1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9910828097603321

Autore

Gordon Richard A (Richard Allen), <1969->

Titolo

Cinema, slavery, and Brazilian nationalism / / Richard A. Gordon

Pubbl/distr/stampa

Austin, Texas : , : University of Texas Press, , 2015

©2015

ISBN

0-292-76098-1

Edizione

[First edition.]

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (287 p.)

Collana

Cognitive Approaches to Literature and Culture Series

Disciplina

791.43/655

Soggetti

Slavery in motion pictures

Nationalism in motion pictures

Motion pictures - Political aspects - Brazil

Motion pictures - Social aspects - Brazil

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Note generali

Description based upon print version of record.

Nota di bibliografia

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Nota di contenuto

Introduction -- Influencing understandings of Brazilianness in O Aleijadinho: Paixão, glória e suplício (2000) -- Modeling national identity on religious identity in Cafundó (2005) -- Multiple, provisional, national identity models in Quilombo (1984) -- Alternative understandings of the national community in Chico Rei (1985) -- Flirting with viewers and precariously rethinking Brazilianness in Xica da Silva (1976).

Sommario/riassunto

A unique contribution to film studies, Richard Gordon’s Cinema, Slavery, and Brazilian Nationalism is the first full-length book on Brazilian films about slavery. By studying Brazilian films released between 1976 and 2005, Gordon examines how the films both define the national community and influence viewer understandings of Brazilianness. Though the films he examines span decades, they all communicate their revised version of Brazilian national identity through a cinematic strategy with a dual aim: to upset ingrained ways of thinking about Brazil and to persuade those who watch the films to accept a new way of understanding their national community. By examining patterns in this heterogeneous group of films, Gordon proposes a new way of delineating how these films attempt to communicate with and change the minds of audience members.



Gordon outlines five key aspects that each film incorporates, which describe their shared formula for and role in constructing social identity. These elements include the ways in which the films attempt to create links between the past and the viewers’ present and their methods of encouraging viewers to identify with their protagonists, who are often cast as a prototype for the nation. By aligning themselves with this figure, viewers arrive at a definition of their national identity that, while Afrocentric, also promotes racial and ethnic inclusiveness. Gordon’s innovative analysis transcends the context of his work, and his conclusions can be applied to questions of national identity and film across cultures.