The representation of the toilette in the fiction of Machado de Assis

The present study proposes an analysis of the toilette or, the clothing representation, in the short stories written by Machado de Assis during his mature literary phase. This investigation comprehends the complex symbolic meanings involving some of those garments, as well as the importance they acquire in the author's renowned narratives. It may be observed that the representation of such elements exceeds the more traditional realist experience. In other words, Machado de Assis does not only describe the garments in his narratives but indeed dresses them up with much ampler meanings that, when uncovered, provide us with a much more precise comprehension of the narratives they are part of.