Escrita literária, leitura filosófica: as Canções sem metro, de Raul Pompeia

This text is dedicated to the analysis of the work Canções sem metro, by Raul Pompeia. I defend here three arguments which, in a certain way, extend to the entire artistic-literary legacy of the writer: firstly, I address the pessimism often attributed to him, and supposedly highlighted in Canções, which I believe is a mistaken interpretation; Secondly, I defend that, for Pompeia, the human being is essentially bad, a fact that puts in doubt both the uses that humanity makes of natural resources, as well as the relations established between men. On the other hand, and despite his negative conception of human nature, Pompeia does not fail to believe in the possibility of a better society, which he expresses through the idea of “relative progress” and the ideal of “hope”.