The Brazilian People: The Formation and Meaning of Brazil (University of Florida Center for Latin American Studies) [Hardcover]

Gustavo Lins Ribeiro (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0813017777 | ISBN-13: 978-0813017778 | Publication Date: September 12, 2000 | Edition: 1st

This is the first English-language translation of the controversial bestseller "O Povo Brasileiro" by Darcy Ribeiro, one of Brazil's leading 20th-century intellectuals.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Ribeiro (1922-97) was a Brazilian politician, intellectual, and prolific writer, and his most famous book, which was first published in 1995 in Brazil (where it was a best-seller), is now presented in its first English translation. The author's canvas is broad; he attempts nothing less than "a theory of Brazil." He is not for the casual reader, for this is not the place to turn for a standard political history of Brazil. But the well-read aficionado of Latin American history will find much to learn about and ponder over in this cultural and ethnological account, with its special focus placed on the peculiar nature of the Brazilian people, who have "arisen out of a melding, a collision, and a melting pot of the Portuguese invader with plains- and forest-dwelling Indians and with African blacks." The author contends that in such a multiethnic society as Brazil's, one would expect social antagonisms not only to erupt but also to prohibit a weaving together into one national fabric; this has not happened. Brad Hooper
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Book Description

"[This] new book by Darcy Ribeiro . . . is the corollary of an effort that began long ago, untiring and coherent, destined to recognize the anonymous heroism of mulattos and caboclos . . . children of blacks and Indians, taken prematurely in the name of civilization . . . a rare existential vibration."--translated from Jornal do Brasil, Rio de Janeiro

"Must reading for Brazilianists as well as Latin Americanists in general."--Maxine L. Margolis, University of Florida, author of Little Brazil: An Ethnography of Brazilian Immigrants in New York City

From the foreword:
"Closes the chapter on a scholarly tradition dating back to the 16th century of works that sought to document and portray the complex and volatile reality of Brazil’s national identity as a product of its ethnic roots. . . . Contradictory patrician that he was, Darcy Ribeiro bequeathed good works with a conscience lightened by a delightful sense of humor and a distinctly poetic style."--Elizabeth Lowe, University of Florida, translator of Darcy Ribeiro’s novel The Mule

This is the first English-language translation of the culmination of the life work of Darcy Ribeiro, one of Brazil’s leading 20th-century intellectuals, known internationally both for his work in Indian affairs and for his political activism. First published as O Povo Brasileiro in 1995, two years before Ribeiro’s death, it quickly became a controversial best-seller.

Offering a sweeping overview of the ethnic, racial, and social forces that shape Brazilian culture and society, the book presents no less than an aesthetic of the Brazilian people as a whole. While Ribeiro dwells on the paradox of Brazil as a country of immense potential hindered by racial and class prejudice, he also believes it is "the most beautiful and luminous province on earth."

 Elegantly translated by the acclaimed Gregory Rabassa, this work does justice to Ribeiro’s original Portuguese text, with all its idiosyncrasies, intrinsic poetry, epic hyperbole, and departures from contemporary U.S. norms of political correctness. It will be of immense significance to all those interested in Latin American culture, anthropology, sociology, and history as well as in the theory of culture.

Darcy Ribeiro (1922-1997), prominent Brazilian statesman, politician, educator, and anthropologist, is the author of an extensive body of literature on ethnography, as well as novels and works of history and political culture. His 30 books have been published in 10 languages and total some 200 editions. From 1983 to 1987, he was governor of the state of Rio de Janeiro, and in 1990 he was elected senator of the republic. He was a member of the Brazilian Academy of Letters.

Gregory Rabassa, winner of the National Book Award for his translation of Hopscotch, by Julio Cortazar, is an internationally acclaimed translator of the Latin American writers referred to as the "Boom" generation. He is professor emeritus at Queens College of the City University of New York.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 352 pages
• Publisher: University Press of Florida; 1st edition (September 12, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0813017777
• ISBN-13: 978-0813017778
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.4 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #430,802 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Unsderstanding Brazil, February 25, 2001

By 

Luiz Alberto dos Santos (Rio de janeiro, RJ Brazil) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Brazilian People: The Formation and Meaning of Brazil (University of Florida Center for Latin American Studies) (Hardcover)

This book is really amazing because you'll find the historical formation of Brazil. Since colonial period till today.

The author will explain the formation of this great country and the complex formation of brazilian people. There's no how to understand Brazil without read this book before. This is one of the most complete book I've read abou this country

5.0 out of 5 stars Cultural Silence & Indigenous Invisibility, September 16, 2011

By 

M. De Freece (USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Brazilian People: The Formation and Meaning of Brazil (University of Florida Center for Latin American Studies) (Hardcover)

The Indigenous of Brazil have a historical reality that is often under addressed in Brazil's effort to advocate for its perception as a nation that has attained racial democracy.
In fact, Brazil's emphasis on its African heritage as a result of the slave trade history, all but ignores the first 100 years of Indigenous contact history.

Darcy Ribeiro's research addresses this concern. Brazilian People: The Formation and Meaning of Brazil describes the historical origins of the Brazilian people through the enslavement and genocide of the millions of Indigenous Americans over the course of a century and before the full development of the globalization of the African slave trade. Ironically, the systematic process of colonization via the fathering of children with Indigenous women by invading Europeans served to establish the first true Brazilians. For a nation that finds a good portion of its genetic and cultural heritage resulting from the Indians of Brasil,the author highlights with passion how poorly served the Indians are as a result of a patch-work of government policies that have relegated the surviving Indigenous populations to the interior regions on demarcated reserves, rendering them invisible.

Despite this legacy, which Ribeiro describes as "bith pangs" (p. 316), he views Brazil with a destiny of hope to break through the imposed "cultural silence" (Paulo Freire, 1973); and perhaps the having of voice will release the Indigenous of Brazil from their cloak on invisibility along with many of its other citizens.

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding book, November 28, 2009

By 

M. SaRego "Critical Brazilian" (Boston, MA, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Brazilian People: The Formation and Meaning of Brazil (University of Florida Center for Latin American Studies) (Hardcover)

This is quite a comprehensive and well thought out book. There are not many books on the anthropology of latin american countries that take an independent look at the issue. Darcy Ribeiro lived with indigenous people, and developed a sincere identification with them. This alternative perspective is present in his books, and this is a summary of many of them. An outstanding work and a must read for those interested in really understanding the construction of a new people.