Drawing from a variety of historical sources, theory, and fictional and non-fictional production, this book addresses the cultural imaginary of domestic servants in modern Brazil and demonstrates maids' symbolic centrality to shifting notions of servitude, subordination, femininity, and domesticity.

The new English-language edition is substantially expanded, especially in the general introduction and at the start of each chapter, to provide additional theoretical grounding and context for an international audience. This new edition makes the work fully accessible and relevant to Latin Americanist scholars with limited knowledge of Brazil and the Portuguese language, but it will also be extremely valuable for specialists in Brazil, particularly those concerned with interracial and class relationships, labor history, and women's writing. (Katherine Ostrom, Letras Femeninas, Vol. 41 (1), December, 2015)

Autorentext
Sônia Roncador is Associate Professor of Brazilian Literature and Culture in Department of Spanish and Portuguese at The University of Texas at Austin, USA.

Inhalt
Introduction - The Burdened Legacy of Domestic Servitude in Brazil 1. Júlia's Maids: Servants in the Cultural Imaginary of the Tropical Belle Époque 2. 'My Ol' Black Mammy': Childhood Maids in Brazilian Modernist Memoirs 3. 'How to Treat a Maid?': Misencounters with Servants in Clarice Lispector's 4. Writers in Aprons: Brazilian Servants' Testimonios