Portuguese Literature and Film: Ideological and Symbolic Metamorphosis in Manhã Submersa: From the Novel by Vergílio Ferreira to the Film by Lauro António

The Portuguese writer Vergílio Ferreira devotes a deep attention to the treatment of space which
acquires a strong symbolism and which results in a vector for the construction of the identity of the
main character in his novel Manhã Submersa. Space, physical and psychological, is very important
for the internal development of the main character, due to the influences and echoes in the
personality. The director Lauro António, who adapted the novel to the cinema, also used space as a
fundamental element for the narration and characterization of the character, using however different
approaches from the novel. These changes reflect the complex web of connections between literature
and film and brings along the concept of adaptation, its definition and conceptual borders.