoretical framework. Regarding the space category, in addition to classical references from Theory of Literature, Bachelard (1989) and Foucault (2009) conceptions are used to understand the arranged game between real and unreal, between symbolic and poetic. Finally, we try to understand Lygia Fagundes Telles"™ fiction focusing on the fantastic, ingeniously expressed on the tale.