A simbiose entre a lembrança e o esquecimento

considerações acerca de uma política de memória na revista Semana Illustrada

Abstract

The comprehension of the notion of “memory” has gained new insights from more recent analyses, not only limited to the realm of storage, an idea strongly defended throughout history, but inserting it into a relationship between the act of remembering and forgetting itself, which is therefore a selective construction. Thinking about the construction of collective memories, we understand the press as a producer of memory policies that seek to legitimize worldviews considered ideal by a certain group. This article aims to foster a debate about 'memory' and memory policies linked to forgetting policies and, using the example of the magazine Semana Illustrada, to highlight that the press aimed to construct memories of events as soon as they occurred during the Paraguayan War, in order to ensure the legitimacy of the conflict in the eyes of 19^th century Brazilian society.