Júlia Nery’s Da Índia, com amor : A Feminist Critique at Work

Abstract

The Portuguese Maritime Expansion, till date, remains to be one of the most influential political moves, setting into motion various sociocultural changes on a global scale. Goa, then known as the Rome of the Orient, acted as a strategic colony of the Portuguese Empire from 1510 to 1961. During this period, the Portuguese Government undertook multiple initiatives to strengthen their power, with a view of expanding their Empire, as was the case with religious conversions and intercultural marriages. From 1545, up to the early 18th century, several female orphans from Portugal, labelled ‘Órfãs d’el-Rei’ (Orphans of the King), were transported via the sea route to Goa, to be married to local rulers or Portuguese settlers. Narratives under displacement often serve as rich historical repositories, and the accounts of women travellers offer a distinctive angle. This paper aims to analyse the feminist elements present in the travel account Da Índia, com amor (From India, with love) by Júlia Nery (2012), which fictionalises the experiences of the Órfãs d’el-Rei, both, at sea and while in Goa. Nery, in her work, recounts various episodes of cultural and political significance, and touches upon themes like religion, subordination, separation and longing, making this work an indispensable source of feminist travel literature.