No victory, the monster is still alive; / Saramago’s critique of intellectual passivity and the collapse of values / Ricardo Reis observes instead of confronting the monster

Idea Group: The following article, written by Neda Khooeini in the Idea section of Etemad newspaper, analyzes the novel “The Year of the Death of Ricardo Reis” (1984) by José Saramago. According to the author, Saramago critiques the political atmosphere of Portugal under Salazar’s dictatorship in the 1930s and the rise of European fascism by utilizing classical myths and metaphors (labyrinth, minotaur, Adamastor), portraying intellectual passivity. In the article, Khooeini first analyzes the time setting and central character chosen by Saramago. The novel is set in Lisbon in the 1930s, amidst the fascist environment of Europe. The main character, Ricardo Reis (one of Fernando Pessoa’s heteronyms), is a passive and observational intellectual. According to Khooeini, Saramago directly shows how totalitarian regimes (like Salazar’s) misuse national, religious, and glorious past symbols (political myth-making) to present themselves as the “saviors of the nation” and authoritative figures, thus immortalizing their power, while the reality is violence and suppression. Saramago addresses the crisis in Portugal through three metaphors: First, the labyrinth or maze. In Saramago’s view, it symbolizes the city of Lisbon and also Ricardo Reis’s mental maze, where he is trapped in fear, memories, and powerlessness. This labyrinth is a metaphor for modern man’s entrapment in the structure of power. The second metaphor is the minotaur or the monster; symbolizing modern fascism; a systematic, everyday, and omnipresent power that devours freedom and collective action. Unlike the myth, there is no hero (Theseus) to destroy the monster in this novel. Instead, Adamastor, or the sea giant, is introduced as a symbol of historical defeat. This symbol recalls Portugal’s past grandeur, which has now turned into a cold and silent statue, only reminding citizens of the contrast between yesterday’s glory and today’s limitations. The modern intellectual (Reis) is condemned to observation and passivity in the face of the monster of power. Therefore, Saramago’s novel is a profound critique of intellectual passivity and the lack of a path to individual liberation against the totalitarian political power monster, showing how myth is used to analyze contemporary social and political crises. This article is presented below:

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In the novel The Year of the Death of Ricardo Reis (1984), José Saramago provides a picture of Lisbon in the 1930s, a period when Portugal was under the dictatorship of Salazar and Europe was drifting towards fascism. He paints this atmosphere not with a dry historical report, but by recreating classical myths and metaphors. In this process, the labyrinth (1), the Minotaur (2), and Adamastor (3) form three symbolic axes that intertwine to demonstrate the crisis of intellectualism and the failure of liberating goddesses (4).

The main character, Ricardo Reis, is originally one of the heteronyms (5) of the Portuguese poet Fernando Pessoa. By resurrecting this imaginary character, Saramago places you in Portugal in the years 1939 (the time of Salazar’s dictatorship and the peak of European fascism). The setting is characterized by the rise of fascism in Europe and the shadow of the Spanish Civil War. It is within this context that Saramago shows how totalitarian regimes attempt to use history and cultural symbols to legitimize their power. Saramago uses myths not to glorify the past, but to criticize how they are employed by fascist power; he transforms myths into tools for analyzing social, political, and philosophical conditions concerning repression, power, and intellectual passivity.

Political Myth-Making

Saramago does not explicitly theorize the term “political myth-making.” However, through his narrative, he demonstrates how the authoritarian Portuguese government and European fascism leverage national, religious, and glorious past symbols to present themselves as the saviors of the nation.

In the novel, people are caught between hope and fear; and the regime attempts to perpetuate its power by creating a “myth of stability and authority.” Ricardo Reis, as an alienated and passive intellectual, witnesses how everyday life, literature, and even the deaths of individuals are swallowed by the mechanism of political myth-making.

In fact, Saramago, in this work, represents political myth-making not through explicit theorization, but through lived and historical experience: he shows how fascism creates a quasi-mythical narrative of “leadership and authority” by using the national past and culture, while the reality is violence, death, and suppression.

Labyrinth and Labrys (6): Labyrinth of History and Mind

Lisbon in the novel is like the classical labyrinth: the alleys, streets, buildings, and memories create convoluted and exitless paths. This urban maze is simultaneously Ricardo Reis’s mental labyrinth; he is lost in a maze of intellectual memories, politics, and history. Saramago writes: “In the narrow streets of Lisbon, every turn seems to be a new path to nowhere; Reis’s mind also becomes more lost in a labyrinth of past and present with every step.”

This sentence is a clear metaphor for modern man’s entrapment in the labyrinth of power and history, demonstrating that Ricardo Reis is not only trapped in the urban environment but also experiences a labyrinth of fear and powerlessness within his own mind. The Labrys (the double-bladed axe symbolizing power and sacrifice) and the labyrinth simultaneously exert pressure on both mind and environment; past and present, freedom and limitation, life and death overlap in a complex and closed network.

Through this metaphor, Saramago shows that fascist power, like the labyrinth and Labrys, blocks paths to liberation and forces humans into passivity and observation. Ricardo Reis is neither Theseus (7) nor capable of destroying the political monster; he is merely a powerless witness representing the intellectual class observing the collapse of moral and social order.

In fact, the Labrys symbolizes fascist power and systematic coercion that pressures the intellectual and citizens. Just as the Labrys demands sacrifice in Minoan rituals, political power in the novel operates through suppression, fear, and restriction of freedoms. The combination of Labrys and labyrinth creates an image of a maze of limitations and constant threat; the intellectual is trapped in a labyrinth of alleys and laws, and the “double-bladed axe” of power hangs constantly over him.

Minotaur: The Monster of Fascism

The Minotaur, half-human and half-bull, is a monster in myth that demands sacrifice and symbolizes power and violence. Saramago transforms the Minotaur into a symbol of modern fascism, an everyday, omnipresent, and systematic power that devours freedom, memory, and collective action. Saramago writes: “The city, like a living creature, watches everywhere with sleepless eyes. Even thinking for a moment is restricted by force.”

The Minotaur is here: in every look from the police, every newspaper report, and every silence of the people, the monster of power is active. Unlike Theseus, who kills the Minotaur in the myth, Ricardo Reis cannot take action. This inversion represents the transposition of myth into the fascist reality of Portugal; the modern monster, whose destruction seems impossible, and the intellectual who is merely an observer, not a hero.

Adamastor: The Sea Giant and Shadow of Defeat

Adamastor, the sea giant created by Camões in The Lusiads, appears in the novel as a stone statue in Lisbon. He reminds of Portugal’s grandeur and past seafaring power, but his threat has diminished, and he has become a symbol of historical defeat. Saramago writes: “Adamastor stands cold and silent in the main square, his past power is now a shadow that only recalls what was.”

This change shows the mythic inversion of power: what once inspired fear and admiration now only recalls defeat and passivity. In Saramago’s view, Adamastor constantly confronts Ricardo Reis and the citizens with the contradiction between past power and current limitations.

Failure of the Goddess and Absence of Theseus

Goddesses in myths usually provide liberation; Ariadne gives Theseus the saving thread and opens the path to salvation. In the novel, the goddesses are silent; neither the goddess of freedom, nor the goddess of art, nor the goddess of ethics can intervene. “No hand comes, no voice tells what to do, there is only silence and closed paths.” This failure of the goddess symbolizes the collapse of hope for cultural and political liberation. Modern man is trapped in the labyrinth of power and fear, and there is no path to individual salvation. The mythical hero has given way to the observational and passive intellectual.

Inversion of Theseus and End of Crete’s Domination over Athens (9)

In the myth, Theseus kills the Minotaur, and Crete’s domination over Athens ends. Saramago inverts this pattern: Ricardo Reis is not a hero, and the Minotaur (symbol of fascism) still rules. “There is no victory; the city continues, the monster is alive, and only a memory of hope remains.” This inversion highlights the critique of power and the limitation of intellectual action; against the systematic monster, there is no path to individual salvation, and only observation and re-evaluation remain.

Conclusion:

The Year of the Death of Ricardo Reis shows how myths can turn against themselves in the face of political power. The labyrinth, Labrys, Minotaur, Adamastor, and the absence of goddesses are all metaphors for a world in which literature and myth, while illuminating history, lack the power to change it. The inversion of myth and the expansion of the novel’s mythical analysis critique intellectual passivity, the collapse of values, and the absence of a path to liberation against the monster of power.

Footnotes:

This essay is based on textual and mythical analysis of Saramago’s novel and literary criticism sources.

• 1- Labyrinth: A complex, winding structure in Crete that held the Minotaur and symbolizes confusion and difficulty finding a way out.
• 2- Minotaur: A half-human, half-bull monster that lived in the labyrinth and demanded sacrifice; in the novel, a metaphor for fascist power.
• 3- Adamastor: The sea giant in The Lusiads, a symbol of danger and Portugal’s seafaring power; in the novel, a reminder of defeat and the shadow of history.
• 4- Failure of the Goddess: A mythical concept for goddesses who could be saviors; in the novel, the goddesses are silent, indicating a lack of liberation.
• 5- Heteronym: In literature, a type of fictional character created by a writer, which is not just a pseudonym but has a complete identity, writing style, worldview, tone, and even independent biography. A famous example: Fernando Pessoa, the Portuguese poet, had more than 70 heteronyms, each with a different poetic style and language. For instance, “Alberto Caeiro” wrote simple, nature-based poems. “Alvaro de Campos” was industrial and modern, “Ricardo Reis” classical and philosophical.
• 6- Labrys: The double-bladed axe that in Minoan mythology symbolizes power, sacrifice, and domination. In Minoan culture, the Labrys was not just a physical tool but also a symbol of divine power and social control.
• 7- Theseus: The mythical hero who kills the Minotaur and saves the people of Athens.
• 8- Ariadne: The daughter of Minos who falls in love with Theseus and gives him the saving thread.
• 9- End of Crete’s domination over Athens: The end of Crete’s domination in myth occurred with Theseus’s killing of the Minotaur and the salvation of Athens; the inversion of this narrative in the novel shows that there is no hero to end the domination of fascism.