Embodying Citizenship in Brazilian Women's Film, Video, and Literature, 1971 to 1988.

Abstract

This project considers the ways in which various women artists sought to transform society and politics in Brazil during the military regime and during the period of redemocratization, from 1971 to 1988. Through close textual analyses and a review of historical contexts, I discuss the ways in which Brazilian women’s cultural works functioned as modes of political participation to rethink and redefine citizenship during and after the military dictatorship in Brazil. It proceeds by considering the representation of the body in three different arenas of cultural expression – literature, film, and video – as each mode became a viable outlet for women’s voices. I discuss the collection of short stories A Via Crucis do Corpo (1974) by Clarice Lispector, the collection of short stories Nascimento de uma Mulher (1971) by Sonia Coutinho, the early feature-length fiction films by Ana Carolina Teixeira Soares (Mar de Rosas, 1977; Das Tripas Coração, 1982; Sonho de Valsa, 1986) and Tizuka Yamasaki (Gaijin: Os Caminhos da Liberdade, 1980; Parahyba, Mulher Macho, 1983; Patriamada, 1984), and films and videos by the independent film and videomaker Eunice Gutman, and videos by The Lilith Video Collective and the non-profit women’s organization SOS-Corpo. The women’s works I have selected reference different modalities of cultural production as well as come from different economic and regional backgrounds. Lastly, this project addresses issues of women’s sexuality and identity, both central to the discussion of citizenship in these women’s works. As it considers the transition process(es) taking place in Brazil from the 1970s and 1980s, this project addresses the ways in which women cultural producers challenged cultural beliefs and political practices. My key questions are: In what ways did these women artists make the body a site of political struggle? In what ways does the representation of the body change over time? How do these works of women’s literature, film, and video contribute to reinventing citizenship in Brazil?