All The Names - Jose Saramago

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friendships, that she didn't want us to get close, those tears must have been a moment of weakness and nothing more, it happens often enough, there are times in our lives when we just let go, when we're capable of telling the first stranger we meet about our pain and sorrow, do you remember, when you were here, Of course I remember, and I never thanked you properly for the trust you placed in me, It wasn't a question of trust, it was despair, Whatever it was, I promise you will never regret it, you can trust me, I'm very discreet, Yes, I'm sure I won't regret it, Thank you, But the reason I know I won't regret it is because nothing really matters to me anymore, Ah. It wasn't easy passing from a disconsolate interjection like that to a direct question of the type, So, then what did you do, it required time and tact, so Senhor José fell silent, waiting for what would happen next. As if she were aware of that too, the woman asked, Would you like some more tea, he accepted, Yes, please, and held out his cup. Then the woman said, A few days ago I telephoned her house, And what happened, No one answered, I got the answering machine, You only phoned once, On the first day, yes, but the following days I tried several times and at different hours, I phoned in the morning, I phoned in the afternoon, I phoned after supper, I even phoned at midnight, And nothing, Nothing, I thought perhaps she'd gone away, Did she tell you where she worked, No. The conversation could not continue to roll around the black hole hiding the truth, the moment was approaching when Senhor José would say Your goddaughter is dead, in fact, he should have told her as soon as he arrived, that's what the woman will say to him shortly, Why didn't you tell me straightaway, why did you ask all those questions if you knew she was already dead, and he will be unable to lie alleging that he remained silent because he didn't want to spring the painful news on her, without preparation, without due respect, in truth, the only reason for this long, slow dialogue had been the words she had said at the start, I've got something to tell you too, at that point, Senhor José lost the resigned serenity that would have made him reject the temptation of knowing about that tiny, useless thing, whatever it was, he lacked the serene resignation necessary to say, It doesn't matter, she's dead. It was as if what the lady in the ground-floor apartment had to tell him might still, who knows how, make time run backwards and, at the very last moment, steal the unknown woman back from death. Weary, with no other desire now than to delay the inevitable for a few more seconds, Senhor José asked, You didn't consider going to her house, asking the neighbours if they'd seen her, Of course I did, but I didn't go, Why, Because it would look as if I was interfering, she might not like that, But you phoned, That's different. There was a silence, then the expression on the woman's face began to change, it became interrogative, and Senhor José realised that she was going to ask, at last, what questions relating to the matter of her goddaughter had brought him there today, had he managed to speak to her and when, was the problem with the Central Registry resolved and how, I regret to tell you that your goddaughter is dead, said Senhor José. The woman opened her eyes very wide, raised her hands from her lap and covered her mouth, What, Your goddaughter has died, How do you know, asked the woman without thinking, That's what the Central Registry is there for, said Senhor José, and he shrugged his shoulders slightly, as if to say, It's not my fault, When did she die, I've got the card here, if you want to see it. The woman reached out her hand, held the card close to her eyes then moved it farther off, mumbling, My glasses, but she didn't go and look for them, she knew they wouldn't help, even if she wanted to she wouldn't be able to read what was written there, her tears were blurring the words. Senhor José said, I'm very sorry. The woman left the room and was gone for a few brief moments, when she came back she was drying her eyes with a handkerchief. She sat down, poured herself some more tea, then asked, Did you come here just to tell me that my goddaughter had died, Yes, That was very kind of you, I thought it was my duty really, Why, Because I felt I was in your debt, Why, Because of the nice way you received me and helped me, the way you answered my questions, Now that force of circumstances has brought the job they gave you to an end, you won't have to wear yourself out any more looking for my poor goddaughter, No, I won't, Perhaps the Central Registry has already instructed you to start looking for another person, No, no, cases like this are very rare, That's the good thing about death, it brings everything to a close, Its not always like that, that's when
the battles begin between heirs, the ferocious dividing up of the spoils, then there's inheritance tax to be paid, For the person who's died I meant, As for that, yes, you're right, everything ends, It's odd, you never explained to me why the Central Registry was looking for my goddaughter, why they were so interested in her, As you said, death resolves all problems, So there was a problem, Yes, What, It's not worth talking about it, the matter is of no importance now, What matter, Please don't insist, it's confidential, said Senhor José desperately. The woman angrily put down her cup and saucer and, looking straight at him, said, All the time that you and I have been together here, both the other day and today, right from the start, one of us has always told the truth and the other has always lied, But I didn't He then and I'm not lying now, You'll admit that I always talked to you frankly, clearly, openly, that it would never even have occurred to you that there might be a single He in anything I said, Absolutely, Then if there's a liar in this room, as I know there is, it's certainly not me, I'm not a liar, No, I'm sure you're not a fiar by nature, but you lied when you first came here, and you've been lying ever since, You wouldn't understand, I understand enough not to believe that the Central Registry sent you here looking for my goddaughter, You're wrong, they did send me, Then if you've nothing more to say to me, if that is your final word, please leave my house this instant, now, she almost shouted that last word, and then she began to cry. Senhor José got up, took a step towards the door, then sat down again, Forgive me, he said, don't cry, I'll tell you everything.
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ALL THE NAMES
Page 5 and 6:
You know the name you were given, y
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eing born, are far less pressing, a
Page 9 and 10:
... Apart from his first name, Jos
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Now, since Senhor José's obsession
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... Fortunately, there are not that
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and that he, as a responsible civil
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night's sleep, That's what I hope t
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hour of the night, What time was it
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ack to sleep, If she is the woman o
Page 23 and 24:
and I've heard people say that she'
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inside jacket pocket, Senhor José
Page 27 and 28: love each other, you. love each oth
Page 29 and 30: ... Such was the force of this blow
Page 31 and 32: it, Oh, enough of your hypocrisy, w
Page 33 and 34: ... Contrary to what people might t
Page 35 and 36: his jacket pocket, he had been walk
Page 37 and 38: José was breathing hard, amazed at
Page 39 and 40: ... Respect for the facts, and a si
Page 41 and 42: Senhor José's heart leapt to see t
Page 43 and 44: left the first-aid room, and althou
Page 45 and 46: himself up that staircase like a li
Page 47 and 48: ... The next morning, almost as soo
Page 49 and 50: were a gift, carrying a photo of so
Page 51 and 52: noticed the other man's surprise as
Page 53 and 54: firm steps approached the bed, then
Page 55 and 56: emained lying down for a few more m
Page 57 and 58: of which the deputy's key was merel
Page 59 and 60: sitting, he wasn't expecting him to
Page 61 and 62: thirteen small cardboard rectangles
Page 63 and 64: complete the movement, a sudden fee
Page 65 and 66: ed, hid the letter in the wardrobe,
Page 67 and 68: ... That night, Senhor José return
Page 69 and 70: to create its own shadows, what Sen
Page 71 and 72: prison, and over there, at the far
Page 73 and 74: ... The fact that psychological tim
Page 75 and 76: hold-up in the traffic was preventi
Page 77: feeble old woman, cretin, nincompoo
Page 81 and 82: esponse, and she was perfectly righ
Page 83 and 84: aware of society's need for a conti
Page 85 and 86: ages, return to the world from whic
Page 87 and 88: to sell off strips of land, at othe
Page 89 and 90: Since he was known to the people th
Page 91 and 92: tombstones and forced up into the s
Page 93 and 94: question was in which direction. Se
Page 95 and 96: of earth which will soon be overgro
Page 97 and 98: that's sacred, Mr. Clerk, at least
Page 99 and 100: ... Determined to catch up on his l
Page 101 and 102: carefully, Go on, In order to clear
Page 103 and 104: a woman who looked about sixty or s
Page 105 and 106: ... Senhor José slept like a log.
Page 107 and 108: the headmaster, I didn't know that
Page 109 and 110: clerk can only do so much. With the
Page 111 and 112: driver announced, Here we are, Senh
Page 114 and 115: Reading Group Guide 1. How do the C
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All The Names - Jose Saramago

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