Written by Kathleen de Azevedo
If one could only visit to five countries in Latin America, one need not look any further than Brazil. Due to Brazil’s large geographical size, the various regions developed in isolation, each with its own culture, influenced by its own unique blend of ethnic groups. In Northeast Brazil, for example, the mix of indigenous Tupi, African, Portuguese and Dutch culture gave birth to the accordion-laden forró and baião music, and a storytelling tradition which uses sing-song bantering to convey anything from animal tales to political commentary. In the city of Salvador, the African heart of Brazil, caporeira demonstrations burst spontaneously in the middle of the street and candomblé ceremonies celebrate African orixás, with its hypnotic drumbeats and chants. Cosmopolitan Rio de Janeiro has given us samba, pagode and baile funk music. In Rio Grande do Sul, the state bordering Argentina and Uruguay, the people speak rapidly like Spaniards and sip maté tea from big gourd-like cups. The Japanese Liberdade neighborhood in São Paulo puts the traveler with one foot into Asia. This seamless diversity, however, is not always harmonious.
History
Portuguese explorer Pedro Alvares Cabral first landed in Brazil in 1500. In the beginning, Brazil was merely a resource for wood and gold, but the nascent country soon became the world’s biggest exporter of sugar. During the period of sugar cultivation, Portugal colonized parts of Africa which facilitated the extensive and brutal slave trade. Unlike the other countries of Spanish America, Brazil did not have a main governing center for the church and state, mainly because of its uncontrollable size? Because the people were not rigidly supervised, different ethnic groups intermingled and intermarried, even though indigenous and blacks were exploited in every way. The Dutch, Spanish, French and Portuguese fought each other at different times to control territory. Nevertheless, for much of its history, Brazil looked toward high-brow Europe for their identity.
Brazil was the only country in South America with a European-style imperial government, hosting three emperors: Dom João VI, his son Pedro I and his son Pedro II. The imperial government and slavery officially ended in 1888 and was replaced by a Republic, led by a succession of caudillos. Only since 1985, has Brazil experienced an unbroken wave of democracy. During much of this time, Brazilian art replicated famous European pieces, including religious objects. The architecture of the older cities of Rio de Janeiro, Salvador and São Luis was taken from Lisbon. Many upper class Brazilians never heard samba, a music known well in the shantytowns, until singer Carmen Miranda brought such music to a wider audience in the eve of World War II. During the 60’s, an artistic and philosophical movement known as Tropicalismo, exploded on the scene, encouraging a heady blend of black, indigenous, European, French New Wave and Psychedelia in all aspects of art and culture. But this had been a long time coming.
Literature
Brazilian literature has not taken the full advantage of the country’s diverse voices. Brazil does have its classics, but most were written by the intellectual class and are enjoyed by those with the education to read them. One of the first historical novels Iracema written in 1865 by José de Alençar is about the destructive relationship between a Portuguese explorer and an indigenous woman. The writing style is too dated to be enjoyed by a large modern audience. However in 1975, the novel was modernized into a wonderful movie of the same name, and portrayed the brutal relationship between a truck driver and a young indigenous woman as the Amazon becomes deforested and corrupted by modernity. Writers such as Euclides de Cunha in his historical work Rebellion in the Backlands, and João Guimares Rosa in his novel The Devil to Pay in the Backlands explored the rugged and drought-prone Northeast. Bahia’s Jorge Amado and his novels Dona Flor and her Two Husbands, and Gabriela Clove and Cinnamon, championed the poor and their struggle with the powerful ruling class. Erico Verissimo’s novel Time and the Wind is a sprawling tale about ranch life in Rio Grande do Sul. Clarice Lispector, and her novel The Hour of the Star tells of a young woman from the impoverished northeast struggling with city life in São Paulo. Poet Carlos Drummond de Andrade’s collection Natural Love, is a healthy affirmation of raw sexuality and love. And yes, there are new authors today. The British literary magazine Granta devoted its autumn 2012 issue to young Brazilian writers. In the U.S., the Brazilian-American writing tradition is in its infancy. One such novel, Samba Dreamers by Kathleen de Azevedo, is written in English and explores the Brazilian immigrant experience and the false images Hollywood films has created of Brazilians and Latin Americans. That being said, Brazilian writing has not yet reached the pinnacle of recognition as say, Columbian Gabriel Garcia Marquez or Peruvian Mario Vargas Llosa. A look inside one of the many Brazilian bookstores in São Paulo, reveals the latest Paulo Coelho new-age tome or self-help book, and many translations of US best sellers, but very little in the way of new Brazilian voices.
In spite of Brazil’s diversity, its public voices aren’t always diverse. Educational inequality is partially to blame. High quality education is possible in private schools, but public schools are severely underfunded. This leaves many children semi-literate with little chance of attending college. Only through large scale access to good education, can a nation develop a strong literary tradition. On the bright side, the potential readership is there. Brazilians love technology and are one of the world’s biggest Kindle consumers. The country is also becoming a bigger international player as one of the BRIC nations and will host the Olympics in 2016. In short, Brazil’s star is rising. But the country needs to open itself up to its spectacular diversity of voices so that more of its citizens can contribute – as readers and writers – to its literary culture and future.
Looking to get your article published on TheLatinoAuthor.com? Please click here to see our submission guidelines.
