As mulheres das margens: cotidiano e trabalho feminino nas margens do Rio Uruguai no período do escoamento da madeira (1940-1970)

Abstract

This research discusses the daily life and work of women living on the banks of the Rio Uruguai, aiming to highlight their importance in the timber transportation activities in the West of Santa Catarina, during the period from 1940 to 1970. The decades under investigation correspond to a period of intense timber extraction from the two phytophysiognomies that make up the Atlantic Forest biome in the West of Santa Catarina: the Floresta Ombrófila Mista (FOM) and the Floresta Estacional Decidual (FED). It also includes the transportation of timber logs through the Rio Uruguai to the international market. The rafting activity began around 1930, and therefore, the initial temporal focus of this research is the 1940s when the first historical sources were located. The research concludes in 1970 due to the decline of the activity. This study is qualitative and documentary, utilizing the theoretical and methodological guidelines of Oral History to access the memories of women from the region. In addition to interviews, records of birth, marriage, and death from the Dias de Castro Registry Office were used, as it safeguards documents from the Extinct Extrajudicial Registry Office of Goio-Ên. Legal documents, periodicals, iconographies, publications from the period, and oral sources available in regional archives were also employed, along with the memories of former resident Dileta Diesel Winckler. The research draws on discussions from Environmental History to understand the relationships between humans and the environment, as well as gender studies to highlight the role of women within the delimited space. Debates on ecofeminism, the sexual division of labor, and the history of science provided the necessary theoretical basis for understanding the historical sources. It was observed that women held various positions within Goio-Ên's society, depending on their social classes, and contributed directly and indirectly to the development of the timber activity through transportation along the river. The aim is to contribute to regional historiography, understanding how women perceived and interacted with the surrounding environment of the Rio Uruguai in the context of timber exploitation.