Dados is one of the most widely-read social sciences journals in Latin America. Created in 1966, it publishes innovative works, originating from academic research, by Brazilian and foreign authors. Edited by IESP-UERJ, it aims to reconcile scientific rigor and academic excellence with an emphasis on public debate based on the analysis of substantive issues of society and politics.
Dados vol. 58 n. 1 Rio de Janeiro jan./mar. 2015
Abstract
The aim of this article is to analyze the role of jocosity during moments of critique which could otherwise result in conflict but which, through moral devices based on humor preserve peace, whilst effectuating critique. The investigation, based on ethnographic observations in the streets of a peripheral neighborhood and the central zone of Rio de Janeiro, emphasize two devices: “zoação”, in which the critique is presented as if it weren’t serious or relevant, but nevertheless still poses a challenge, and, on the other hand, the “marra” in which one competitively rebukes the superior moral position claimed by the critique, jokingly attacking the critic with another critique, thereby initiating a dispute. In both cases, the coordination between the critique-as-form and the joke-as-form create a double mechanism of effectiveness, sustaining a critical slack according to which the perception of moral negativity remains in circulation, but without formal debates about principles and breaks with routine.
Keywords: jocosity, critique, effectuation, sociability, morality
“Dar uma Zoada” and “Botar a Maior Marra”: Moral Devices of Jocosity as Forms of Effectuation and its Relation to Critique
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