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. 29 n. 3 Rio de Janeiro 1986
Abstract
The author analyzes a cycle of peasant strikes which occurred on the large sugar cane plantations in Pemambuco's "Zona da Mata" (in the Brazilian Northeast). The specific feature of this cycle resides in the paradoxical fact that the strikes multiplied despite the widespread disregard of the planters for most of the peasants' gains. Beginning with the ana1ytical distinction between the two phases which structured and determined this cycle of strikes - the strike phase and the interregnum -, the author examines the differences existing between the two phases with regard to the actors involved, their interrelations, and the issues which mobilize them, in order to convey the significance of the strike for the peasants. The author's central argument is that the importance of the strikes for the peasants does not lie in the substantive conquests a1one, but also - and chiefly - in the establishment of a set of rules which, though not strictly observed, serve as a parameter for the consideration of their relations with the planters and which are activated whenever political conditions and interest exist.
A Luta de Classes em Dois Atos: Notas sobre Um Ciclo de Greves Camponesas
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