Character Relationship Map: The Deceased

Characters

• Zulmira (played by Fernanda Montenegro) — protagonist

  Toninho's wife, Zulmira visits Madame Crisálida and becomes troubled by the fortune-teller's warning about a blonde woman. She speaks repeatedly of death, coughs blood, and insists she is going to die...

• Toninho (played by Ivan Cândido) — protagonist

  Zulmira's husband, Toninho largely occupies himself with women and his ideas about love and respectability while she grows distressed. After her death, he recounts an affair with a woman whose name he...

• Madame Crisálida (played by Vanda Lacerda) — supporting

  Madame Crisálida is a fortune-teller whom Zulmira visits. During their meeting, she warns Zulmira to beware of a blonde woman, a prediction that becomes a source of concern for Zulmira. Her role in th...

Canonical Relationships

Family, romantic, and professional connections based on plot evidence.

• Zulmira → Madame Crisálida (Professional Fortune Teller And Client) — Zulmira consults Madame Crisálida and receives a warning that becomes part of her concerns.

  Zulmira visits Madame Crisálida, a fortune-teller, who warns her to beware of a blonde woman.

• Zulmira → Toninho (Family Wife And Husband) — Their marriage is strained by Toninho's attention to other women and Zulmira's distress. Her final request leaves him with an obligation whose details are omitted from the available dialogue.

  The reference identifies Zulmira as Toninho's wife. Before her death, she makes him promise to fulfill her final wish; afterward, he reflects on her d...

Story Analysis

Zulmira's fear of death and final request frame Toninho's memories of past intimacy and his unresolved response after her death.

Plot Progression

1. Warnings and Everyday Appetites — Zulmira consults Madame Crisálida and is warned about a blonde woman. Around this consultation, men argue about football and gamble, while Timbira earns money by selling elaborate funerals.
2. Marriage Under Strain — Toninho flirts and discusses love while Zulmira grows troubled and speaks of death. Her coughing blood makes her fear of dying feel immediate.
3. The Unfulfilled Final Wish — Zulmira insists she is going to die and makes Toninho promise to fulfill her final wish. The available dialogue does not disclose what she asks of him.
4. Memories After Zulmira — After Zulmira's death, Toninho recalls an affair with an unnamed woman and her unhappiness with her husband. He also remembers how Glorinha's friendship with the woman ended.
5. An Unresolved Departure — Toninho admits that he has not arranged Zulmira's death certificate and considers seeing the woman from his past. The dialogue ends without revealing his next action or the full nature of Zulmira's re...