Blindness
The novel begins when a "white blindness" strikes people in an unnamed city. People lose their sight overnight, leaving the city's inhabitants in panic and confusion. Among the blind, a doctor, his wife, a girl, her mother, a thief, and others play central roles in the story.
The government responds to the growing population of the blind by quarantining them. The government locks the blind in an abandoned mental hospital. Inside the asylum, the blind struggle to survive as necessities become scarce and the conditions deteriorate rapidly. Amidst the chaos, the characters face numerous challenges. They lose their humanity. Some abuse power. All struggle for survival.
The narrative explores the psychological and emotional impact of sightlessness on both individuals and society as a whole. Saramago delves into the depths of human nature, exposing the flaws, vulnerabilities, and resilience of the characters. The loss of sight becomes a metaphor for the blindness within human nature. This includes ignorance, selfishness, and the inability to see the suffering of others.
The lack of individual names for the characters adds to the universality of Blindness.