Brazilian Newspapers and Literature, 1914
From “Arts, Science, and Hobbies” in Brazil and the Brazilians by George James Bruce, 1914.
From: 1914 C.E. To: 1914 C.E.
Location: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Note: This article has been excerpted from a larger work in the public domain and shared here due to its historical value. It may contain outdated ideas and language that do not reflect TOTA’s opinions and beliefs.
From “Arts, Science, and Hobbies” in Brazil and the Brazilians by George James Bruce, 1914.
The first newspapers published in Brazil appeared in 1707 in Pernambuco, and later in Ouro Preto, or Villa Rica, as it was then called. These journals seem to have been suppressed by the authorities of that time. There was also a journal published in Rio de Janeiro in the eighteenth century; but it too disappeared.
The official Press, inaugurated in 1808, and represented to-day by the "Imprensa Nacional," is the only connecting link with the times of over a century ago, for newspapers issued in Minas Geraes in 1807, in Bahia in 1812, and Pernambuco in 1814 do not now survive.
From 1817 to 1827 a number of newspapers appeared in different States. Several of these are being published yet, though in most cases they have changed their names. The oldest of the surviving unofficial newspapers is the "Diario de Pernambuco," first issued in 1825, and the "Jornal do Commercio," established in 1827.
When these newspapers appeared there were about thirty other newspapers in Brazil. At the end of 1913 there were over one thousand. Some of the leading daily newspapers are housed in palatial buildings. The home of the "Jornal do Commercio," Rio de Janeiro, is a seven storey building which cost £100,000 to erect.
This newspaper varies in size from twelve to twentyfour eight-column pages daily, with occasioned special numbers of up to eighty pages. It has morning and evening editions, and issues coloured illustrated supplements weekly and monthly.
The "Jornal do Commercio" has never allowed itself to become a political partisan, and thus exercises a powerful influence. Its articles aim at representing correctly Brazilian thought on matters of national importance. Other notable daily newspapers are the "Jornal do Brasil," "O Paiz," and "Correio da Manha" (Rio de Janeiro), “O Estado de Sao Paulo," "Correio Paulistano," "Platea," and "A Tarde" (Sao Paulo), "Diario de Pernambuco," "Jornal do Recife," "Provincia" (Pernambuco), "Gazeta do Povo," "Diario de Noticias" (Bahia), "O Amazonas," "Jornal do Commercio" (Manaos), "Provincia do Para," "Folha do Norte" (Para), "A Pacotilha" (San Luiz), "O Jornal do Ceara" (Fortaleza), ''Diario de Minas" (Bello Horizonte), "Jornal do Commercio," "Pharol" (Juiz de Fora), "Diario" (Porto Alegre).
Every State has its daily newspapers, and I may have omitted from this short list some that should have been included; but what I have given fairly represents the outstanding daily newspapers.
The humorous journals are well got up and entertaining to those who can enter into the spirit of their fun. Those seeming to have the widest circulation are the "Mosquito," "Fon Fon," "Careta," "O Malho," and "Revista da Semana." They are nearly all profusely illustrated, several in colours, and though the majority of the cartoons do not come up to European standard, many of the colour sketches excel.
Features of the daily and weekly journals are their art and literary criticisms, notes on current events, and in the dailies the wide field gleaned for their news. Leading dailies usually have more than a page devoted to cables and telegraphic news from all parts of the world.
There are a few magazines, one of which, "Illustracāo Brazileira," is a distinctly fine production, and it has a wide circulation.
Poets and writers have abounded in Brazil almost from its first settlement; and, as the printing-press soon followed, the country has to-day a most extensive store of books on all sorts of subjects. It is claimed for Brazil that its literature already runs into hundreds of thousands of separate works. One is not inclined to doubt this after visiting most of its national libraries and seeing many of its citizens' private collections. One of the earliest poets to leave work that will live was Bento Teixeira. A lofty spirit runs through his epics.
Gregorio de Mattos Guerra was a poet of the people who flourished in the seventeenth century. He was a master of satire, and fearlessly attacked the aristocracy of his time.
Manoel Botelho left some meritorious verses written also in the seventeenth century.
"Eustachidos," by Manoel de Itaparica, is one of the earliest poems of the eighteenth century to attract attention to its author. This poet's other efforts scarcely reached the same excellence.
Antonio da Silva favoured the classic style, and produced much that, though not easily understood by any but masters of the highest Portuguese, must live.
Basilio da Gama was inclined to express political ideas too freely in his compositions.
Alvarenga was an accomplished satirist whose writings often got him into serious trouble.
Thomaz Antonio Gonzaga belonged to a considerable school of satirical poets who flourished in the eighteenth century. His "Lyras" and "Chilean Letters" were typical of that school's productions.
Claudio Manoel da Costa, author of " Villa Rica," a heroic poem, was a great sonnet writer.
Santa Rita Durao was perhaps Brazil's most notable epic poet.
The nineteenth century produced some great poets, amongst them being Magalhaes, author of the "Confederation of the Tamoyos" epic; Goncalves Dias, who wrote lyrics such as "Tymbiras," "Cancao do Maraba," and "Y Juca-Pyrama." This poet also produced some notable prose works on historical and ethnographical subjects. One of these was " Brazil and Oceana," a work on the origin of American races. Baron de Santo Angelo, author of the epic "Colombo," wrote of animals, birds, and flowers. He was also a painter of ability. Cazemiro de Abreu and Lamindo Rabello were also popular poets of this period.
Towards the end of the century, Brazilian literature was enriched by a number of works of exceptional merit from quite a host of poets. It is difficult to select names from this period, but Alberto de Oliveira, Olavo Bilac, Raymundo Correa, Luiz Delphino, and the negro Cruz e Souza, have given their nation works of distinctive character, bearing on every effort the stamp of genius. Bilac's "Via Lactea," several of Raymundo Correa's poems, and Oliveira's songs of a sunny land and its wonderful forests establish a Brazilian school of poetical expression, charming fas it is unique. The living poets of Brazil are extending this. Emilio de Menezes, Augusto de Lima, Mario Pederneiras, Luiz Murat, Arthur Lobo, Oscar Lopes, Humberto de Campos, and several others are to-day writing and issuing poetical works that will live. While in Britain our master poets seem to have all or almost all passed away, Brazil has to-day many of her greatest living. This is true too of her prose writers.
One of the ablest writers Brazil ever produced is Ruy Barbosa, a journalist, jurist, and writer on political and serious questions, who was the unsuccessful candidate for the Federal Presidency at the last two elections for that distinguished post. Ruy Barbosa writes in classical style on subjects his mastery of which is indisputable. His books on jurisprudence are standard works in law schools everywhere. His contributions to the Press of Europe as well as Brazil, are marked by the wide command of several languages and correctness of style in every language used he displays.
Dr Jose Carlos Rodrigues, who has lived many years in London and New York, and is now editor-in-chief of Brazil's greatest newspaper, the "Jornal do Commercio," is one of the most distinguished prose writers of Brazil. His wide knowledge of the world and command of several languages has enabled him to produce works of the highest international value. Of imaginative writers, Coelho Netto, a very prolific writer of stories, deserves first mention because he has published about eighty books on different subjects. He is a master of descriptive writing, and his "Sertāo," in which he deals with life in the wilds, is a masterpiece.
"Sertōes," by Euclydes Cunha, shows a somewhat similar high standard of descriptive work. Afranio Peixoto is a writer with a peculiar style. His "A Esfinge," described somewhere as " a romance of ideas," attracted much attention when it came out a few years ago. Aluizio Azevedo deals in his books with types of people found in Brazilian cities. His "O Mulato" is a most readable romance. A lady writer whose romances dealing with city dwellers show a thorough grasp of present-day conditions of the humbler folks is Julia Lopes de Almeida. She has also written some clever plays. Mentioning plays reminds me that Brazil has in such men as Joao Luso, Roberto Gomes, Coelho Netto, and Oscar Lopes worthy dramatists.
Of the twentieth-century writers now dead Machado de Assis and Baron de Santa Anna Nery stand out most prominently. Machado de Assis wrote poetry, fiction, drama, or serious works with equal brilliancy. His versatility as a writer was wonderful. His "Quincas Borba," "O Memorial de Ayres," and "Braz Cubas" rank amongst the greatest Brazilian books. He was the first President of the Brazilian Academy of Letters. Santa Anna Nery gave the world the best book on the Amazon Valley yet written. It has been translated into English and other European languages.
Going back to the nineteenth century, authors deserving mention are Tobias Barreto, who wrote philosophical works, Joao Lisboa, an essayist, the brothers Mendes, Baron de Guajara, and Machado de Oliveira, who left behind good work. John Manoel da Silva, Abreu e Lima, and Joaquim Caetano da Silva wrote valuable historical works.
Lima's "Compendium of the History of Brazil" is widely known. Varnhagen (Visconde de Porto Seguro) wrote the "General History of Brazil," covering the period from 1500 to 1822, and his many other valuable contributions to historical record were supplemented about the time of their production by Mello Moraes, a chronicler of these times. Other historians of the last century were Ayres de Casal, Pizarro, Lisboa, Goncalves dos Santos, Visconde de Leopoldo, and Accioly de Cerqueira e Silva. Martins Penna, Taunay, Agrario de Menezes, Alencar, and Macedo were the most popular dramatists of that time.
The eighteenth century was richer in poets of merit than prose writers. The works of Pedro Leme, a Paulista, such as "History of the Capitania of Sao Vicente," and "Nobiliarchia Paulistana," give much useful information not found elsewhere. The seventeenth century gave Brazil Frei Vicente do Salvador, who wrote the first "History of Brazil," covering the period 1500 to 1627, and many other works. To Pedro de Magalhaes Gandavo belongs possibly the credit of writing the first locally written book on Brazil. In his "History of the Province of Santa Cruz" we get a record of what happened in the various capitaneas up to 1576. Gabriel Soares de Souza also wrote a "Descriptive Treatise of Brazil" in the sixteenth century.
In the field of science no name can rank higher than that of Dr Oswaldo Cruz, born in San Luiz, to whose scientific researches the world owes the most it knows about combating yellow fever. To this distinguished medical man Brazil is indebted for its riddance of the plagues of yellow fever that in early days decimated the population of its cities. As chief health officer of the country, he is still busy clearing out the pestilences from the backblocks towns. It may be said of Dr Oswaldo Cruz that perhaps no living scientist ever rendered so great a service to his country as he has done to Brazil. His work in making healthy cities out of dangerous fever zones, and reducing the general mortality rate of the country, till Brazil has come to be the safest of all tropical countries to live in, is a triumph of medical science that the whole world applauds. In private life Dr Cruz is modest and unassuming.
Having had the privilege of making my journey to Brazil in a steamer where he was a fellow-passenger, I can testify to his quiet charm of manner and enthusiasm in his life-work, also to the great esteem in which he is held by all Brazilians. It seemed to be very fitting that tugs with bands on board should come out to greet him at the first Brazilian port we reached. The people seemed overjoyed to have their country's benefactor once more amongst them. Other great men in scientific circles are Dr Orville Derby, the geologist; Dr Afranio Peixoto, meteorologist; Dr Carlos Moreira, naturalist; Dr E. R. Pinto, archaeologist; and Dr Sampaio Vianna. These have an international reputation. Scientific research laboratories are maintained in different cities; and the Liverpool School for the study of Tropical Diseases is also represented in the country.
Exploration has not received much attention from Brazilians; but the most valuable work done here in recent years must be credited to a lady, Dona Leolinda Daltro, and Colonel Rondon, both Brazilians. Their explorations in the interior, covering in each case periods of several years, have added much to the hitherto meagre fund of knowledge of the central States. Various expeditions have in recent times been made by foreign travellers, but with scant addition to accepted facts.
Bruce, George James. Brazil and the Brazilians. Dodd, Mead and Company, 1914.
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