Martiniano Eliseu do Bomfim: um intelectual afro-baiano da diáspora e suas interações

Abstract

This research is based on documentary sources and it aims to investigate the intellectual and social trajectories of Martiniano Eliseu do Bomfim, a black intellectual man originated from African Brazilian diaspora, and to ascertain his interactions with “traditional” intellectuals over time. The main goal of this research is to comprehend how Martiniano’s work was appropriated by these intellectuals and how he positioned himself within these interactions, analyzing the relationship dynamics between different social actors. To achieve this goal, we chose the ethnohistorical approach, supported by primary and secondary sources, such as depositions, interviews, books, scientific and journalistic articles. We utilized categories such as “multiple identities” and “agency” and took inspiration from Cultural Studies. Beyond that, we ascertain the social and historical context in which these intellectual exchanges occurred. By the end of this research, the complex relationships among Martiniano Eliseu do Bomfim and those considered traditional intellectuals will be thoroughly analyzed. The historical contextualization revealed that Martiniano lived in an era when intellectuals were influenced and limited by a worldview determined by that era’s current paradigms. Although, as criticism related to academic elitism rose, the relationship analysis could be reviewed from a new perspective which valued the protagonism of actors that didn’t belong among the privileged group, whether in a symbolic or economic way, that ruled this country’s scientific field. Understanding Martianiano’s views demanded an analytic “appropriation” of our own, resorting to theoretical and methodological approaches that allowed us to operationalize concepts such as agency, rupturing with reductionisms and recognizing the existence of multiple identities. In this sense, Martiniano can be understood as a man who faced dilemmas and contradictions in the construction of his own identity as a black and Brazilian intellectual. This study aims to contribute to the enlargement of the knowledge about African Brazilian and Black Diaspora and its role in the construction of Brazilian’s intellectuality and culture.