Paper short abstract:

This presentation deals with the national identity construction in Brazil through state policies regarding the value assignment of cultural heritage. Comparing different contexts, it highlights continuities and discontinuities in relation to identities submerged by hegemonic national identities.

Paper long abstract:

The cultural preservation practices implemented by the nation states are integration devices of segments of a population contained within national territory. This modality of cultural and territorial integration, triggered by the power of definition of national cultural heritage has been one of the vehicles of construction of national identities, through the materialization of a national history and the reproduction of its image in school books, musical themes, tourism propaganda, amongst other spaces.

In the 1930's and 1940's in Brazil, the colonial baroque art and architecture became national patrimony through the state policies as the first genuine Brazilian artistic expression and the images of this baroque Brazil were exhaustively reproduced in many settings. In this way, a single national identity was forged and recognized, although many other aspects of Brazilian culture were therefore simply ignored.

In the 2000's thanks to the process of redemocratising of the country and in conjunction to international regulations of Unesco, new policies were implemented referring to the recognition of Brazilian cultural diversity, with the safeguard of cultural artifacts, assets and practices related to indigenous, afro-descendent and popular culture.

Considering the historical background of the criteria of value assignment of cultural heritage in Brazil, I intend, through this presentation, establish comparisons between the different narratives of national identity, expressed in literature, the arts, music, monuments etc.. And also, reflect upon the policies of cultural heritage and its reach in the post-colonial context in relation to the submerged, buried and parted identities by the still hegemonic national identities.