Quando a literatura afro-brasileira e o horror se encontram: uma análise do conto 'A floresta', de Carol Dermond

Literary work is a powerful instrument of expression and reflection that has played a significant role in representing the figure of black people in Brazilian literature. Over the centuries, writers have explored the complexities of the Afro-descendant experience, expanding perspectives and giving voice to narratives that enrich and give new meaning to black identity in the national literary context. In this sense, the present work aims to analyze the short story “The Forest”, by Carol DerMond, from the theoretical perspective of Afro-Brazilian literature and the contemporary unusual. The narrative in question was published in 2020 in the book Afrohorror - ancestral fears, a collection of short stories written by black authors who used horror as a backdrop for deeper debates about racism, identity and belonging. For this study, support will be sought from theories that deal with Afro-Brazilian literature (DUARTE, 2010; EVARISTO, 2009; MÉRIAN, 2008), in addition to theorists who focus on the unusual fiction and horror in literature (ALAZRAKI, 2001; CARROLL, 1999; NESTAREZ, 2022; ROAS, 2014; TODOROV, 2001). In short, the tale is permeated by horror and violence that is manifested by a real monster, racism, crossing the boundaries between fiction and reality.