A representação da violência doméstica em contos de escritoras contemporâneas latino-americanas: uma proposta de leitura para a educação básica

Abstract

Gender-based violence is a problem that violates women's human rights and public health. Despite the noticeable advances of the State and the efforts of various social movements to contain it, the statistics regarding this crime are frightening and the measures to combat this violence have proven challenging. In this context, literature can be an important ally in combating this problem, considering its ability to raise awareness among readers and enable fundamental discussions on complex topics. In the literary sphere, the representation of this crime has not received due attention in canonical literature, composed mostly of male authors, but it has gained space in literature written by women, especially in contemporary times. Thus, aiming to understand how gender violence is presented in literature written by contemporary women in Latin America, the general objective of this research is to examine the representation of domestic violence in the short stories “O Homem do Vale” (2014), by Marcela Serrano, “As coisas que perdemos no fogo” (2017), by Mariana Enríquez, and “Destino: Sé” (2010), by Simone Paulino. Furthermore, we established the following specific objectives: 1) to investigate the forms of gender violence fictionalized in the three chosen stories, 2) to comparatively analyze the representation of female characters in the face of violence experienced in the narratives, and 3) to develop a proposal for reading the selected stories for high school. From a methodological point of view, the research is classified as qualitative, with an interpretative and bibliographical bias, being divided into three parts. In the first, we outline a theoretical discussion about the main concepts used in the work. Afterwards, we read the selected stories, focusing on the representation of gender violence. Finally, we present a didactic sequence aimed at high school, based on the Literature circle method, systematized by Cosson (2021), with the narratives that make up the corpus of the present study. Our reflections are theoretically anchored in the studies of Saffioti (2004; 2001; 1999), Candido (2006; 2004), Cosson (2021), Dalcastagnè (2012; 2007), Zolin (2009), in addition to Law nº 11,340/2006, among other documents. We found that in the narratives analyzed, gender violence is portrayed in different ways and is related to the project of male domination-exploitation, originating from patriarchy. Furthermore, in the three short stories the protagonists react to violence in different ways. It is hoped that this study will highlight the need to expand the fight against gender-based violence; provide visibility to literary production by contemporary Latin American female authors and serve as a guide for educators who aim to work on the topic of domestic violence in schools using literature.