The birth of the drought industry

Imperial and provincial response to the great drought in northeast Brazil, 1877-1880

Autores

  • Roger L. Cunniff California State University, San Diego

Palavras-chave:

drought industry

Resumo

Over the last century, Brazil's Northeast interior has developed an image of pervasive misery, social banditry and religious fanaticism, all related in some way to the periodic droughts which afflict the region. The building of this image accompanied the work of three generations of Northeastern poli-ticians to extract from the governments of the Empire and the Republic a political definition of the drought region and a guarantee of federal funds to combat the drought problem.

Biografia do Autor

Roger L. Cunniff, California State University, San Diego

Over the last century, Brazil's Northeast interior has developed an image of pervasive misery, social banditry and religious fanaticism, all related in some way to the periodic droughts which afflict the region. The building of this image accompanied the work of three generations of Northeastern politicians to extract from the governments of the Empire and the Republic a political definition of the drought region and a guarantee of federal funds to combat the drought problem. Although multi-dimensional regional planning has in recent decades eroded the emphasis on droughts, they remain in the popular mind the Northeast's most characteristic element, and they continue to receive ritual attention in the literature on the region.

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Publicado

2020-06-30

Como Citar

Cunniff, R. L. . (2020). The birth of the drought industry: Imperial and provincial response to the great drought in northeast Brazil, 1877-1880. Revista De Ciências Sociais, 6(1 e 2), 65–82. Recuperado de http://periodicos.ufc.br/revcienso/article/view/59946