From the time they were in their mother's womb, the Santos twins Pedro and Paulo were fierce rivals. They fought for the right to enter the world first, then competed to see who could suckle at the breast with greater hunger and determination. Soon politics entered their lives and stoked the fire of their antagonism. But it was not until they met Flora, the beautiful but "inexplicable" daughter of a neighboring couple, that their lifelong rivalry found its greatest contest - and encountered its most profound suffering.

Here, the story of twin brothers in love with the same woman intertwines with the story of Brazil itself, caught between the traditional and the modern and between the monarchical and republican ideals. But in contrast to the heroic biblical pair of the title, Machado de Assis's twins have trouble escaping the petty squabbles, conflicting ambitions, doubts and insecurities that define the human condition and plague society.