As questões étnicas e de gênero nos romances Úrsula, de Maria Firmina dos Reis, e a Escrava Isaura, de Bernardo Guimarães.

Abstract

In the present dissertation, a study was made of the novels Úrsula, by Maria Firmina dos Reis, and A escrava Isaura (The slave Isaura), by Bernardo Guimarães, seeking, from the discourse analysis, to address ethnic and gender issues, to identify differences and similarities starting from the point of view of the feminine and masculine discourse. Therefore, at first, the research on feminism and feminist criticism was carried out, considering its relevance to the understanding of the construction of feminine discourse. In addition, it was tried to understand the construction of the feminine literary discourse in century XIX. The second moment of the study turned to slavery in Brazil, with a reading of its context until abolition, through studies carried out by historians and writers of literature. In addition, a reading of the process of constructing the identity of the Negro and his descendants, of great importance for the understanding of the divergences in the analyzed discourses, was carried out. The third and final part of the research consisted of reading the novels Úrsula and A escrava Isaura (The slave Isaura), in which the theme under analysis is the thread, mainly from the black slave and female characters. At the end of this study, it can be seen that the ethnic and gender question in Firmina's novel was central in the elaboration of a discourse that contrasts with the text of Bernardo Guimarães.