Dom Casmurro 3.103 · 3.103

'José Dias desculpava-se' — José Dias was excusing himself. Of course he was. The man who engineered the whole scene, who planted the suspicion and hurried the seminary, now, at the sight of the tears he caused, hastens to justify his part. The imperfect tense, 'desculpava-se', keeps him at it, apologizing on and on. It is the perfect final image of his character: never quite responsible, always explaining, converting even the damage he has done into fresh proof of his own good heart. The trailing colon opens onto his self-defense, the oiliest speech in the chapter.

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