The permanence of Regionalism in Brazilian contemporary literature

Abstract

This article analyzes traces of Regionalism in contemporary Brazilian fiction. Regarded as outdated by literary critics and disavowed by writers, Regionalism, within the history of Brazilian Literature, has long been considered to be of low aesthetic value. Nevertheless, regional themes have never ceased to appear in Brazilian fictional narrative, from Guimarães Rosa, Erico Verissimo, and Josué Guimarães, to Luiz Antonio de Assis Brasil, Antônio Torres, and Milton Hatoum. The difference between the past and present Regionalism resides in the emphasis writers assign to regional context and space: when it first appeared there was a nationalist preoccupation with regional particularities, and, in its contemporary manifestation, there appears a concern for problematizing cultural contrasts. Thus, one can conclude that contemporary Brazilian literature is indebted to the regionalist tradition, though this should not question its aesthetic value, and that literary criticism is responsible for treating theme and narrative form as interpretative keys of persisting historical problems.