The reverse of the right to literature:

for a definition of indigenous literature

Abstract

This paper discusses in a broad manner the contributions of indigenous people to the construction of the Brazilian literary canon through what is termed ‘Indigenous Literature’.  More specifically, the purpose of this text is to inquire into the right to and of an Indigenous Literature as part of the Brazilian as well as the international literary canon. Using primarily a bibliographical research methodology, the essay articulates some reflections on how the literary canon comes about in light of important aspects in the history of the Brazilian literature. These elements pertain to indigenous characters, Indianist literature and the elaboration of a national literary canon. The text highlights how autonomy serves as a criterion in the definition of canons and also describes the processes through which indigenous literature can attain recognition and inclusion into the literary canon. The results show how indigenous literature is being consolidated in the canon and reveal that the artistic and political potentials of this literature might be regarded as activities of self-representation of the identities of indigenous people and also as instruments for the denaturalization of sociocultural inequalities.