Virgins, single and powerful: women in the work of Agustina Bessa-Luís

Abstract

Agustina Bessa-Luís positions female characters of her oeuvre on the side of power. This paper proposes to analyze some emblematic
characters of the author's work, demonstrating how they managed to
find new forms of existence which allow them to be detached from the
male circle of influence. We will claim, through analysis of the novels
A Sibila, O Mosteiro and O Concerto dos Flamengos, that the revisiting
of themes related to the female condition, such as celibacy and virginity,
calls into question the obligatory bond between women and men, as
the foundation of their existence, and shakes the foundations of the
patriarchal order that rules Portuguese society.