Política e questão de família

Abstract

The aim of this work is to understand why, and to what extent, family struggles in the sertão do Pajeú region in the state of Pernambuco (struggles that are locally known as intrigas or questões) are also political struggles. To approach this issue, both external and native perspectives are considered (especially the latter) concerning the meanings of family fights - not so much in order to assume one of them, but rather to be able to catch a glimpse of the relationships they bring forth. Issues concerning the nature of family struggles as they take form in the backlands of Brazil's Northeast led me to examine each of their partial aspects. Thus, I focus on even the tiniest moments of the actualization of these struggles, instead of assuming a global point of view. This procedure brought forth a series of discontinuities, of boundaries within a social universe where relationships are strongly centered on the family and where values such as unity and solidarity are widely emphasized, both in social rhetoric and in its analysis.