UM launches monograph on Luís de Camões in Lisbon

MACAU, March 26 - A scholarly monograph on the eminent Portuguese literary figure Luís de Camões, titled Camões Poeta, Herói n’Os Lusíadas, was launched by the University of Macau (UM) in Lisbon. The publication further establishes the university’s role as a bridge for academic and cultural exchange between China and Portuguese-speaking countries, and highlights the historical ties between Macao and Portugal.

The book launch attracted an audience of academics and cultural figures. Speaking at the event, UM Vice Rector Rui Martins said that, with its unique historical background and geographical location, Macao plays an important role in promoting Portuguese literary studies, particularly research on Camões’ presence and work in the East. He added that the monograph demonstrates UM’s commitment to promoting international academic collaboration and the preservation of Portuguese culture. The monograph has also been selected as a commemorative publication celebrating both the 45th anniversary of UM and the 40th anniversary of the Association of Portuguese Speaking Universities (AULP).

The author, Helena Carvalhão Buescu, emeritus professor at the University of Lisbon and a member of the Academy of Sciences of Lisbon, expressed her special thanks to UM and the publisher Tinta-da-China for facilitating the publication of the monograph. She presented the central focus of the monograph—how the disorder of the world and the disregard for poetry are articulated in Os Lusíadas, and how Camões is portrayed as a true epic hero—and offered a fresh interpretation of the poem as a lyrical epic.

José Augusto Bernardes, commissioner‑general of the Mission Structure for the Commemoration of the 500th Anniversary of the Birth of Luís de Camões and professor at the University of Coimbra, also offered an in-depth commentary on the monograph. His analysis focused on Camões’ life in the East, including his possible period of residence in Macao, and the wide-ranging influence of Camões’ work after his death—not only within Portuguese literature but also across other Lusophone literary traditions.

The book launch was chaired by António Pinto Marques, president of the Grémio Literário of Lisbon. Other guests in attendance included Leonor Beleza, president of the Champalimaud Foundation; José Francisco Rodrigues, president of the Academy of Sciences of Lisbon; José Luís Cardoso, vice president of the Academy of Sciences of Lisbon; Luís Filipe de Castro Mendes, former minister of culture of Portugal; and Jorge Rangel, president of the International Institute of Macau.