Sabbatai, Sebastião: immersion and dissimilation in “A balada do falso messias”

Abstract

: The short story “A balada do falso messias”, by the Brazilian Jewish writer Moacyr Scliar, tells an anachronistic version of the arrival of Jews to Rio Grande do Sul in the early 1900s, which includes the historical character of Sabbatai Zevi. Scliar’s use of anachronism, parody and non-realistic representation, as well as the amalgamation of different literary traditions and historical references, serve to problematize the inherent conflicts within Jewish Brazilian identity. His version of the titular false messiah echoes and parodies not only the historical Zevi but also Christian and Lusophone messianic figures. By introducing a series of paradoxes and contradictions, the narrative suggests a process of Jewish immersion in Brazilian society not by assimilation, but rather by seclusion and rebellion. An analysis of the story’s implicit author presents it as the result of such process.