SOCIAL RESISTANCE IN BAHIA IN THE CORDEL POEMS O AUMENTO DA CARNE VERDE AND PARA PREFEITO DE SALVADOR GRAÇA LESSA, BOTH BY CUÍCA DE SANTO AMARO

Abstract

This paper aims to discuss the social critique in Bahia dicussed in the remarkable verses of Cuíca de Santo Amaro, the “poet-reporter”, seen in his two Cordel poems, O aumento da carne verde and Para prefeito de Salvador Graça Lessa. Through Cordel poetry, Cuíca de Santo Amaro masterfully versifies everyday themes of people's lives, in a comical way and, at times, critical to the misgovernance, public health chaos, high taxes, the struggle for improvements at work, etc. In this study, the life and work of the cordel writter and an analysis of social criticism in Bahia will be presented through stanzas in the two cordel booklets. The first one, entitled O aumento da carne verde, by Cuíca de Santo Amaro, reports the increase in the price of a specific food that helps satisfying the hunger of the country's workers: beef; however, as the plot unfolds, politicians, newspapers and broadcasters that could reverse the price increase in the state's slaughterhouses do not do anything to help. In the other string, entitled Para prefeito de Salvador Graça Lessa, the poet narrates the main reasons that should be taken into account to elect Graça Lessa the mayor of Salvador. The research is based on authors such as: Cevasco (2008, 2009), Carvalhal (2006), Bosi (2002), Curran (1990), Dalcastagnè (2017), Deleuze (1978), Diégues Jr. (1973), Maranhão e Medina (2020), and others.