Roberto da Matta

O que torna a sociedade brasileira diferente e única? Este livro responde a essa questão através do dilema que faz do Brasil um país de grandes desigualdades, mas de futuro promissor. Os ensaios de 'Carnavais, malandros e heróis' foram considerados, na época do lançamento, como uma visão inovadora e um esforço definitivo para o entendimento do Brasil. Embora o carnaval tivesse sido tema de alguns estudos, pela primeira vez um antropólogo considerou a sociedade através dessa e de outras festividades, transformando-as em janelas privilegiadas para as interpretações do Brasil. Para Roberto DaMatta, tanto o carnaval quanto seus malandros e heróis são criações sociais que refletem os problemas e dilemas básicos da sociedade que os concebeu. Mito e rito são, assim, dramatizações ou maneiras de chamar a atenção para certos aspectos da realidade social dissimulados pelas rotinas e complicações do cotidiano.

para uma sociologia do dilema brasileiro

Carnavais, malandros e heróis

Elena Soárez

"For years, anthropologists have been interested in jogo do bicho as a key Brazilian institution. We now have an English translation uniting Roberto DaMatta's theoretical acumen and knowledge of Brazil with Elena So rez's field work. In Eagles, Donkeys, and Butterflies, they combine a stunningly effective analysis of the game in terms of rituals and symbols with an enlightening analysis of the structural and symbolic significance of the animals and the numbers associated with them. This is a welcome addition to the literature on the game's cultural meaning and its place in the context of Brazilian society." --Conrad P. Kottak, University of Michigan "This book is fascinating and marked by a richness of detail that keeps a reader's attention. It constitutes an important contribution to the understanding of Brazilian and Latin American culture." --Thomas E. Skidmore, Brown University Roberto DaMatta, one of Brazil's foremost anthropologists, and scriptwriter Elena So rez approach the question of gambling in popular culture in general and its treatment in social anthropology in particular. They focus on the "animal game," a kind of popular Brazilian gambling entertainment or lottery in which locals bet on a list of twenty-five animals. The authors argue that the success of this game, which originated in 1882 with the founding of the first zoo in Rio de Janeiro, and the social release the game provides are significant aspects of Brazilian social history and identity. Within the animal game, players "totemize" and identify with various animals. DaMatta and So rez use this identification as a lens through which to view present-day Brazilian society, the significance of gambling, and the role of animal images in Brazilian and American popular cultures. Appearing for the first time in English, this well-written work moves smoothly between comprehensive analysis and field observations of specific behaviors and practices, such as the lucky tricks and devices invested with magical thinking by those who play the game.

An Anthropological Study of Brazil's "animal Game"

Eagles, Donkeys and Butterflies

David J. Hess

Roberto DaMatta

How do Brazilians think about their own culture in comparison with those of North America and Western Europe? The Brazilian Puzzle provides a unique picture of everyday life in Brazil viewed from a comparative perspective. Brazilian scholars and Brazilianists explore a range of topics in everyday life in Brazil, including sports, music, voluntary associations, religion, political practices, race and gender, and poor neighborhoods. The authors show how Brazilian culture involves a complex negotiation in which the traditional values of hierarchy and personalism permeate even the most modern institutions. The Brazilian Puzzle is emblematic of the new era in Brazilian studies in which Brazilian scholars are leading the way. Many of the authors draw on the work of the Brazilian anthropologist Robert DaMatta, who has questioned the perspective of observers from developed Western countries. DaMatta argues that they often project their own categories onto Brazilian society, and instead he suggests that Latin Americans and other peoples develop their own theories rooted in their own unique experiences. In this way The Brazilian Puzzle contributes to the end of an era of Brazilianists and the decolonizing of area studies.

Culture on the Borderlands of the Western World

The Brazilian Puzzle

Jorge Amado

Arnaldo Jabor

With text by Arnaldo Jabor, Roberto Damatta & Jorge Amado A glorious celebration of Brazil's 'Carnaval' which covers not only the largest and most notorious celebrations in Rio de Janeiro but also documents 'Carnaval' throughout the country's other regions. A really sumptuous collection of life that brings together all of the community in one vast public celebration. 86 duotones.

Roberto da Matta

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