A Collision of Cultures in the Brazilian Battle Dance - Capoeira Music

More documents

Recommendations

Info

introduCtion CApOeIRA IS A Brazilian battle dance, a national sport that is part of Brazilian folklore, and, in recent decades, has been taught in schools, universities, and private health clubs. today it is popular all over the world, and increasing interest has given rise to a large number of historical, anthropological, and sociological studies examining its various aspects and manifestations. in the nineteenth century players, or participants, in capoeira were known as Capoeiras. to avoid confusion i use the same terms: those who play capoeira are Capoeiras (plural) or Capoeirista (singular). The new historiography looks for and studies the other, marginal groups ignored and unheard by historians for hundreds of years. Though they sometimes constitute a numerical majority, these groups have been virtually disregarded by scientific research because of their inferior social status, and their story, if told at all, was told by external observers. since the last part of the twentieth century, however, efforts have been made to listen to the voices of these minorities. Using new and innovative approaches, scientists have begun to investigate the effect of the other on dominant cultures. in Brazil it has been found that despite the differences between masters and slaves, rulers and subjects, the intercultural encounter has engendered mutual influences, integration, and radical changes in all facets of the cultural and social fabric. in other words, a belief in the superiority of european culture and a homogeneous Brazilian culture no longer exists. This study supports the view that Brazil’s social and cultural reality, molded in the dynamic processes of multiculturalism, is influenced by diverse philosophies of life that are still changing. during the nineteenth century, consistent efforts were made to obliterate capoeira by a variety of methods. White people’s sense of superiority induced them to segregate themselves from those they had subjugated, slaves who had brought with them the ancient traditions and cultures of their homeland. Consequently, official descriptions, as well as reports by tourists and the press, of blacks’ performances and of capoeira were merely synoptic, superficial, and incomplete. Capoeiras were stigmatized as dangerous drifters who committed criminal acts and threatened public order, as can be seen in the writings of Barreto Mello filho e Lima, plácido de abreu, allain emile, azevedo aluizo, and others.1 However, in the early twentieth century, a few army and police officers demonstrated the ad-
IntroductIon vantages of capoeira as a martial art and published the first capoeira instruction booklets.2 in the 1930s and 1940s Gilberto freyre, artur ramos, Viriato Correia, edison Carneiro, and other scholars began emphasizing the beneficial influence of african and indian cultures on Brazilian society.3 There began an intensive preoccupation with creating a Brazilian national identity, with emphasis on homogeneity as embodied in the new mixed type, or Mestiço. Capoeira, like other popular manifestations such as samba, carnival, and the african-Brazilian religions, gained legitimacy as part of Brazil’s national identity and was practiced extensively. Capoeira was recognized as the Brazilian martial art, as the national sport, and as a Brazilian product worthy of the public’s attention and involvement. as an extension of this approach and because of the significant social changes that have occurred over the past seventy years, capoeira has become very popular among the middle and upper classes. in the 1980s and especially in the 1990s many studies of capoeira were undertaken. The anthropologists iria d’aquino, Lewis Lowell, Leticia reis, and Gregory John downey focused on social relationships among Brazilian Capoeiras, discussing the role of the capoeira schools in achieving status, power, and identity; capoeira as a tool in the struggle for equality; racial relationships between whites and blacks in capoeira; and the differences in capoeira movements as a result of social and political diversity.4 The historians Thomas Holloway, Marcos Luíz Bretas, Luis sergio dias, antonio Liberac pires, Carlos eugênio Líbano soares, Maria Burges salvadori, Luís renato Vieira, and Mathias röhring assunção wrote histories of nineteenth- and twentieth-century capoeira, focusing on the authorities’ policies against capoeira during colonial and imperial times and the first republic and the development of capoeira from an outlawed activity to an integral part of twentieth-century Brazilian popular culture.5 Likewise, Brazilian Capoeiras such as almeida Bira, nestor Capoeira, angelo augusto decanio, oliveira José Luis have written about capoeira from their own experiences.6 The authorities and the regionais (those who practice Capoeira regional) have tried to characterize capoeira as a national activity originating in Brazil, the country’s national sport, and part of Brazilian folklore. slogans such as “Capoeira é uma só” (There is only one capoeira) and claims that in schools of Capoeira regional both styles (angola and regional) are being taught suggest that the prevailing view among the ruling circles has been accepted. They have tried to force their convictions on the rest of the population and have thus redefined capoeira according to their needs and interests. today this is not enforced through legislation and oppression as had occurred during the nineteenth and early twentieth century but through the inculcation of values and the emphasis on
Page 2 and 3: The Hidden History of Capoeira
Page 4 and 5: The Hidden History of Capoeira A Co
Page 6 and 7: To my parents, Ruth and Dan, my hus
Page 8 and 9: foreword ix acknowledgments xi intr
Page 10 and 11: Foreword OVeR The pAST decade i hav
Page 12: ACknowled gments ThIS BOOk, wRITTeN
Page 15: THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK
Page 19 and 20: IntroductIon on the form. The incre
Page 21 and 22: THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK
Page 23 and 24: chapter bique and Quilumana, Cabind
Page 25 and 26: 0 chapter FIGuRe 1.2. São Salvador
Page 27 and 28: chapter forbidden activities such a
Page 29 and 30: chapter use of weapons and sticks;
Page 31 and 32: 6 chapter MAp 1.1. The transatlanti
Page 33 and 34: Table 1.3. Origin of Arrested Capoe
Page 35 and 36: 0 chapter who hurled stones at the
Page 37 and 38: chapter situation, whereupon the la
Page 39 and 40: chapter Walsh expressed deep frustr
Page 41 and 42: 6 chapter publicized. Luis da Costa
Page 43 and 44: Blacks’ Games and Dances chapter
Page 45 and 46: 0 chapter achieve physical and ment
Page 47 and 48: chapter FIGuRe 1.3. ngoma drum, n.d
Page 49 and 50: FIGuRe 1.5. ngoma drummer in Headav
Page 51 and 52: 6 chapter Capoeira and the Appeal t
Page 53 and 54: chapter The colors of the hats and
Page 55 and 56: 0 chapter FIGuRe 1.8. Warriors prep
Page 57 and 58: FIGuRe 1.10. “‘play’ on dombi
Page 59 and 60: chapter FIGuRe 1.13. Court of a Con
Page 61 and 62: FIGuRe 1.15. Slaves Fighting (ca. 1
Page 63 and 64: chapter around naked in the city st
Page 65 and 66: 0 chapter Table 2.1. Origin of Arre
Page 67 and 68:
chapter mino was not a freedman, he
Page 69 and 70:
chapter status symbol. slaves tende
Page 71 and 72:
6 chapter concluded that even harsh
Page 73 and 74:
chapter The most common street crim
Page 75 and 76:
60 chapter MAp 2.1. The neighborhoo
Page 77 and 78:
6 chapter ernment for their heroic
Page 79 and 80:
6 chapter their anonymity in the cr
Page 81 and 82:
66 chapter lice and soldiers. The f
Page 83 and 84:
6 chapter strating their scorn and
Page 85 and 86:
0 chapter were looking for solution
Page 87 and 88:
chapter • José ribeiro was arres
Page 89 and 90:
chapter constituting 56 percent of
Page 91 and 92:
6 chapter rista performing in front
Page 93 and 94:
chapter MAp 3.2. nagoa and Guaiamu
Page 95 and 96:
0 chapter prata [silver Birthmark]
Page 97 and 98:
chapter the old oligarchy, especial
Page 99 and 100:
chapter been fully and sadly confir
Page 101 and 102:
6 chapter ponents of the republic.
Page 103 and 104:
FIGuRe 3.4. a fight between two Cap
Page 105 and 106:
0 chapter members of mixed blood, m
Page 107 and 108:
chapter FIGuRe 3.8. Scenes of Magic
Page 109 and 110:
chapter FIGuRe 3.9. Vendor of Arrud
Page 111 and 112:
6 chapter FIGuRe 3.11. Man and Woma
Page 113 and 114:
chapter FIGuRe 3.14. atabaque drum
Page 115 and 116:
00 chapter FIGuRe 3.16. altar in Ba
Page 117 and 118:
0 chapter rituals were described by
Page 119 and 120:
0 chapter God,” evidence of the a
Page 121 and 122:
06 chapter amulets were widely used
Page 123 and 124:
0 chapter FIGuRe 3.18. solomon’s
Page 125 and 126:
0 chapter it is a sign that solomon
Page 127 and 128:
chapter ethic as a major value, a r
Page 129 and 130:
chapter nevertheless, he also enume
Page 131 and 132:
6 chapter leader, to welcome famous
Page 133 and 134:
chapter was the political center wh
Page 135 and 136:
0 chapter that also served as socia
Page 137 and 138:
chapter This description is especia
Page 139 and 140:
chapter in 1972 the federação Bra
Page 141 and 142:
6 chapter the name of his school. p
Page 143 and 144:
chapter contestants, crossing onese
Page 145 and 146:
0 chapter FIGuRe 4.3. a player in t
Page 147 and 148:
chapter pronounced like l, and the
Page 149 and 150:
angolinha, angola angolinha eu vou
Page 151 and 152:
6 chapter But different Capoeiras s
Page 153 and 154:
chapter of the dead. This is eviden
Page 155 and 156:
0 chapter and depends on the mood o
Page 157 and 158:
chapter tors converge to the specia
Page 159 and 160:
chapter around the world. Hence the
Page 161 and 162:
6 chapter each in his way. some cro
Page 163 and 164:
chapter movements but assured me th
Page 165 and 166:
THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK
Page 167 and 168:
chapter ception of aesthetics, time
Page 169 and 170:
A. disciplined training, B. respect
Page 171 and 172:
6 chapter sion and a slow process o
Page 173 and 174:
Part 2. CaPoeira today: angola and
Page 175 and 176:
60 chapter and style.21 The respons
Page 177 and 178:
6 chapter The day i shone in itabai
Page 179 and 180:
6 chapter today members of capoeira
Page 181 and 182:
66 chapter embodied in the aspirati
Page 183 and 184:
6 chapter FIGuRe 5.3. The Chamada (
Page 185 and 186:
0 chapter sei que eles falam desse
Page 187 and 188:
chapter This, according to acordeon
Page 189 and 190:
Page 191 and 192:
6 epIloGue to train and prepare for
Page 193 and 194:
epIloGue and poor, thereby perpetua
Page 195 and 196:
Page 197 and 198:
(rio de Janeiro: prefeitura da Cida
Page 199 and 200:
noteS to paGeS - 0 24 in Karasch, S
Page 201 and 202:
6 noteS to paGeS - 75 a. tierou, Do
Page 203 and 204:
126 schlichthorst, O Rio de Janeiro
Page 205 and 206:
0 noteS to paGeS 6 -66 48 Manuel Qu
Page 207 and 208:
noteS to paGeS - 20 Vida Policial,
Page 209 and 210:
noteS to paGeS - 0 tonian Movement,
Page 211 and 212:
6 noteS to paGeS - 11 ibid., p. 69.
Page 213 and 214:
noteS to paGeS - 63 Thompson, “Ca
Page 215 and 216:
00 noteS to paGeS - 6 can dancers a
Page 217 and 218:
Page 219 and 220:
0 GloSSary Ginga: Basic step of cap
Page 221 and 222:
Page 223 and 224:
0 BIBlIoGraphy Correio Mercantil (r
Page 225 and 226:
0 BIBlIoGraphy ajayi, folabo. “Ki
Page 227 and 228:
BIBlIoGraphy ———. Religiões
Page 229 and 230:
BIBlIoGraphy edmundo, Luíz. O Rio
Page 231 and 232:
6 BIBlIoGraphy Krich, John. Why Is
Page 233 and 234:
BIBlIoGraphy pastinha, Vicente ferr
Page 235 and 236:
0 BIBlIoGraphy summ, Harvey. Brazil
Page 237 and 238:
Page 239 and 240:
poeiras’ mocking of, 57, 61, 64,
Page 241 and 242:
6 Index of, 151, 164-166, 172; teac
Page 243 and 244:
disappearance, 104; and prayers, 14
Page 245 and 246:
0 Index martial art distinguished f
Page 247 and 248:
62, 75-76; An Electorate Bully, ; e
Page 249 and 250:
eligious processions, and Capoeiras
Page 251 and 252:
6 Index songs: and berimbaus, 140;
show all

A Collision of Cultures in the Brazilian Battle Dance - Capoeira Music

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?