Pyeongan Hong

Soccer and Politics in Brazil

As known widely, soccer is not simply a sport. It has more meaning to the world. It affects politics, economics, and society. It unites people and it unites countries. Historically, soccer has been the most famous sport in Brazil, being its culture and to an extent, life. First started in 17^th century, soccer has been the most important pastime in the country. As a result, players who participate in international competitions were put in a huge stress in order to succeed. Politicians were highly involved in Brazilian soccer. They used it as a mean of controlling their politics and society. Although soccer should remain as a sport, government in Brazil used soccer to manipulate society. For example, in 1970 World Cup, Brazilian squad won the world cup. However, at that time, Brazil was going under domestic political insecurity, ruled under military leader Emílio Médici. Government sacked the manager of the team because manager refused to use certain player in game. Still considered the greatest team in the World Cup, Brazil won the world cup easily. After the win, the Brazilian government awarded the squad and used their success to promote a campaign.

As shown above, the government’s interest in soccer as a mean of social and political control was prevalent. Soccer was heavily embedded in people’s cultures and lives. However, it was not the same in the beginning. The government only focused on economic benefits through soccer such as taxes and more expenditures. Starting 20^th century, interest in soccer became larger both by the people and the government. This paper will focus on how in soccer was treated in terms of politics up to 20^th century and starting 20^th century how it was a turning point for both the government and the people.

Soccer did not affect the politics and the people negatively. It was a method to united people in the country and stop the violence. It caused revolutions socially, politically and economically. Although it may not be the only cause, soccer was the one of the causes that saved Brazil from its crisis. To dig deep into the argument, multiple articles will be discussed. Articles are based on how Brazil was able to escape from its crisis due to soccer. The winning of World Cups in 1970 and 1982 happened when the country was going through the hardest time. Unlike other sports, winning the World Cup brought changes in politics and society. Drawing comparison with other country, South Korea went to semi finals in 2002 World Cup. It drastically changed Korea in terms of society, politics and economics. It united people and changed the power in the government, ultimately leading to democracy.

Brazil is mostly known for its incredible players in soccer field. Their huge success in the World Cups led to a political change in their country. However, soccer was also used as a mean of social and political control. The significance of soccer in Brazil cannot be underestimated since it was a fuel for the unition and change. It awakened people and society, getting rid of military dictatorship in Brazil. Soccer is not only a pastime for Brazil, but also it is their culture, politics and life.

Sources:

Skidmore, Thomas E. The Politics of Military Rule in Brazil, 1964-1985. New York: Oxford University Press, 1993.

Shirts, Matthew. “Playing Soccer in Brazil: Socrates, Corinthians, and Democracy.” The Wilson Quarterly (1976-) 13, no. 2 (1989): 119-23. http://www.jstor.org/stable/40257497.

“Brazil Travel Guide – History of Soccer.” Brazil Travel. http://www.braziltravelinformation.com/brazil_sports_soccer_history.htm.

American Anthropological Association. “Brazilian Football as a Means of Reflecting Upon Brazilian Society.” The Huffington Post. June 17, 2014. https://www.huffingtonpost.com/american-anthropological-association/brazilian-football-as-a-m_b_5498879.html.

Young, James. “How Soccer Culture Made Its Way Into Brazils Political Crisis.” Remezcla. 2016. http://remezcla.com/features/sports/soccer-brazil-political-crisis/.

Humphrey, John, and Alan Tomlinson. “Reflections on Brazilian Football: A Review and Critique of Janet Lever’s “Soccer Madness”.” Bulletin of Latin American Research 5, no. 1 (1986): 101-08. doi:10.2307/3338786.

FELLAY, SARAH. “Saved by the Goalkeeper: Soccer and Elections.” Harvard International Review 36, no. 1 (2014): 32-35. http://www.jstor.org/stable/43649245.

For my research project, I intend to look at the effect of neoliberal economic policies on Brazil’s economy and politics domestic and abroad. In the 20th century, there were countless interventions by foreign and domestic entities, that have exploited Brazilians and their land. My main goal is to see the long lasting effects of programs such as the Washington Consensus that have put Brazil on the global map as a economic powerhouse, and how they have simultaneously hurt the average Brazilian.

In this report I want to focus on the economic sector in Brazil. I want to see how Brazil is doing economically, at the macro-level and the micro-level domestic and abroad as a result of neo-liberal policies implemented in the 20th century. This report will look at how these changes to Brazil have affected the everyday life of common people in Brazil and the shift of the status quo for people living in poverty. The economic report would mostly look at the foreign direct investment in Brazil from outside nations and policies used by the Washington Consensus in the 1980s in Latin America, specifically looking at Brazil.

I also want to see how these policies have changed Brazil’s political atmosphere and the nature of Brazilian democracy. I want to see if these economic policies have altered the integrity of Brazilian democracy. I want to investigate and find out if the governmental institutional bodies of Brazil doing a good job of holding the Brazilian government accountable? Is there horizontal and vertical accountability, and are there restriction of outsider influence on free and fair elections?

I think it is remarkable important to understand neo-liberalism and its effect on Brazil. Understanding this history, can help us understand Brazil today and its movement forward because these policies are still prominent today. I also believe that understanding this contemporary and recent history is key to understanding Brazil’s history of exploitation. I see several parallels with the indirect exploitation of outsiders today with the outsiders who already directly exploited Brazil centuries ago.

Primary Sources –

Hewlett, Sylvia Ann. “The Dynamics of Economic Imperialism: The Role of Foreign Direct Investment in Brazil.” Latin American Perspectives 2, no. 1 (1975): 136-48. http://www.jstor.org/stable/2633419.

http://www.iisd.org/pdf/2004/investment_country_report_brazil.pdf

https://piie.com/publications/papers/williamson0904-2.pdf

Secondary Sources –

Ahumada, Consuelo, and Christina W. Andrews. “The Impact of Globalization on Latin American States: The Cases of Brazil and Colombia.” Administrative Theory & Praxis 20, no. 4 (1998): 452-67. http://www.jstor.org/stable/25611309.

Amann, Edmund, and Werner Baer. “Neoliberalism and Its Consequences in Brazil.” Journal of Latin American Studies 34, no. 4 (2002): 945-59. http://www.jstor.org/stable/3875728.

Roxborough, Ian. “Neo-Liberalism in Latin America: Limits and Alternatives.” Third World Quarterly 13, no. 3 (1992): 421-40. http://www.jstor.org/stable/3992194.

SACHS, IGNACY. “Quo Vadis, Brazil?” In Brazil: A Century of Change, edited by Sachs Ignacy, Wilheim Jorge, and Pinheiro Paulo Sérgio, by Anderson Robert N. and Dávila Jerry, 332-44. University of North Carolina Press, 2009. http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.5149/9780807894118_sachs.19.

Candomblé and other Afro-Brazilian Religion

I want to examine Candomblé, an Afro-Brazilian religion, based on gods and traditional religions that African slaves brought with them from Africa. I want to research this topic from various aspects to see how it has shaped the experience of being black in Brazil, how it has changed overtime and how it was received. Religion is a huge part of Brazilian culture and majority of its population is black or of color as such this topic is important in understanding Brazilian history.

I want to examine the actual belief system of Candomblé in terms of rituals, beliefs and practices as well as which traditional African religions and practices and possibly to pin-point which specific tribes they came from and what aspects are unique to Candomblé. I also want to see if the predominance of Catholicism in Brazil has influenced Candomblé in any way.

I also want to look at the chronological development of Candomblé; how it was practiced during slavery, after slavery and in modern times. Simultaneously, I will examine the use of Candomblé as a tool for coping with racism in Brazil and how this has evolved over time.

An important aspect of this topic is how non-Africans and non-people of color reacted to Candomblé over time. I want to examine how white/main-stream Brazilian culture reaction and treatment of Candomblé as well as the Catholic churches reaction.

Scholarly Sources:

http://www.jstor.org/stable/3180916?Search=yes&resultItemClick=true&searchText=african&searchText=fashion&searchText=brazil&searchUri=%2Faction%2FdoBasicSearch%3Ffc%3Doff%26amp%3BQuery%3Dafrican%2Bfashion%2Bbrazil%26amp%3Bwc%3Don%26amp%3Bacc%3Don%26amp%3Bgroup%3Dtest&refreqid=search%3Ac2a7df7ff41e641c0eb881cb9ae60a14&seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents

http://www.jstor.org/stable/40784522?Search=yes&resultItemClick=true&searchText=candombl%C3%A9&searchUri=%2Faction%2FdoBasicSearch%3FQuery%3Dcandombl%25C3%25A9&refreqid=search%3A574e741b8529f190125f04316b0df16c&seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents

http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.1525/nr.2007.11.1.5?Search=yes&resultItemClick=true&searchText=candombl%C3%A9&searchUri=%2Faction%2FdoBasicSearch%3FQuery%3Dcandombl%25C3%25A9&refreqid=search%3A574e741b8529f190125f04316b0df16c&seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents

http://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt183gxvs.15?Search=yes&resultItemClick=true&searchText=candombl%C3%A9&searchUri=%2Faction%2FdoBasicSearch%3FQuery%3Dcandombl%25C3%25A9&refreqid=search%3A574e741b8529f190125f04316b0df16c&seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents

http://www.jstor.org/stable/20627028?Search=yes&resultItemClick=true&searchText=african&searchText=religion&searchText=brazil&searchUri=%2Faction%2FdoBasicSearch%3FQuery%3Dafrican%2Breligion%2Bbrazil&refreqid=search%3Aae5e59c1ab46eca2073e0405f811e8ea&seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents

Primary Sources:

Yemanjá Documentary: https://www.yemanjathefilm.com/

City of Women Documentary

http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.1525/nr.2012.16.1.36?Search=yes&resultItemClick=true&searchText=candombl%C3%A9&searchUri=%2Faction%2FdoBasicSearch%3FQuery%3Dcandombl%25C3%25A9&refreqid=search%3A574e741b8529f190125f04316b0df16c&seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents

My research project will be about Brazilian music, especially funk and popular music. I will be looking at the whitewashing of Brazilian funk and pop music. My research question is: is there an observable relationship between colorism and race as musicians become more famous.

I believe this is historically significant because Brazil has a history of suppressing black/African music when trying to create a national identity. Now, Brazil has an observable problem, like the rest of world, the whitewashing of artist the more famous they become. Even though plastic surgery is common in Brazil, the procedures that are done on famous musicians are to give them more Eurocentric features.

Currently, my sources will be about the history of popular music and musicians for in-depth background information on the past musicians who made it big and what the popular musicians look like today. As my project continues, I will allocate more primary sources, hopefully from the artist.

Scholarly Sources

• Paul Sneed. “Bandidos De Cristo: Representations of the Power of Criminal Factions in Rio’s Proibidão Funk.” Latin American Music Review / Revista De Música Latinoamericana 28, no. 2 (2007): 220-41. http://0-www.jstor.org.dewey2.library.denison.edu/stable/4499339.

For my research project, I wish to examine the sculpture and architecture of Antônio Francisco Lisboa (Aleijadinho). The motivation for this project comes from my general interest in religion and its relationship with identity, society, and politics. This project would attempt to answer the question of what Aleijadinho and his work reveal about Brazilian identity and culture. Aleijadinho’s work has overwhelming religious themes and are all incredibly intricate. This project would seek to explain why such large amounts of resources and care were used in these creations. Additionally, it would unpack the implications of these structures in an attempt to discover broader social values and power structures in Brazil during their creations.

The primary works I would consider are the Church of São Francisco de Assis and the Sanctuary of Bom Jesus de Matosinhos. The Church of São Francisco de Assis is located in Ouro Preto, Brazil. It is known particularly for its front alter, which is covered in intricate carvings of religious scenes and symbols, and its towers. There are two primary focuses within the Sanctuary of Bom Jesus de Matosinhos. The first are the sculptures of the stations of the cross and the twelve prophets. The second is an image of the crucifixion above the altar, which is located inside the structure. Images, videos, and interactive websites that show these buildings and sculptures are digitally accessible.

As we have already established as a class, Catholicism is an essential component to the understanding of Brazilian history. It is used in varying forms, from a tool of colonizers for the justification of slavery, to an embraced and cherished faith of many (and everywhere in-between). Catholicism is significant not only as a prominent religious tradition, but also as a way to understand power dynamics and social hierarchies in Brazilian culture and society.

This topic, or generally the study of religious architecture and sculpture, is historically significant because buildings and sculptures are physical creations that represent broader social and political concepts. The addition of the Church to these social and political implications complicates the narrative and adds religion, specifically Catholicism, to the list of factors that influence Brazilian culture. The implications of  these structures, their preservation, and continued significance, suggest a certain level of continuity in Brazilians’ collective understanding of these structures as historically important and physical components of Brazilian identity.

Primary Sources:

De Lio, Arthur. “Caminhos da Arte – Documentário sobre Aleijadinho.” YouTube. September 28, 2016. Accessed February 12, 2018. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yvLJH68SWSc.

Lisboa, Antônio Francisco, 1730-1814. 1800-5. Church of Congonhas do Campo and the Prophet’s Atrium Sculpture: det.: Ezekiel: ninth figure from left. http://0-library.artstor.org.dewey2.library.denison.edu/asset/ARTSTOR_103_41822000392363.

Lisboa, Antônio Francisco, 1730-1814. 1772-94. Main Chapel and Altar of St. Francis of Assisi’s. http://0-library.artstor.org.dewey2.library.denison.edu/asset/ARTSTOR_103_41822000392447.

Lisboa, Antônio Francisco, 1730-1814. Ouro Preto, Brazil: Church of Our Lady of Carmo: facade.

http://0-library.artstor.org.dewey2.library.denison.edu/asset/ARTSTOR_103_41822000101277.

Lisboa, Antônio Francisco, 1730-1814. 1772-1794. Ouro Preto, Brazil: St. Francis of Assisi facade – Monumental portal & Medallion. http://0-library.artstor.org.dewey2.library.denison.edu/asset/ARTSTOR_103_41822000101285.

Secondary Sources:

Bald, Sunil. “In Aleijadinho’s Shadow: Writing National Origins in Brazilian Architecture.” Thresholds, no. 23 (2001): 74–81.

Bury, J. B. “The ‘Borrominesque’ Churches of Colonial Brazil.” The Art Bulletin 37, no. 1 (1955): 27–53.

Hogan, James E. “Antonio Francisco Lisboa, ‘O Aleijadinho’: An Annotated Bibliography.” Latin American Research Review 9, no. 2 (1974): 83–94.

Maddox, John. “The Aleijadinho at Home and Abroad: ‘Discovering’ Race and Nation in Brazil.” CR: The New Centennial Review 12, no. 2 (2012): 183–216.

Smith, Robert C. “The Colonial Architecture of Minas Gerais in Brazil.” The Art Bulletin 21, no. 2 (1939): 110–59.

I have always had a passion for cities and urbanism, and I find the urban environment in Brazil to be fascinating. Therefore, I wish to examine the historical development of Brazilian cities in some capacity to see what the development of Brazilian cities tells us about the culture and way of life. More specifically, I’m looking at two different Brazilian cities: Belo Horizonte and Salvador as they exemplify two distinct development patterns and urban layouts. For Belo Horizonte, I would look at the logic behind the planning of the city with an eye towards the specific purpose behind the planning of the city and how that planning affected the future development of the city. Alternatively, I would like to look at Salvador, which follows a very different model of development given its historic purpose. I would look at the creation and maintenance of the historic Portuguese old town and the more organic development plan of the rest of the city. Looking at a city’s development as a way for understanding more about Brazil would be a unique way to deepen our understanding of the country and involves some unique primary sources.

If looking at Belo Horizonte, I would hope to discover more about the effect that the more industrial and resource extraction foundational purpose had on the development of the city. This would be analyzed through a look at the original plan for the city and the relation of the future developments to the initial plan for the city. Inherently I think this research would have to involve a look at class or racial distribution throughout the city in light of the initial plan of the city, and thus the city plan itself and the history of development could be a way for understanding the patterns of settlement and stratification in the modern city. An urban-based analysis could also reveal additional elements of race relations and attitudes in Brazil

I believe my aims would be fairly similar if looking at Salvador, but the method of inquiry would be different by nature of the city. As one of the oldest cities in the Americas, Salvador has a longer and more organic history than Belo Horizonte. Furthermore, it has a distinct and unique old town in the Pelourinho that contrasts with the more organic growth of the rest of the modern city. Furthermore, the city’s historic division into the high and low town also allow for an analysis of class relations, and its site as a major city of the Transatlantic slave trade makes it very diverse today and thus an interesting place to look at transculturation in city layout and design as a way of understanding how cultures interact to produce new culture. Again, I would have to look at race and class distribution as part of this analysis too as part of the look at the built environment, and I think Salvador would be an excellent place to look for this analysis.

As we have learned in class so far, Brazil is a remarkably diverse country that is the result of a variety of factors throughout its history. This history has led to the unique country we see today, and one way of understanding how this country came to be and some of the results of this historic diversity is by looking at the cities and tracing their unique development patterns. Despite their incredible importance to the history and economy of Brazil, my limited research into the subject has not revealed much research on cities in relation to the unique country that Brazil is today. Therefore, analyzing the development of one of Brazil’s cities could reveal new information about how and why Brazil is the way it is.

Secondary Sources

BARBIER, M. B., and Michel ANTONELLI. “Salvador de Bahia. Evolution Du Centre Ville.” Cahiers Du Monde Hispanique et Luso-Brésilien, no. 37 (1981): 269–71.

Cintra, Antônio Octávio. “Urban Development in Brazil: A Study of Policies and Unpolicies.” Luso-Brazilian Review 17, no. 2 (1980): 213–32.

Friendly, Abigail. “Urban Policy, Social Movements, and the Right to the City in Brazil.” Latin American Perspectives 44, no. 2 (March 2017): 132–48. https://doi.org/10.1177/0094582X16675572.

“Historic Centre of Salvador de Bahia – UNESCO World Heritage Centre.” Accessed February 10, 2018. http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/309.

Levine, Robert M. “The Singular Brazilian City of Salvador.” Luso-Brazilian Review 30, no. 2 (1993): 59–69.

Lima, Zeuler. “Preservation as Confrontation: The Work of Lina Bo Bardi.” Future Anterior: Journal of Historic Preservation, History, Theory, and Criticism 2, no. 2 (2005): 24–33.

Rezende, Vera F. “Brazilian City Planners, American City Planning? New Perspectives on Urban Planning in Rio de Janeiro, 1930–1945: Research from the Field.” Planning Perspectives 25, no. 4 (October 2010): 505–13. https://doi.org/10.1080/02665433.2010.505071.

Rio, Vicente del, and William Siembieda. Contemporary Urbanism Brazil: Beyond Brasília. University Press of Florida, 2009. http://0-muse.jhu.edu.dewey2.library.denison.edu/book/17466/.

Smith, Harry, and Emilio José Luque-Azcona. “The Historical Development of Built Heritage Awareness and Conservation Policies: A Comparison of Two World Heritage Sites: Edinburgh and Salvador Do Bahia.” GeoJournal 77, no. 3 (2012): 399–415.

Violich, Francis. “URBAN GROWTH AND PLANNING IN BRAZIL.” Ekistics 7, no. 42 (1959): 320–24.

Primary Sources

Grant (M.D.), Andrew. History of Brazil: Comprising a Geographical Account of That Country, Together with a Narrative of the Most Remarkable Events Which Have Occurred There Since Its Discovery … H. Colburn, 1809.

“Salvador (Salvador, Bahia, Brazil) – Population Statistics, Charts, Map, Location, Weather and Web Information.” Accessed February 12, 2018. https://www.citypopulation.de/php/brazil-bahia.php%3Fcityid%3D292740805.

“The City of Salvador – World Digital Library.” Accessed February 12, 2018. https://www.wdl.org/en/item/219/#q=salvador%2C+bahia&qla=en.

“Ville de Saint Salvador, Capitale Du Bresil. – David Rumsey Historical Map Collection.” Accessed February 12, 2018. https://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/detail/RUMSEY~8~1~232921~5509492:Ville-de-Saint-Salvador,-capitale-d?sort=Pub_List_No_InitialSort%2CPub_Date%2CPub_List_No%2CSeries_No&qvq=w4s:/where%2FSalvador%2B%252528Brazil%252529;q:salvador;sort:Pub_List_No_InitialSort%2CPub_Date%2CPub_List_No%2CSeries_No;lc:RUMSEY~8~1&mi=4&trs=5.

Wells, James William. Exploring and Travelling Three Thousand Miles Through Brazil from Rio de Janeiro to Maranhão: With an Appendix Containing Statistics and Observations on Climate, Railways Central Sugar Factories, Mining, Commerce, and Finance … S. Low, Marston, Searle, & Rivington, 1887

Google-Books-ID: Kuq_AAAAIAAJ

Brazil is a country with diverse racial groups like Europeans, Africans, indigenous people and Asian immigrants. Miscegenation was common in Brazil since colonial era under the ideology of white supremacy, and the white Brazilians believed that Brazil would eventually become a white society as a result of mixing races. Even though Brazil stresses racial democracy, there are discriminations, certain racial dominations and socioeconomic difference among different racial groups.
During the period of slavery abolition, Brazilian slave masters gradually lost those Afro-Brazilians who were their main source of labor. To compensate for the labor loss, the Brazilian slave owners to lower their overall cost, they tried to hire cheap Chinese laborers in Latin America, the US and Guangdong Province. The Brazilian slave masters took advantage of Chinese immigrants were distant from their home country with little protection from the Chinese government and had lower status as a new group of settlers. The Chinese government negotiated with the Brazilian government reluctantly on sending Chinese laborers to Brazil temporarily under a five-year contract while granting the Chinese the freedom to entry and exit Brazil.
Brazilians reacted to Chinese immigration with different attitudes. Some regarded hiring Chinese laborers, as a transitory move for the abolition of slavery, while others were fear of Chinese immigration would worsen the existing racial problems. There were stereotypes about Chinese immigrants with compliments and dislike simultaneously. There were compliments that the Chinese were hard-working, tough and resistant to hardships, while others said that Chinese were unwilling to fit into the society. Unlike the Indians and Africans who Christianized themselves after arriving at Brazil, Chinese with their unique cultural heritage made them unable to assimilate into a western society. As an isolated group in Brazil, the Chinese Brazilians were neglected. Similar situation also happened to the Brazilian Japanese, which they were living in Brazil as a unique group with some level of discrimination. As unique racial and ethnic groups in Brazil, they struggled to live in Brazil and build connections with their home country.
As a Chinese international student in the US, I would like to explore the life of Asian immigrants in Brazil because their struggles would make me better understand discrimination and the hardships they have. To incorporate my projected major Psychology, I would like to explore how does the Brazilian society impact the mental health of Asian immigrants. As the Asian immigrants were placed in the middle of Brazilian society and parted from their home country, I would like to investigate the challenge to blend into a different westernized culture and separation from their cultural heritage impact their philosophy, education, career development and mental health in Brazil. I am also interested in exploring the social dynamics between Asian immigrants and other racial groups. I have started reading books like Negotiating National Identity by Lesser on Japanese and Chinese immigrants history in Brazil and Racism in a Racial Democracy, which I am currently reading for the Book Presentation, as I have learned about how Euro-Brazilians and Afro-Brazilians interacted with each other, and racism in a smaller Brazilian community. Therefore, I could draw comparisons among racial groups and identify the discrimination Asian Brazilians experience. I would find more primary sources on Asian Brazilians talking about their immigration experience either from documentaries or journals, but I might need assistance on those primary resources. I would also find more secondary resources on psychological health of those immigrants.

References

Conrad, Robert. “The Planter Class and the Debate over Chinese Immigration to Brazil,
1850- 1893.” International Migration Review 9, no. 1 (1975): 41.
Dantas, Sylvia Duarte. “An Intercultural Psychodynamic Counselling Model: A Preventive
Work Proposition for Plural Societies.” Counselling Psychology Quarterly 24, no. 1 (March 2011): 1–14.
France Winddance Twine. Racism in a Racial Democracy: The Maintenance of White
Supermacy in Brazil. New Brunswick, N.J: Rutgers University Press, 1998.
Jeffrey Lesser. Negotiating National Identity : Immigrants, Minorities, and the Struggle for
Ethnicity in Brazil. Durham, N.C: Duke University Press, 1999.
Twine, France Winddance. 1998. Racism in a Racial Democracy : The Maintenance of White
Supremacy in Brazil. New Brunswick, N.J.: Rutgers University Press, 1998.

A potential research project topic that I am heavily considering is the role of soccer in Brazilian national identity. In my research, I would like to discover why soccer is so important to Brazilians and how it shapes national identity.  In order to tackle this question, I would look at how soccer started in Brazil in the first place and examine how its importance began to rise. This is significant as soccer still plays a huge role in Brazilian national identity today. The current basic knowledge I have on the topic is that immigrants from Europe brought soccer to Brazil and that soccer was largely played by elites initially. This interests me as it possibly adds a racial element to the topic, which is significant as it questions the racial democracy that Brazil claims to be.

If I choose to examine the role of race within soccer, it would be interesting to see if there were any racial conflicts within the team or if soccer served as a unifying force within Brazilian society. Another possible avenue I can take within this research topic is how big losses in Brazilian soccer impacted national identity. Tying it back to race, it would be interesting to see if specific players were used as a scapegoat because of their race during these losses. Also, since soccer did begin as an elite sport, it would be interesting to discover more on how more racial groups gained their right to play.

In order to examine this topic, secondary sources are important to look at when thinking of how the national identity of Brazilians has been shaped over time. Specifically, since European immigrants brought the sport of soccer to Brazil, it would be interesting to see how Brazilians made soccer Brazilian instead of European. One secondary source I have found specifically looks at the role of Italian immigrants in developing Brazilian soccer. I have also found a primary source that compliments this secondary source very well. This primary source comes from a newspaper article, in which an Italian immigrant living in Brazil reacts to the loss of the Brazilian team to the Italian team during the World Cup in 1982.

This research topic is important for understanding Brazil as it explores a factor that plays a huge role in national identity. It is especially interesting to examine how losses in the World Cup hurt national identity, specifically by looking at the reactions of Brazilians. This research topic is also important when examining race in Brazil. Past classes and the readings for class tomorrow (2/13) address the issue of race in Brazil, specifically whether Brazil is racist or not. Seeing how players of different races regarding soccer more than likely shows how they were treated during specific times throughout Brazilian history, since soccer plays such a huge role to Brazilian identity. Overall, this research topic is relevant as soccer and the race question is still play an important when thinking about Brazilian society today.

Primary Sources

8 SOCCER FANS DIE AS URUGUAY SCORES. New York Times (1923-Current file); New York, N.Y. [New York, N.Y]18 July 1950: 26.

URUGUAY ANNEXES TITLE: Upsets Favored Brazil, 2-1, in World Soccer–Sweden 3d. New York Times (1923-Current file); New York, N.Y. [New York, N.Y]17 July 1950: 27.

120 million Brazilians plunge into gloom. The Times of India (1861-current); Mumbai, India [Mumbai, India]07 July 1982: 9.

Secondary Sources

Bocketti, Gregg P. “Italian immigrants, Brazilian football, and the dilemma of national identity.” Journal of Latin American Studies 40, no. 2 (2008): 275-302.

da Silva, Ana Paula. “King Pele: Race, Professionalism And Football In Brazil.” Nat’l Black LJ 21 (2008): 1.

Lopes, José Sergio Leite. “Class, ethnicity, and color in the making of Brazilian football.” Daedalus 129, no. 2 (2000): 239-270.

Oliveira-Monte, Emanuelle. “Blacks Versus Whites Self-Denomination, Soccer, and Race Representations in Brazil.” Luso-Brazilian Review 50, no. 2 (2013): 76-92.