The Alienist
by Machado de Assis · 1882
Difficulty
beginner
Length
short
Reading Time
2–3 hours
About the Book
A brilliant doctor opens an asylum and begins classifying sanity and madness in ways that turn an entire town into a satire of authority.
Why You Should Read It
Read it for a short, brilliant introduction to Machado's irony, social criticism, and philosophical comedy.
Who This Book Is For
For readers who want a concise classic about power, science, madness, and the absurdity of certainty.
About the Author
Machado de Assis is the central classic of Brazilian literature: ironic, elegant, psychologically ruthless, and far more modern than a quick glance at the nineteenth century might suggest. His mature fiction breaks narrative expectations, speaks directly to the reader, mocks social vanity, and turns jealousy, ambition, class, slavery, marriage, and self-deception into literature of extraordinary precision.
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