ABSTRACT
To state that the narrator of Quincas Borba [Philosopher or Dog?] is reliable in relation to the plot is not to say that there are no meanings in the novel which are hidden from the less attentive reader. One of the ways of reaching the deeper meanings of the novel is by perceiving the relationship established within the text between the implicit author and the narrator. For example, the implicit author may leave clues in order to make the reader distrust the narrator’s authority over his own story. This relationship between the narrator and the implicit author has been studied by Gledson, who showed how Machado de Assis, in rewriting the novel for book publication, scattered across different parts of the narrative those elements which, taken together, convey the political meaning of the work. 1
