São Paulo – From the sfihas in the kitchen to the fiddle in popular music, the Arab influence permeates different parts of Brazilian living. In a bid to show where those elements are, the Institute of Arab Culture (Icarabe) will hold the course Arab Presence in Brazilian Culture next September. Enrolments are open.
The course will be taught by Geraldo Campos, a professor of Sociology of international Relations at Escola Superior de Propaganda e Marketing (ESPM), and Jair Marcatti, a sociologist, historian and professor in ESPM’s International Relations course. Classes will take place on September 1, 8, 15, and 22, from 7pm to 9:30pm in São Paulo.
“The first class will be a broader view of how the expression of Arab presence runs the gamut from the cuisine to the Portuguese language [that’s spoken in Brazil],” Campos explains. Questioned about Arab influences that may be less conspicuous than in food or music, for instance, the professor notes that bargaining techniques and mathematics are also heavily influenced by Arab culture and knowledge.
Before anyone thinks the course will be about history lessons that drag on, Campos stresses that that’s not the format. “The purpose of the course is not to reproduce academic logic. Its format will be light-hearted,” he says.
Literature will be the topic of one class. Here, Campos remarks that apart from the work of Arab descendent authors like Raduan Nassar, Brazilian books by writers such as Jorge Amado also feature Middle Eastern influences. “In the construction of Arab characters, since Arabs were a remarkable presence in Northeast Brazil,” he points out.
In music, Campos points to Arab elements in the work of singer-songwriters of the likes of Almir Sater and João Bosco, and to Arab influence in rhythms such as samba and the Carnival’s marchinhas.
The final class will be a symbolic comparison between Brazil’s sertão (backcountry) and the desert and human relations. Campos explains that both the sertão and the desert are flat, open spaces, but also unforgiving, and that can be likened to social connections between people. “It’s a metaphor for man’s relationship with his medium,” he says.
Quick facts
Arab Presence in Brazilian Culture
September 1, 8, 15 and 22, from 7pm to 9:30pm
Where: Martins Fontes bookstore –Paulista Ave, 509
Prices: General public – BRL 300. Single class – BRL 75
Icarabe members, students and retirees: BRL 250. Single class – BRL 65
To enroll and for additional information, send an email to secretaria@icarabe.org or call (55 11) 5084-5131
Find out more at http://migre.me/uHPVa
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum