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A review by blueyorkie
A Relíquia by Eça de Queirós
3.0
The Portuguese writer José Maria de Eça de Queirós is often compared to Balzac, Flaubert or Zola (whom he met in Paris in 1885) because it is to him that we owe the entry of naturalism to the French in Portuguese literature.
The relic, one of his first novels, tells the story of a young orphan taken in by a rich and bigoted aunt. In whom he bows down—claiming to be even the most pious of men because he already sees the heir of a fortune he intends to acquire at the cost of his good behaviour. No need for the old aunt to know what he's up to since he manages to lead a double life she is unaware through.
She, therefore, believes him to be so pious, so enamoured with all the religious tricks in the world, that to reward him and buy himself paradise at the end of his life. So she sends her nephew to meditate on the places trodden by Christ, reminding him to be worthy and honour his name, adding that if ever she learned that he had departed from this order, the punishment would be fatal.
The relic, one of his first novels, tells the story of a young orphan taken in by a rich and bigoted aunt. In whom he bows down—claiming to be even the most pious of men because he already sees the heir of a fortune he intends to acquire at the cost of his good behaviour. No need for the old aunt to know what he's up to since he manages to lead a double life she is unaware through.
She, therefore, believes him to be so pious, so enamoured with all the religious tricks in the world, that to reward him and buy himself paradise at the end of his life. So she sends her nephew to meditate on the places trodden by Christ, reminding him to be worthy and honour his name, adding that if ever she learned that he had departed from this order, the punishment would be fatal.