The diagnosis of brazilian underdevelopment in <em>O cortiço</em>: does hybridism lead to degeneration?

Abstract

Since 1822, racial and ethnic diversity predominated discussions related to Brazilian national identity. In the literary field, racial mixture dominated intellectual discourses and influenced the literary production. Writers were grappled with Brazil’s global position and vulnerability in relation to modernization. For this reason, Brazilian intellects attempted to determine the “supposed” causes of the Brazilian backwardness. Aluísio de Azevedo, one of the more prominent writers of Brazilian Naturalism, also seemed to be concerned with the Brazilian underdevelopment, as it is evident in one of his most important work, O cortiço. In this context, the aim of this study is to analyze what would be the cause of the Brazilian underdevelopment. As a conclusion, it can be stated that there is a strong connection between economic development and the white race, as well as between underdevelopment and miscegenation, represented respectively by Portugal and the white male characters and Brazil and its female hybrid characters. The couples Romão/Betoleza and Jerônimo/Rita symbolize the old colonial order showing that despite the fact Brazil has gained its political independence from Portugal, the colonial economic ideals persist.

Keywords

• Naturalism. Brazil. Women. Hybridity.