There are many ways to learn history, or rather, there are many ways to make learning history interesting. Knowledge of arts in general and literature in particular is one of these ways or one of these paths. The genre, which figures among the various genres of literature, is of immense wealth for the understanding of the atmosphere of a certain historical period, especially when it comes to the history of a city.
The chronicle has existed since the beginning of modernity, but it only asserted itself as a popular type of literature from the 19th century, when chroniclers began to write in newspaper columns. In the 20th century, the column of the weekly or daily chronicle started to attract an ever wider audience. This genre includes situations such as various festivals, art shows such as theatre, sports spectacles, such as football, and also trivial situations, such as personal everyday events or collective.
One of these writers, João do Rio, captured the universe of Rio's streets well at the beginning of the last century. One of his most famous collections of chronicles is entitled “The enchanting soul of the streets” and, in the chronicle that bears that title, João do Rio sentences:
“The soul of the street is only entirely sensitive to late hours. There are stretches where we pass as if we were being pushed, chased, running - the streets are where the steps they echo, reverberate, seem to grow, cry out, echo and, soon, there are so many steps to our chasing. Others that get involved in the mystery as soon as the shadows descend – the Largo de Paço. This square was the first splendor of the city.” (Rio, João do. The enchanting soul of the streets: chronicles. São Paulo: Companhia das Letras, 2008. pp. 37)
Further on, he gives an example of how the street can be considered something alive and latent, also endowed with particularities that make it unique:
“If the streets are living beings, the streets think, have ideas, Protestant streets, free-thinking streets and even streets without religion. […] Benjamin Constant Street is in this case, it is among us a tremendous example of religious confusion. Solemn, grave, guard three temples and seem to say with circumspection and the earnest air of certain gentlemen we all know:
I do the works of the Heart of Jesus, I believe in God, in prayers, in bentinhos and not only am I not a positivist because it is too late to change my belief. But I respect Teixeira Mendes a lot.” (Rio, João do. The enchanting soul of the streets: chronicles. São Paulo: Companhia das Letras, 2008. pp. 38-39)
With this example from Benjamin Constant Street, we can observe how the author penetrates the “psychology of the streets”, humanizing them, making them more than just traffic lanes. This “humanization” of everyday banality is a rich source of study for history. Whether it's from a city like Rio de Janeiro, or any other city, or the history of an entire nation.
*Image credits: commons
By Me. Cláudio Fernandes
