A bolsa amarela, by Lygia Bojunga Nunes

a queer allegory

Abstract

From the reinterpretation of classic works of children's literature, a series of new meanings emerge that reflect the contemporary literary zeitgeist. Lygia Bojunga's A bolsa amarela (1976) allows this type of reinterpretation with a specific focus on the topic of sexuality, in order to explore the questioning of gender standards that are clearly present in the work more in depth. In this article, I examine the novel from the perspective of a queer allegory, based on the theories of Fletcher (2012) and Jagose (1996). My analysis encompasses the symbolism of the bag's elements, namely the pin, the umbrella, the roosters Afonso and Terrível, and the clasp. Then, I develop the web of meaning that these elements construct, as well as the gender dissidence felt by Raquel based on her three wishes and the family conflicts that emerge in the narrative as a consequence of her distancing herself from the cisheteronormative standard. The characters’ attitudes and the dynamics of the environment in which they are inserted explore non-normative forms of existence and behavior, bringing multiple meanings to the novel which directly dialogue with the queer experience and create an allegory based on the reading of the different levels of the text. By revisiting A bolsa amarela in contemporaneity, we are able to observe the emergence of new layers of meaning that bring the text into the present day and that allow the identification of subjects from the perspective of queer children’s and young adult literature.