Aos pés pequeninos da generala: o meio diplomático e a construção das personagens no Mandarim

In the work of Eça de Queirós, one of the most vivid descriptions of the diplomatic milieu is certainly that of the Russian Embassy in Beijing, described in the novel O Mandarim. In this regard, it is worth considering the features of the characters that appear in this part of the book, including General Camilloff and his wife Vladimira, whose depiction is slightly revised in the transition from the text released on the newspaper Diário de Portugal to the one published by Chardron (both appeared in the same year, 1880).