The third Bank of the river

A Terceira Margem do Rio (Rosa, 2001) was written by João Guimarães Rosa, one of Brazil’s most celebrated writers. His work is full of regional and popular references, and his language is heavily grounded in Brazilian orality and neologisms, making his writing virtually impossible to translate (at least with some fidelity to the original meaning). Despite that, he was widely published outside Brazil. You can read this particular tale in French and English.[1] In the short story, the narrator recounts his father, a quiet man who was never open to being known by his children. One day, he orders a canoe. When the boat is ready, he goes to the river without explanation and remains there. Indefinitely. The family is obligated to accept the father’s decision and learn how to interact with him, “neither near nor far.” The family often wants the father to decide whether to go away and swim in the river or give up that nonsense and return home. But the man stays there, his whole life. So the son remains there, bringing food and clothes, helping to keep the father alive. When the son is already old, he impulsively attempts to take the father’s place in the canoe, but he has cold feet and runs away. The third bank of the river is the river itself, this place of undefinition, constant work to remain inside the canoe, alive. The third bank of the river, for me, is the life of those who, by option and free will, decide not to take one stable position. I don’t imagine what the father wanted to accomplish. Still, reading the story, we can understand how the son’s life was shaped by the acknowledgment of the possibility of remaining in an undefined state forever, the work required and the high price to pay, and the lack of courage to do it. The third bank of the river is a place for creation and self-discovery. It is a place where “the crazy ones” are not crazy at all because they were able to go there and stay. They just found where they could be themselves.

[1] https://www.sphstigers.org/ourpages/users/jasher/SSBootCampWebsite/The%20Third%20Bank%20of%20the%20River.pdf