Mourning and writing in Walmir Ayala's diary

Abstract

This article analyzes Walmir Ayala's three volume diary — written in the late 1950s and published in the decades of 1960 and 1970 — especially with regard to his relationship with death. With a vast work, currently little known to the general public, Ayala published several books, including novels, short stories, poetry collections and plays. His writing is marked by an intense interest in death. Such interest seems to be related to the loss of his mother, who died when he was only four. In his writings, the writer himself reveals that this loss of his mother was of crucial importance in his career. This loss is evident in several passages in his diary. Organized in fragmented passages — as is common in this type of work — the diary presents numerous passages in which the author deals with solitude
and mourning. Before analyzing the diary, however, we present a brief summary of the writer's life. Next, we address the issue of death, explaining how society deals with it today. Subsequently, we reflect on the abject character of death. Finally, we deal with Walmir Ayala's diary. Divided into three volumes, which total almost four hundred pages, the work reveals the writer's close bond with death. As a theoretical reference, the works of Ariès (2013), Kristeva (1982) and Rodrigues (1983) are mainly used.