Construction, appropriation, and uses of the image of Carolina Maria de Jesus from the newspaper Última Hora (1960-1964)

Abstract

The following article, with a socio-historical approach, analyzes, through the newspaper Última Hora, how the image of writer Carolina Maria de Jesus was constructed, appropriated, and used both by her and by the aforementioned newspaper. Using concepts such as Patricia Hill Collins’ images of control and bell hooks’ otherness, and through the intersectional lens of both, it is clear that there were two processes between 1960 and 1964. First, Carolina was portrayed only as an uneducated person who did not belong where she was, marked by the stigmas imposed on her. Later, she acquires a character of authority on the theme of the favela and poverty, and this is appropriated by her to gain more space in the newspaper; on the other hand, the newspaper uses her as a means of spreading its ideological affiliation with the popularity and agreement of the author. Thus, it is possible to understand that the formation and use of the writer's personality ended up favoring both to a certain extent.