Dom Casmurro 3.14 · 3.14

He does not answer the question; he inflates it. 'Uma grande difficuldade' — the plain 'difficulty' of a moment ago is now 'great', swollen a size larger while still unnamed. This is José Dias's signature rhythm, delay as a form of self-importance: the longer the news is withheld, the more indispensable its bearer. Machado stretches the suspense one more beat, and we feel, with the hidden boy, the dread of a thing being made large before it is even shown.

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