This work should be of interest to those who would like to understand Brazil and Latin America, past and present. First published in 1985, and now expanded and revised to include a new chapter on women, the book explores the social, political, economic, and intellectual currents that shaped 19th century Brazil and whose reverberations continue to be felt throughout contemporary Brazilian society. Placing her findings in a comparative context with regard to US history, the author concentrates on crucial moments in Brazilian history to shed light on a number of vexing questions. Why in a nation so rich in material resources is there so much poverty? How was slavery abolished without bloodshed in a country where slaves had represented the main labour force for almost 400 hundred years? Why did self-described liberal elites twice lead the country toward authoritarian regimes? In exploring these and other puzzles, she uncovers the realities behind many of the persistent myths surrounding the Brazilian empire.
- ISBN10 0534105122
- ISBN13 9780534105129
- Publish Date 31 January 1998
- Publish Status Out of Stock
- Out of Print 4 December 1992
- Publish Country US
- Publisher Cengage Learning, Inc
- Imprint Wadsworth Publishing Co Inc
- Edition New edition
- Format Paperback
- Pages 287
- Language English