How the Canudos war helps us rethink history

What does it mean to write the history of those who have been written out?

When Euclides da Cunha described the destruction of the town of Canudos, in the backlands of Brazil, he was hailed as a hero of the republic. His compassionate account embodied the ideals of the new nation. But... did it do justice to Canudos?

Often, historical research overlooks the silences of our archive. In her academic monograph on Canudos, scholar Adriana Campos Johnson, Associate Professor of Comparative Literature at UC Irvine, explores an approach to reading history that can investigate the silences that documents leave out - without abusing historical reconstruction.

In this video, we walk you through the story of Canudos and the Johnson's key points. What does fair representation really mean? How can we write and think history when all we have are documents from imperial gaze? And how can Canudos illuminate the political struggles we face today?

Watch our full conversation with Professor Campos Johnson here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fMyVuQUMUQs

We're immensely grateful to Dr. Campos Johnson for this interview, and for allowing us to explore her ideas through the Overthink platform. Explore more of her academic work: https://www.faculty.uci.edu/profile/?facultyId=4911

This video is part of a new Overthink interview series, History and Memory in the Americas. Check out the full series on the Overthink channel:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL2VCCjshTuUNzgye8QpdAn4IzTDd2GbPa

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* Aaron and Emilio's glosses and interpretations are their own, and might not be the ones of Dr. Campos Johnson!

Видео How the Canudos war helps us rethink history канала Overthink Podcast