Gregorio de Matos e Guerra was born in the Brazilian Northeast State called Bahia. After living and studying in Coimbra, Portugal, for 27 years, upon his return to Brazil, he started to disagree with the rumors that the town was taking. Despite being known as Hell's Mouth, for the satirical and critical aspects of his poems, To the veritable Judge Belchior da Cunha Brochado is one of Matos’s laudatory poems (Ode) to this municipal authority (culturally called Doutor).

Visually, this poem is striking before a single word is read. The structure of the poem is similar to “the anagrams & labyrinthian forms developed first in the Iberian & European Baroque”¹⁾. For more information on reading these creative works of art, see Spanish and Portuguese Labyrinths. At the heart of Matos' clever poetic structure is the use of shared suffixes and concluding letters to form a path for the reader to follow in making sense of the writing as intended. Uniquely, the connection of each word or phrase to the one featured below offers another dimension to the reading. Phrases can be read linearly from left to right, paired from left to right, or even read from top to bottom in columns. Therefore, the use of this form allows for the creation of alternative paths, offering a multitude of meaningful readings within the singular text.

Brilliantly translated from Portuguese by Jennifer Cooper, this English version preserved Matos’s strategies of using words whose suffixes match, as well as wisely equivalent word choices. For instance, the use of “singular precious” instead of its literal translation “singular rare” (line 3), the decision to keep the word order “applause incredible” (line 6), and the replacement of fame/climate (fama/clima) for reputation/location (lines 9 and 10). Naturally, the translation process may demand some adaptations, in this situation, in the length of sentences, which visually modified the lines from 9 to 12 of the original poem, at the same time disrupting the decasyllable feature of the Portuguese poem. Regardless of that, the translator respectfully managed to bring the essence of the Brazilian Baroque poet into this English version.

The poem “To the Veritable Judge Belchior Da Cunha Brochado” seems to be about justice and the reputation of the judge, but it might also have a hidden critical meaning. At first, it looks like the poet is praising the judge with words like “illustrious,” “noble,” and “unshakable,” but the excessive praise could mean sarcasm. The word “veritable” in the title means true, which makes me wonder if the poet really believes the judge is fair or if he is questioning his justice. The poem also talks about “grave justice” and “executions always indefatigable,” which could mean that the judge is strict and relentless. The word “terrible” appears near executions, which makes me think that justice in this case might be too harsh. The poem also mentions “notoriety” and “memory,” which can mean the judge will be remembered, but not necessarily in a good way. The structure of the poem is interesting because the words are broken apart and spread out, making it look complex and serious.

Figure 1. Poem transcreated by Jennifer Cooper.

Figure 2. Original version of the Poem in Portuguese.

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