In “The Fortune Teller,” a strange letter shakes the heart of the story's protagonist, Camillo, as he understands its tone and the meaning. The author, Joaquim Maria Machado de Assis, tries to make the reader believe that the letter is very ambiguous. This sneaky letter is symbolic of Camillo's inability to realize that the treacherous acts he committed in the dark have finally come to light. This letter will ultimately change his life forever, which he never expected. Without thinking about the vast multitude of possible undesirable consequences, he reads the letter. Afraid that he has ruined what should never have been started, he broods over his decision to love a married woman. In light of this, Camillo continues his questionable romance with his best friend's wife, unconvinced that he will ever get caught. "The Fortune Teller" focuses on an intimate affair between three people that ends in death because of a letter, and Camillo won't understand what the letter's true consequences are until he comes face to face with face to face with her best friend, Villela. Camillo receives several letters. However, the last letter posed the greatest threat because it symbolized hatred. The reader does not know this at the beginning of the story. After Camillo receives the letter from his best friend, readers are still unable to discern the significance of the letter. However, readers soon discover that Villela is writing this letter out of anger and suspicion that something strange was happening with his wife. Villela was determined to find out what it was. The author, Machado de Assis, ensures that the letter and its meaning remain questionable and ambiguous throughout the story. The letter says: “Come to us immediately; I have to talk middle of paper......to my wife. In “The Fortune Teller,” the author, Joaquim Maria Machado de Assis, uses symbolism to prove to someone that an affair is not worth it. the person's life. He uses the letter to symbolize the hatred between Villela and Camillo regarding this matter. This very ambiguous letter terrified Camillo and ended his life. The letter reinforces the theme of the short story by showing the anger and hatred that Villela now had towards Camillo. This hatred is at the center of the short story that leads to the end of the affair as well as the lives of Camillo and Rita. Ultimately, the affair caused a lot of tension between the three. However, the author managed to grab the reader's attention with the letter as the turning point of the short story. Works Cited The Fortune Teller James Daley, editor The World's Greatest Short Stories, (Dover Thrift Editions) 2006