POR DEBAIXO DOS PANOS: O retrato da sociedade são-luisense oitocentista nas caricaturas de João Affonso do Nascimento no periódico A Flecha (1879-1880)

Abstract

This dissertation investigates, in an interdisciplinary manner, within research line, Expressões e Processos Socioculturais do PGCult (Sociocultural Expressions and Processes of PGCult), supported by the Grupo de Pesquisa Comunicação Organizacional e Mídia (Organizational Communication and Media Research Group) and also by the Grupo de Estudos de Paisagem em Literatura (Landscape in Literature Studies Group), the dressing modes in 19th-century Maranhão through caricatures from the periodical A Flecha (1879-1880). The use of lithography enabled the insertion of images in 19th-century Brazilian printed materials. A new language, and therefore a new form of expression, contributed to broadening the critical perspective of readers through opinion prints. The periodical A Flecha, produced by João Affonso do Nascimento, was one of the pioneering projects in the use of imagetic production, which presented critiques of institutions, politics, religiosity, society, and the subject of this investigation, clothing. By observing passersby on São Luís’ streets, it analyzed clothing and customs, which quickly found their way into the periodical’s publications, where the artist highlighted the relationship between clothing and social differentiation. From this context, the research question arose : “How do fashion caricatures in the periodical A Flecha contribute to a critical analysis of São Luís’ society in the 19th-century?”. This question allowed for continuous reflection on imagetic production as a mediator of the proposed analysis. Therefore, this research is of a documentary and exploratory nature, using the printed document as a result of a society's thinking, based on a bibliographic survey and unsystematic analysis. Also, it is an investigation that is based on cultural history, directing the gaze not only to the press, but to the creators and the target audience, dialoguing with literature, which, aligned with history, provides us with a sociocultural view of the events. Therefore, to answer this question, it is necessary to conduct a bibliographic and historical study that delves into an interdisciplinary analysis of the image as visual language and the introduction of this tool in Brazilian print media, based on authors such as Ferreira (1994), Arnheim (1997), Dondis (1997), Joly (2007), Bahia (2009), Barbosa (2010), Regiane Silva (2014), Fernandes (2015), Kilomba (2019) and Lopes (2021). The city of São Luís in the 19th-century is contextualized, understanding society and its customs, considering caricature and literature as intermediaries, through authors such as Bakhtin (1987), Frederico Silva (2014), Tomaz Silva (2014), Araujo (2015), Azevedo (2020) and Lacroix (2020). Finally, an analysis of fashion, mimicry, and consumption as contributors to social differentiation is conducted through authors such Bourdieu (1989), Laver (1989), Crane (2006), Simmel (2008), Rancière (2009), Lipovetsky (2009; 2015), Nascimento (2014) and among others. In conclusion, at least for now, the investigation rescues or re-signifies São Luís’ imagetic-graphic memory through artistic production, promoting discussions in the present day.