“É a época da luz”: a produção de um discurso no periódico o sexo feminino (1889 –1890)

Abstract

The arrival of the press in Br azil in the 19th century enabled the emergence of a public space for women to assert their rights. In the pages of periodicals, books, and novels, women found the opportunity to appropriate public space to demand their rights and occupy a space previously excluded from the feminine universe. In this context, the periodical O Sexo Feminino emerged, which will be the subject of analysis in this work. Thus, this research aims to analyze how the Proclamation of the Republic influenced women's advocacy for right s; and from this, to investigate the use of the concept of "progress" in the discursive formulation of the periodical O Sexo Feminino and to examine the role of female intellectuals in the Brazilian press as a political vehicle in the 19th century, based o n the newspaper O Sexo Feminino . The methodology used for this work was document analysis based on discourse analysis, engaging in an interdisciplinary dialogue with authors who theorize on gender issues, women's trajectories, the History of the Press, and the History of Concepts. The investigation revealed that the discursive articulation of the newspaper's editors, especially Francisca Senhorinha da Motta Diniz, was the primary tool used to demand and garner support for the women's cause. Adapting the dis course to the audience and context in which it was delivered was crucial to disseminating the periodical's emancipatory ideas. Throughout the analysis, a progressive and strategic discourse was evident, adapting to the political context and seeking to broa den its reach. For the audience of the periodical O Sexo Feminino , the change in political regime in 1889 represented a possibility for the renewal of social ideals, incorporating them into the feminist agenda with a view to the moral and social transforma tion of Brazilian society through the valorization of women as political subjects and citizens.