In order to propose the definition of a physiognomy of the neorealist project for the literary and cultural production of the 20th century in a broader way and without any undermining, this thesis aims to investigate the writer Manuel da Fonseca through a theoretical and critical approach. Throughout Aldeia Nova (1942) it is possible to verify how reality is apprehended and reconsidered in Manuel da Fonseca s fictional work, as well as the use of the word as a reflection of the way the author interprets reality. In this perspective, we will also highlight how the neorealist ideal is reproduced in the spaces and actions of Manuel da Fonseca s characters. As a consequence of this investigation and as we untie the knot which could link the neorealist project to a committed proposal by the literary with an apparent disinvestment in writing strategies in favour of more efficient pedagogical results, this study will ultimately seek to legitimize the literary and intellectual production of the writer Manuel da Fonseca as an enterprise marked by a new writing method and political commitment.