UC Riverside

My dissertation examines the representation of Afro-

Brazilians within the contemporary culture production of

São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, specifically in three novels,

rap music, and the hip-hop community. The novels form a

diverse corpus of works. Two were published during the

1990s by middle-class canonical writers, Subúrbio (1994) by

Fernando Bonassi and Cidade de Deus (1997) by Paulo Lins.

Bonassi offers a homogenous vision of the margins while

Lins presents them as diverse. Yet, both draw on a

materialist approach that leads the protagonists toward an

apocalyptic conclusion. The third novel was published by a

resident of a favela in the outskirts of São Paulo,

Graduado em Marginalidade (2004) by Sacolinha. This novel

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presents a complex and at times contradicting view of

favela life. Graduado offers the possibility for social

advancement as the novel seeks to redefine race within

Brazil. Rap music and the hip-hop community present a

critical view of Brazilian culture and history. Through

lyrics, musical form, and activism hip-hoppers look to

contest, question, and alter established ideas of race in

Brazil. Much like Sacolinha's novel, hip-hoppers redefine

race in order to rewrite their future and in the process

break from the cycle of violence and drugs that threatens

the well-being of Brazil's most marginalized. Utilizing

materialist and postcolonial theories this study explores

how these cultural forms contribute toward understanding

representations of race within Brazilian urban culture.