Preface
The picture on the cover of this thesis represents much of what I try to explain, argue and rethink in this thesis about capoeira. In the picture you see three girls playing capoeira instruments. The two girls on the left of the pictures are attempting to play an instrument called a berimbau. The girl on the right is standing on a chair to reach the drum called attabaque. Everyone who has ever held a berimbau and tried to play it, could identify that the little girl in the middle is having some trouble to balance the instrument on her left pinky as one is supposed to do. In an attempt to adjust it, she grabs the instrument that is bigger than she is with her other hand. Nonetheless a big smile on her face indicates that despite the difficulty, she is enjoying her time trying to learn how to play the berimbau. The girl on the left is succeeding a bit more to play the instrument. She looks content but
concentrated as she tries to listen to the other instruments and play along in the same rhythm. The girl on the right wanted to play the berimbau, but in failed attempt to get the instrument in time, she resolved to quickly grab the attabaque that was the closest and had to go along with the instrument she got. Despite all these struggles and difficulties, the energy was good. The children were happy and they got to make music and interact with their peers. The struggles of playing the instruments, following the rhythm and getting the instrument they wanted, did not come in the way of them smiling, laughing and having a good time.
Acknowledgements
The making of this thesis involved the help of various people that i would like to thank. First of all I would like to thank all the people I met during my fieldwork: the teachers Buiu, Formigão and Nagô for opening the doors of their capoeira schools for me and receiving me. Without their support and help during my fieldwork this research would not have been possible. Thank you also to all the students from the groups Guaraúna, Escola Brasil and MultiplicARTE for their friendship, interest in my work and help throughout my fieldwork.
I would like to thank my supervisor Dr. Annelou Ypeij for her useful comments and insights during the writing process of this work. I would also like to thank all the CEDLA staff for making this thesis possible, their teachings, classes and support.
My thanks to my capoeira teacher Contra Mestre Miojo (CN capoeira) goes beyond this thesis. Thank you for teaching me capoeira, without this I would have not been able to do this research. He also provided me with my contacts in Brazil and was always supportive and helpful. I am grateful to be part of the amazing CN capoeira family.
I would like to thank Marie Tihon, who generously allowed me to use some of her amazing pictures in this thesis (Figures 7,8,9,12). I admire her work and our friendship.
My friends Kathleen and Hayate, thank you for your useful comments and revisions and thank you for our friendship and for making me laugh with your comments about my ridiculous grammar mistakes.
I am grateful for my family who stood by me throughout the whole writing process, always giving me useful comments and advice about my work. Therefor I would like to thank my parents, my sister and my grandfather. Thank you for always being there for me.
Lastly I would like to thank all the CMP students who have made the experience of this master’s a great one. The long conversations ranging from the most to the least academic topics, the many shared lunches, the mental support and the distraction that we provided each other in the library made these last year and a half to be an unforgettable experience. ❤
Abstract
In this thesis I study the way that social projects of capoeira are relevant to the lives of its participants. Capoeira is an embodied practice that has historically been used as a tool of liberation by its practitioners. In this work I approach capoeira as an ambiguous physical playful game that holds a philosophical value to those who practice it that is hidden to an outsider. Historically practiced by the enslaved Africans that were brought over to Brazil, today capoeira holds an important role to the lower class Brazilians living in the periphery of urbanized areas. These areas face various urban inequalities that produce social issues like poverty and crime. I look at the way that capoeira is used as a tool of non-formal education in this social context, to confront these urban inequalities. To understand the value that capoeira holds for its practitioners, I analyze the education process of capoeira, in three different social projects in the periphery of São Paulo, Brazil. These projects all provide capoeira classes to residents of the urban periphery. Through embodied ethnographic methods, I study the education process of capoeira - the way capoeira is taught and learned, to understand the hidden values of capoeira. A practitioner learns to embody capoeira through its education process. This embodiment is applied during the capoeira game, which in return reflects the philosophical values of capoeira.
Key terms: Capoeira, non-formal education, embodiment, favela, social projects, Sao Paulo, Brazil
Resumo
Nesta dissertação estudo o impacto e a relevância dos projetos sociais que trabalham com capoeira, sobre avida de seus participantes. A Capoeira é uma prática “corporificada” que historicamente têm sido utilizada como ferramenta de libertação para os capoeiristas. Neste trabalho, abordo a capoeira como um ambíguo jogo, lúdico e físico, que, pra quem pratica, carrega um valor filosófico oculto aos não praticantes. Historicamente praticada pelos escravos Africanos que foram trazidos para o Brasil , hoje a capoeira desempenha um papel importante para os brasileiros de classe baixa que vivem na periferia de grandes centros urbanos. Dada as grandes desigualdes socias/urbanas nessas regioes há maior incidencia de crimes asssociados a pobreza. Eu olho para a forma como, neste contexto social, a capoeira é usada como uma ferramenta de educação não formal para enfrentar essas desigualdades urbanas. Com o objetivo de entender o valor da capoeira para seus praticantes, analiso o processo educativo da capoeira em três diferentes projetos sociais na periferia de São Paulo, Brasil.Através de métodos etnográficos corporificados, estudo o processo educativo da capoeira - a maneira como essa é ensinada e aprendida, de forma a compreender seus valores escondidos. O aprendizado da capoeira se da pelo processo de corporificação. Esta corporificação é aplicada durante o jogo da capoeira que, em troca, reflete os valores filosóficos da capoeira.
Palavras-chave: Capoeira, educação não formal, corporificação, favela, projetos sociais, São Paulo, Brasil
INDEX
Preface ... 1 Acknowledgements ... 2 Abstract ... 3 Glossary ... 6 List of Figures ... 7 1 Introduction ... 81.1 Introduction to the Theme ... 8
1.2 Theoretical Approach ... 10
1.3 Academic and social contribution ... 14
1.4 Thesis structure ... 15
2 Approaches in the Field ... 17
2.1 Contacts, community and location ... 17
2.2 Capoeira style ... 19
2.3 The scope ... 20
2.4 Methodological approach ... 23
2.5 Embodiment of capoeira ... 25
3 Everything that is Capoeira ... 28
3.1 approaches ... 29
3.2 narratives ... 31
3.3 community & politics ... 33
4 The Path of Education ... 38
4.2 Pedagogy in capoeira ... 44
5.1 Getting to know the Comunidade ... 48
5.2 Poverty ... 49
5.3 Crime ... 52
5.4 Racism ... 53
6 The projects ... 55
6.1 The structure of the projects ... 55
6.2 The aims ... 57
6.3 Challenges of the projects ... 63
7 Capoeira minha vida ... 65
7.1 A mirror to life... 66 7.2 Video elicitation ... 67 7.3 Lifelong learning ... 71 8 Conclusion ... 73 Bibliography ... 77 Appendix 1 ... 81
Glossary
Abadá Capoeira uniform. Usually consisting out of a white shirt and white pants with the logo of the capoeira group, and the corda worn around the waist Academia The centers or gyms where capoeiristas come to train
Angola A capoeira style created by mestre Pashtinha that is seen as the more traditional style. It included old rituals in the roda and old capoeira rhythms
Apelido A capoeira nickname given to a capoeirista pointing out some characteristic of the person
Batizado A capoeira initiation ceremony
Berimbau The lead instrument in capoeira. Made out of a wooden bow with a metal string and a hollowed out gourd
Capoeirista A capoeira practitioner Contemporânea A capoeira style
Corda are ropes, worn around the waist, that represent the level of capoeira of a capoeirista depending on their color
Favela Slum, shanty town
Fundamentos Things that create the foundation of capoeira. The core practices Ginga The basic movement of capoeira from which all other movements are
initiated. It literally means swaying. Here, a person stand in parallel, then steps one leg back, steps back in parallel and steps the other leg back Jogar To play
Mestre A capoeira master
NGO Non-governmental organization
Regional A capoeira style. The first one to get a name and structure. It was created by mestre Bimba at the beginning of the 20th century
Roda Wheel, ring. A formation where capoeiristas stand in a circle, make music and sing, while two capoeiristas play in the middle of the circle
Roda da República A capoeira roda that has taken place every Sunday for over 60 years in the center of São Paulo. It is one of the most famous and important rodas in the city and a place of reference to all capoeira practitioners in the city Senzala Slave quarter
Troca de corda A capoeira ceremony where capoeiristas receive the next level of corda Vivenciar To live through something, to experience
List of Figures
Figure 1 Two players starting a capoeira game at Roda da República, a traditional roda in the Center of São Paulo. ... 21 Figure 2 These pictures show my participation in the classes. This varied a lot, from playing capoeira, telling about myself and my research, or just observing the classes and interacting with the participants ... 27 Figure 3 Private sphere of capoeira: the teacher is filming the students during a to send it in the WhatsApp group to all members of the capoeira group. ... 37 Figure 4 (a) A public street roda. The roda takes place outside. (b) A public roda in an academia. ... 37 Figure 5 These pictures show the different pedagogical approaches in the education
process. (a) The teachers demonstrates a movement as the students watch, (b) the teacher directs the students to do the movement, (c) the students execute the movement as the teacher observes, (d) The teacher explains how to better execute the movement as the students practice it ... 43 Figure 6 (a) Before the class: each student does whatever they want; some stretch, some are warming up, some are training acrobatics. (b) After the class: The students stand in a circle at the end of the class as the teacher says some final remarks ... 43 Figure 7 These pictures were all taken in an occupation in Grajaú. All the houses are made from wood and there are only dirt roads. The occupation did not receive the right yet to build Brick houses or lay asphalt roads. During rainfalls houses at times get washed away. The Sewer is a ditch on the side if the dirt roads... 51 Figure 8 Learning culture: A samba class where all the girls wore traditional samba skirts64 Figure 9 Provide mental strength: a kid concentrated trying to master playing the
berimbau ... 64 Figure 10 The teacher is teaching the ginga to two new students separately to master the basic movement of capoeira ... 66 Figure 11 A mestre at roda da República is playing the berimbau with his daughter sleeping on his lap. The daughter is already participating in capoeira without realizing it. For me, this picture summarizes the way capoeira I have experienced capoeira. It enters your life in the most natural way ... 72 Figure 12 A capoeira class given in hazardous conditions. This is the modern slave quarter mentioned by` the teacher ... 76
Chapter 1
Introduction
Just like most researchers that have written about capoeira, I found myself: a capoeira practitioner with an anthropology degree in her hand, tempted to research the complex and, in my opinion, fascinating world of capoeira. I felt the magic of capoeira, its energy; I saw the interesting social structure and relations within that world and the many aspects that would make it an amazing topic to research. Just like many other anthropologists, I found myself struggling to turn my personal interest into my professional work. I tried to partly restrain my position as a capoeirista (capoeira practitioner) to critically study it with academic methods, and to explain it using the academic jargon. Reading the academic literature about capoeira, one finds various approaches used in trying to explain what capoeira is as a whole, regardless of the topic of any particular research about capoeira. To start my thesis I could have written about how capoeira is an Afro-Brazilian martial art that incorporates parts from dance and fight. I could have written about how capoeira is played with two people within a circle of people called a roda, where everyone claps and sings with special capoeira instruments. Capoeira has a clear African descent and relevance to the history of Brazil as it is a practice of liberation that has been used by the African slaves in Brazil. Or, I could have mentioned that capoeira is a game full of contradictions, which has a lot of elements that show the culture from which it originates, like sneakiness, or its comic theatrical presentation. All these elements are important to understand capoeira. But if I explain capoeira in this way, I will glance over the thing that was the essence of why I wanted to study it in the first place and to keep practicing it. (Lewis, 1992; Almeida, 1986)
1.1 Introduction to the Theme
The reason I wanted to study capoeira is because I had both experienced and seen how capoeira can become an important practice and philosophy embodied by those who are involved with it. I wanted to understand how it can be that Capoeira influences one’s life in so many different ways, and how this happens. Capoeira has a history that traces it back to the slavery period in Brazil where it has been practiced by the lower classes of society.
After the abolition it has stayed popular mostly in social groups of African descendants in Brazil, who were brought over from Africa during the slave trade (Nestor capoeira, 2002; Lewis, 1992). It was an art form practiced in secrecy as a form of empowerment and liberation (Lewis, 1992, p.13). These values are still visible in modern day capoeira: besides the physical performance and its historical roots, which are often emphasized, capoeira has a philosophical dimension as well where these values come to the fore. Long time practitioners use capoeira as an ideological basis or a helping tool in their daily life (Lewis, 1992, p.xxii,6; Almeida, 1986, p.147; Talmon-Chvaicer, 2008, p. 171; MacLennan, 2011, p. 317). In my work I want to bring these different aspects together, and to show how this whole can be put in a context that is currently socially relevant.
The social cultural and economic inequality did not end in Brazil after the abolition of slavery. Issues like racism, discrimination, marginalization and income gap are highly relevant in Brazil. Furthermore, Brazil has seen a trend of rapidly growing cities and high urbanization. Combined with the mentioned issues, we find much of the urban population living in the periphery of the large Brazilian cities in favelas (slums), where difficult living conditions are a daily reality and opportunities regarding socio-economic growth are often limited (Oyeyinka, 2010, p.132). This creates a structural inequality and a disadvantage to people who live in these conditions (Pereira, 2016, p.4). These urban peripheries are also spaces where capoeira can be found and where its history and philosophy interacts in an interesting way with the social reality of the practitioners in the urban periphery. These issues can also be seen in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), that were formulated by the United Nations. They recognize urban exclusion and inequality and aim to ‘Make cities inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable’ (SDG 11).
The meaning of capoeira for its practitioners, the social reality in the urban periphery of Brazil and the way these interact is the core of my thesis. I look at what capoeira can do, considering its ideological and socio-historic position and how these interact with current inequality in Brazilian society. To study the way that such a practice becomes integrated in society I focused on studying the education process of how the learning and teaching of capoeira happens. It is through this education process that capoeira becomes a practice that is important for its practitioners.
I conducted my research in the city of São Paulo, in the southern district of the city. The choice for this region was influenced by the relevance of the region to my research topic due to the high number of favelas and marginalized areas in it (França, 2009), the
possibility to contact of capoeira teachers, their accessibility and the practicality of focusing on just one region of the metropolis that is São Paulo. I came in touch with capoeira
teachers and groups who worked in the marginalized areas by giving capoeira classes to children and adults, a practice which they called ‘social projects’. These social projects use capoeira as a tool to address social issues relevant to the periphery of the city. Here I could study the education process by looking at the way capoeira is taught and learned in the marginalized areas of the city, and the way this relates to the participants in the projects. These areas that have been marginalized historically, use capoeira, with its values of empowerment and liberation, as a tool for social change. Thus, my research has the following main question:
From the perspective of urban inequalities, how is the capoeira education process executed (taught and learned) in order to be relevant to the participants’ lives?
To answer this question I have set up the following sub questions (SQ) to guide my research:
SQ 1: How is capoeira in São Paulo seen by its practitioners?
SQ 2: What is the education process of capoeira in the social projects?
SQ 3: What are the urban inequalities in the social reality of the participants of the social projects?
SQ 4: What are the objectives of the social projects which offer capoeira in São Paulo?
1.2 Theoretical Approach
In the process of writing my thesis I regularly talked to my own capoeira teacher and presented different ideas I had for my thesis, in hope of finding an approving voice and a representative way to write about capoeira. I remember sharing my struggles with him
during one of such conversations. I was trying to explain capoeira and the way that it helped the people of my research. Though he liked my approaches to try and tackle these problems, he added: “capoeira is hidden. Its real value is hidden and is not easily visible for those who are outside. Think about where capoeira came from, capoeira comes from the slaves, the poor, the black, who were not allowed to practice capoeira and to fight. Whenever the slave overseer or the police came, the slaves acted as if they were doing something else, they didn’t show what the power of capoeira was. And it is still the same. An outsider can see the movements, hear the music but still not grasp everything that capoeira can offer. So of course it is difficult to explain that value.’’
Considering these thoughts, I have chosen multiple theoretical approaches to help unravel the hidden side of capoeira and answer my research questions. While in the empirical chapters I will elaborate on the theoretical insights relevant to the data of that chapter, here I will sketch my theoretical approach.
Game
The hidden aspect of capoeira, has been discussed by various authors (Lewis, 1992; Talmon-Chvaicer, 2008; Silva & Ferreira, 2012). To better understand capoeira while respecting its hidden characteristic, I take as a starting point the terminology used by capoeira practitioners; they refer to the act of capoeira as jogo de capoeira, the capoeira game. The game of capoeira includes all aspects of it: history, philosophy, physical activity, etc. (which will be discussed in chapter 3). All of these come together in practice when two capoeiristas play. In academic theory, we find many explanations of the terms 'play' and 'game'. These two concepts have many theoretical similarities as well as differences. Both terms refer to a reality that is distinct from the 'real world' by having different and
restricted rules and regulations. The two realities can be connected at times; however actions within the 'alternative reality' of the game should not have a direct consequence to the real world (Huizinga, 1955, p.196). 'Play' and 'game' also hold important differences, namely that game refers to acts that are more regulated with clear rules, a clear goal and clear boundaries (McGonical, 2011). Play on the other hand is flexible and improvised. The boundaries for the start and finish of play are less clear and we cannot speak of rules, but rather of guidelines as it is inconsequent and subjective (Lindquist, 2001). The distinction
between play and game is interesting for my research because capoeira fits into both categories in an ambiguous way. Capoeira both does and does not have rules as Lewis (1992, p.92) points out. To bridge the gap between these two concepts, I refer to capoeira as a playful game. The ambiguous position of capoeira is what makes it have a hidden side (to which my capoeira teacher referred). This will be my approach to capoeira throughout the thesis.
Learning through game
McGonigal (2001) ties the world of a game and the activities within it to real-life ethics and work activities. She shows how gamers can develop and learn skills in games which they can later use in their real life. Other authors have also written about the benefits of 'play' and 'game' and the ways these can contribute to learning. Gee (2003) writes about the many different skills that can be learned through playing games. This learning happens through the interaction between the player and the game. Kangas (2010) showed how playful learning can develop many skills in children both with regards to formal and informal education.
When looking at capoeira as a playful game, we can connect it to academic theories regarding learning through games, or through play. The leaning of capoeira happens
through the education process of capoeira. To understand capoeira as an educational tool, i use the theory of Ashach (2007). He differentiates between three types of education:
formal, informal and non-formal. Formal education regards education provided within the school system and informal and non-formal education refers to education outside of the school system. “Non-formal learning occurs in a planned but highly adaptable manner in institutions, organizations, and situations beyond the spheres of formal or informal education.” (Eshach, 2007, p.173).1 As capoeira classes happen outside the formal school
education, we could approach it as non-formal education. By understanding the education process of capoeira, I can study the ways the learning and teaching capoeira shows how the ‘hidden’ values of capoeira are internalized and embodied by the practitioners of it.
1 informal learning refers to spontaneous situations where an individual learns in a non-structured way. Eshach writes, it is important to differentiate it from non-formal learning, but in this the context of this thesis I will focus on non-formal learning, but for further reference, see Eshach (2007, p.173)
Education and socialization
To approach capoeira, specifically the social projects of capoeira, as an institution in which practitioners go through a learning process, we can conceptualize it as an institution that provides secondary socialization. I understand socialization to be the process in which an individual internalizes their social role, the norms of the social group, and the culture they inhabit. As Berger & Luckmann (1966, p.158) assert: secondary socialization is the learning of a specific role and culture in the broader society.2 As a form of non-formal education,
capoeira can be seen as an institution that provides secondary socialization to its practitioners (Eshach, 2007, p.173; Downey, 2005, p.22). Often when education and development are considered, it is only with regard to schooling in developing countries. I research in what way other forms of institutions, besides schools; can provide secondary socialization for children.
Education and inequality
In the particular cases studied in this research, the use of capoeira as an educational tool was applied in areas with urban inequality. As an institution of non-formal education, it is interesting to see how capoeira is related to the social problems relevant in São Paulo’s periphery. Education can be used as an important tool to reduce inequalities. Gill & Niens (2014) write that education can function as an institution that supports societal
transformation. In their article, Gill & Niens focus on peacebuilding education. They underline the importance of education when it comes to creating equality in society and creating a sustainable change. It is also important to take into account the 'two faces of education' (Bush & Saltarelli, 2000), education can be a mean for different goals. Education can have a positive or a negative change regarding the solving of certain social problems. Its effect depends on the way it is institutionalized, who has access to it, the set curricula etc. Gill & Niens discuss different approaches in their article. One of those is critical
education. The approach of critical pedagogy was developed by Freire (1985, 2000). Freire advocated for education as a tool to empower the oppressed, making it possible for the oppressed to stand up against their oppressors. His work holds a strong Marxist undertone
2 Primary socialization is the internalization and learning of social roles in society within the family (Berger & Luckmann, 1966)
and many authors would not follow the same structure-oriented argumentation that Freire follows, however we can see that at the core, his argumentation echoes through much of the literature. (Gill &Niens, 2014; Marteleto, 2012; Gottesman, 2010) Gill & Niens
summarize the role that education can take as 'humanizing'. It provides an opportunity for people to stand up for themselves and challenge the role that has socially been assigned to them. It can give people the opportunity to become humanized.
These theories will be used throughout my thesis to clarify my academic positioning and approach to my research. My methodological approaches of doing an embodied
ethnography will be discussed in detail in the next chapter. In the next paragraph I will discuss my thesis’ structure and explain the way the mentioned theoretical approaches will fit into the different chapters.
1.3 Academic and social contribution
By using approaches of embodiment and education of capoeira, related to its philosophy, I strive to create a new understanding of how capoeira can be seen as a tool of non-formal education, and how it should be approached in the research. Though various researchers have participated in the field when studying capoeira (Lewis, 1992, Downey, 2005), I conducted an embodied ethnographic research. This approach provides an insight that connects my personal experience, with the experience of my informants regarding
capoeira. In this was I was able to study the reflectiveness of capoeira and its philosophy on an individual’s life. This takes into consideration the complex history of capoeira and the current social issues relevant in Brazil. Furthermore I applied a theoretical approach combining the education of capoeira as a process to its philosophy. There elements have been studied separately about capoeira, but not together (Lewis, 1992; Downey, 2005; MacLannen, 2011). By researching the relevancy of capoeira to practitioners in
marginalized areas I bring these two themes together. Lastly, there has been little research done regarding capoeira in São Paulo and the capoeira style Contemporânea. By focusing on capoeira in this context and broadening the scope of capoeira that has been researched, I hope to contribute to the academic discussions regarding capoeira.
This research gives a better understanding of the social issues in marginalized communities of the urban periphery. The way social change can occur through social projects will be elaborated in this thesis. The social contribution of my approach in this thesis can be reflected in the 2015 sustainable development goals (SDG) of the United Nations. Goal number 11 reads: ‘Make cities inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable’
(United Nations, Sustainable Development Goal 11). In my thesis I look at how the different aspects of this SDG are apparent in my fieldwork. The participants in the studied social projects live in unsafe and non-inclusive parts of the city. The capoeira social projects – formulated as non-formal education, address such social issues. This makes another SDG relevant for my research: ‘Ensure inclusive and quality education for all and promote lifelong learning’ (United Nations, Sustainable Development Goal 4). I study the way that different forms of education outside of school can become educational institutions that promote lifelong learning. These broadly set goals of the UN are discussed in my thesis on a micro level to build towards more sustainable solutions around cities and education.
1.4 Thesis structure
In chapter 2 I will discuss my approaches in the field, to justify my choices of field location, methodology and reflection on my role as a researcher. Here I will bridge between my theoretical thoughts and my experience in the field while doing research. To understand capoeira and its relevancy to those who practice it, I approach capoeira as an embodied practice. This echoes throughout my research because as a capoeira practitioner myself, I participated in the activities in the field which added an embodied experience to my observations.
In chapter 3 I take a close look at different approaches to explain capoeira to answer the first sub question. The inexplicable aspect of capoeira often comes back in the
literature (Lewis, 1992; Downey, 2005). This aspect of capoeira needs to be seen as important on its own right, as it stands at the core of the value and philosophy that
capoeira holds for its practitioners. To understand capoeira beyond just its meaning, I look at different important narratives that are relevant within the capoeira community that show the contemporary discourse about the practice. Above this I look at the different
places where capoeira is found today in São Paulo, as my work took place in the context of the capoeira community in this city.
Building upon the understanding of the current capoeira landscape, I look at the way capoeira is taught and learned in chapter 4, focusing on the second sub question. The social projects of capoeira use capoeira as an educational instrument. In chapter 4 I analyze this approach, with the capoeira class as the main space where this education process happens. There are many aspects that create the education process of capoeira in order to enable passing on capoeira from one practitioner to another. I look at the different
activities, attitudes and approaches in the class as a reflection of what capoeira is and means to capoeiristas.
In chapter 5 I take a closer look at at the lives of the participants in the projects to understand their social context when entering the world of capoeira to answer the third subquestion. I look at the way issues like povety, crime and inequality based on race and gender are interrelated and create the social context of the participants in the projects.
In chapter 6 I look at the aims of the cases of social projects that I studied by analyzing them. Here I look at the way the aims and structure of the projects can be contextualized in the social reality of the projects’ participants. This chapter is aimed to answer the fourth sub question.
In chapter 7 I bring together my discussed empirical data and theoretical approaches. I analyze how the meaning of capoeira and the education of it come together with the social reality of the participants in the projects. By conceptualizing the philosophy of capoeira I discuss the way the practice as a whole can become a reflection to someone’s life, which is the main way that the education process and the aims of the projects’ work. Here i relate all the sub questions, answered through my empirical data and theoretical approach, back to my main question.
Finally I conclude by reflecting on how through learning capoeira, one embodies the practice and internalizes its philosophy. This makes a practitioner familiar with the hidden side of capoeira and turning it into a practice that serves as a metaphor to one’s life. I can empower oneself and bring a change to one’s mentality and approaches to deal with social issues that are need to be faced in life.
Chapter 2
Approaches in the Field
As mentioned in the introduction, many researchers who wrote about capoeira were practitioners of capoeira themselves. Being part of the wider ‘capoeira community’ while doing research in this community sets a certain tone to one’s research. This includes everything from research location to approach, capoeira style, research methodology, experience and interpretation. In this chapter I will discuss all of the above mentioned things to explain my methodological approach, to contextualize my research and reflect upon my personal position in the field. I will highlight the different important aspects that framed my research and show how through my embodied ethnographic methodology I approach my research.
2.1 Contacts, community and location
São Paulo is one of the contemporary capoeira hubs in Brazil, where you find hundreds of groups and thousands of teachers. The capoeira community in São Paulo is very active in organizing capoeira activities, developing and spreading the practice. However,
considering much of what has been written about capoeira, just a fraction has been written about São Paulo. It is also a metropolitan city suffering from a high degree of urban
inequality. There are many initiatives in the city that try and counter that, with various related to capoeira that is taught in the peripheries. These local contexts made São Paulo an interesting place to conduct my research. Above this, though there is some academic
research about capoeira in São Paulo (Reis, 2013), this is very limited and there is much to be explored. However, if it was not for my personal experience in capoeira I would
probably not have the access to conduct the research that I did. In a sense, my fieldwork had already started in the Netherlands. My capoeira teacher is originally from São Paulo which made it possible for him to help me find projects that would be fitting for the research I was working on.
There were also other locations that could be seen as fitting for my research. Salvador is the city that it is most often associated with capoeira and most research about capoeira has been done here. However, considering the little research done about capoeira
in São Paulo, together with the fact that finding the right contacts and a safe place to stay in Salvador turned out to be a challenge, my research location was settled on in São Paulo.
Because I was already familiar with the general structure of capoeira activities, it made the start of my fieldwork much easier. Just like any other capoeira student, I came to the classes that were part of the social projects in São Paulo and I could meet up with the students and teachers to go to events together. Even if my group is located in the
Netherlands, being part of the capoeira community helped me to normalize my
participation. At the same time I was very open about my objectives of participating in the different activities and presented my experiences in the field as a learning moment both for my own capoeira and for my research. My experiences as a capoeirista together with my interests as a researcher, made it clear for my informants what my objectives in the field were. They were able to discuss with me particularities about capoeira because I already knew the basic structure and knowledge of it. At the same time, my informants understood my motives for participating in the various capoeira activities and being interested in the social and societal aspects of the reality in which they live.
However, being from a different capoeira group, there was always a slight distance between me and the participants. Examples of this were things like the teachers not commenting or correcting me as much during the classes like they did with their own students. My position as a guest or an outsider to their capoeira group, limited my access to join whatsapp groups of the capoeira groups, a place where much of the group dynamics become visible. Besides this, I had full access to the different projects that I researched and a lot of support from the students and teachers, both regarding my fieldwork and my research in general. Because I could only spend three months on my fieldwork, I could not spend a lot of time on studying the personal lives of all of my informants. Unlike the part of my research where I actively participated in capoeira activities, I learned most about my informants’ lives by speaking to them about things like their social position and difficulties they face in their lives to better understand this social context.
2.2 Capoeira style
To explain my approach to my field I need to speak about more than just my
methodological, theoretical or academic approach to my research. To a capoeirista their capoeira style or the style of their group can be understood as their approach to capoeira, as capoeira comes in many different forms. Because of this I will proceed to shortly discuss the different styles of capoeira. Though all styles are considered capoeira, some of the movements, rules, music, rhythms and habits are different. Because of this I have chosen the capoeira style that I myself practice for my research. I am most familiar with Capoeira Contemporânea which made me capable of understanding and participating in capoeira activities of such a style.
The primary distinction between styles of capoeira is between Capoeira Regional and Capoeira Angola. The exact origin of capoeira is not entirely known. There is an
ongoing debate about whether its origin is African or Brazilian and what can be considered the start of capoeira (Lewis, 1992, p.19). While capoeira has traces to various African and Brazilian practices in the 16th century, it started to be documented in the 19th century
(Talmon-Chvaicer, 2008). At that time capoeira was an illegal practice often associated with the poor and with criminals. This changed in the 20th century when the famous Mestre
Bimba who founded the first capoeira school in Salvador, Bahia. Mestre Bimba developed his own style of capoeira called Capoeira Regional that was characterized by its athletic character, influence from other martial arts and its strict didactics and techniques to execute capoeira movements. After Bimba’s school started to gain popularity, another famous master called Mestre Pashtinha opened a capoeira school, reclaiming a more traditional style of capoeira that included older rituals and different executions of movements. He called this Capoeira Angola. Later on, another style of capoeira was developed, though not all capoeiristas recognize this as a third capoeira style. Capoeira Contemporânea started to emerge in the 1980’s. It is characterized by its structured way of teaching, using of colored ropes to symbolize one’s level, and the mixing of capoeira
regional and Angola. During my fieldwork I noticed another trend regarding the
referencing to a capoeira style. Many teachers did not want to give a title to their capoeira. They didn’t distinct their style with a name, but referred to what they practiced simply as ‘capoeira’. The reason this is important to mention is because the capoeira style influences
the group activity, behavior, practices and more. Much research has been done regarding Capoeira Angola (Lewis, 1992, Downey, 2005; Varela, 2017), because of its claim to be more traditional. Only little research has been conducted on Capoeira Regional (Campos, 2006). Independently the capoeira that is researched, certain things will evidently be left out regarding traditions, execution of movements and habits. Because of this, it is
important to reflect on the capoeira style to better position the research and the role and experience of the researcher regarding the gathered material and existing academic discussions.
My own teacher falls between defining his style as Capoeira Contemporânea and not wanting to title his capoeira. When I asked him directly how he would describe his style he said:
I don’t see myself as Capoeira Contemporânea; I see myself as a capoeirista. I try to teach my students to be capoeiristas. How can I explain it… I play more Capoeira Contemporânea, but I wouldn’t say I carry a flag [metaphorically] of Contemporânea. As a loyal student I will agree with my teacher regarding the description of the style of our group; this is the capoeira that he tries to pass on to me and that I am learning. As it is more common to have contact with groups that have a similar style, I came in touch with
capoeira teachers in Brazil that had a similar view and style of capoeira. Bellow I will shortly discuss the groups and teachers that I worked with for my research to continue framing my research, the context of my work and reflect about the inevitable subjectivity of ethnographic research.
2.3 The scope
My fieldwork was mainly focused on three different capoeira groups. Though I visited various different groups and many capoeira events of other groups, I focused my research; participation, observation and interviews, around the groups: Grupo Escola Brasil, Grupo MultiplicARTE, Grupo Capoeira Guaraúna. Before starting my fieldwork I got in touch with the teachers from the groups Escola Brasil and Guaraúna, and a few weeks into my
All of these groups were located in Zona Sul (the southern district) of the city of São Paulo. Capoeira is widly practiced throughout São Paulo, but for practical reasons I chose to focus on one district. My initial contacts taught capoeira in this region and capoeira practitioners usually visit events that are in their part of the city more than in other parts. This way I was able to get to know the local capoeira environment. I have visited a number of events and rodas in other parts of the city, either together with the teachers for these groups, or rodas that are important in regard to the capoeira community, such as Roda da República.3 Most
of my observations, experiences, conversations and interviews were conducted in the three mentioned groups. Here, I will introduce the three different groups in short as the style and organization of a capoeira group influences the findings in a research a lot. In chapter 6 I will extensively discuss the structure of social projects and work that each group has.
Figure 1 Two players starting a capoeira game at Roda da República, a traditional roda in the Center of São Paulo.
3 : Roda da república is a capoeira roda that has taken place every Sunday for over 60 years in the center of São Paulo. It is one of the most famous and important rodas in the city and a place of reference to all capoeira practitioners in the city.
Grupo Escola Brasil
Professor Formigão started capoeira at the age of nine when he moved to São Paulo from the state Minas Gerais. He has been part of Grupo Escola Brasil for four years and is responsible for all activities of the group in São Paulo. During the day Formigão has a different job, but during most evenings he teaches capoeira. He has two different spaces where he teaches, in Grajaú and next to station Autódromo. He has two advanced students who also teach capoeira in the region. The group organizes about three rodas per year, a Batizado and Troca de corda event every two years, and a few activities for just the
members of the group itself.4 The style of the group is, as Fromigão said: ‘what people call
Contemporânea’. However, he does not like to define his capoeira in one specific style. The group Escola Brasil plays much capoeira of the rhythms Benguela and São Bento grande de Bimba However, due to the influences of the capoeira in São Paulo, São Bento pequeno de Angola is also practiced at times.5
Grupo MultiplicARTE
Professor Nagô started the group MultiplicARTE. The central location is in a town close to the south of São Paulo; Itapecirica da Serra. Nagô started capoeira when he was twelve years old. He continued practicing and teaching capoeira as well as studying physical education to complement his capoeira work. Nagô has eight advanced students and fellow teachers that are part of his group and teach capoeira, mostly in the south of São Paulo but also in Itapecirica da Serra. Beside his classes twice a week there, Nagô teaches capoeira in various other locations around the southern district as part of his social projects during the day. The group strongly characterizes itself as practicing Capoeira Regional–
Contemporânea. There are monthly rodas organized in Itapecirica da Serra, and the group organizes a large event each year. The yearly event alternates between a capoeira
competition where all students of the group participate and a Batizado and Troca de Corda event for all members of of the group.
4 A batizao is a capoeira initiation ceremony. A Troca de corda is a capoeira ceremony where capoeiristas receive the next level of graduation
5 These are all different musical rhythms of capoeira. Each with particular songs sung with it, and a certain capoeira game that the rhythms accompany.
Grupo capoeira Guaraúna
Lastly, the group I have frequented the most during my time in São Paulo, is Guaraúna. The group was founded by Professor Buiu in 2010. Buiu started practicing capoeira when he was 7 in Bahia. Later on he moved to São Paulo and continues practicing there. Now, he teaches at three different favelas in Interlagos and Grajaú, and has five more advanced students that teach capoeira classes as well. After moving between different locations, the group was able to construct a central training location at a favela where Buiu himself lives. Buiu teaches there two evenings per week, for children and for adults. The other nights, he teaches at occupations that are in the very south of the city. During the day he works at an NGO of child defense services. The other students all teach capoeira classes in the region. Buiu organizes a roda every three months. His advanced students organize a roda every two months. Besides the almost monthly rodas, the group organizes two events for the children from the different favelas where the whole group come together, train capoeira, play games and receive alimentation. Above this there is a big event organized every year, alternating between a Batizado and Troca de Corda event and an all-female capoeira event. Buiu does not define himself as part of one particular capoeira style. He describes what he practices as just capoeira, though some of the habits of the group Guaraúna do resonate with those of groups that have a style that is more Contemporânea. He practices a lot of Benguela and São Bento grande de Bimba, and regularly practices different rhythms from Angola, like, São Bento pequeno de Angola that is always played at the start of the rodas of Guaraúna.6
2.4 Methodological approach
My anthropological academic background gave an ethnographic character to my fieldwork and research. My fieldwork was characterized by spending as much time as possible with my participants at all places related to capoeira in their lives or otherwise relevant to my
6 Throughout the chapters of my research I will refer to any material and data from my field by mentioning that it is a capoeira teacher, student or resident of the community. I will not specify the exact group that the person is from as I am not looking to compare groups or disclose specific information provided by any of my informant. With just a little information it would be possible to identify the informants for anyone familiar with the capoeira community of São Paulo. With permission of all the teachers of the different groups where I conducted my fieldwork, I have chosen to provide basic information about the groups to contextualize and legitimize my research. To respect their privacy I I will not disclose more information than strictly necessary.
research. The primary method of research was the documentation and description of the different relevant activities of the projects and its participants. This included classes of capoeira, but also other activities organized by the teachers of the projects like capoeira rodas in various parts of the city, capoeira events and accompanying the participants of the projects in their daily lives. These field notes were partially written during the classes and events themselves and mostly during the long metro rides from the capoeira activities back to my house. These observations were the backbone of my research and helped me
understand the routine, structure and activities related to the different projects. Depending on the activity, I also participated at times with the classes or rodas. Besides this, I used research methods to better understand the experience and thoughts of the participants. I wanted to understand to what extent and in what way the capoeiristas could reflect about their capoeira practice, as well as learn more about their lives. To learn this, I have
conducted semi-structured and non-structured interviews, mostly with capoeira teachers and students, as well as with other informants relevant to the different projects like parents of the participants, community leaders and leaders of NGO's. During the semi-structured interviews, I have included a method of video elicitation, where capoeira teachers and students of different levels reacted to videos of themselves playing capoeira to have an in depth understanding of their capoeira game. To execute the video elicitation I made video recordings of many capoeira classes and events. This is particularly useful to understand the development of an individual in capoeira on the long term. Besides the concrete capoeira games of the participants I interviewed, I filmed various part of the classes that capture the activities, atmosphere and pedagogy of the class to support my written data. Lastly I have gathered material from social media (Facebook, Youtube and Whatsapp), which includes public posts, flyers and videos that my informants use to show, promote and share their work of the social projects. This is because I found that the use of social media is very important within the capoeira community.
Capoeira is a practice which is not solely expressed in words in its natural form. Elements like body language and movements, sense of community and personal experience are all important. Because of this I have combined methods that look at both the activity of capoeira, the narrative that is formed around the activities and the structure in which the
activities and the discussion of the narrative take place, which I discuss in the following sections.
To process my results I approach my data both in a structural and a narratological way. I try to understand the activities and relations between different activities of each teacher or capoeira group. This provides a good base to understand the structure of the capoeira world of São Paulo as well as the practicalities of the social work with capoeira. To understand the structure, I have looked at the various activities organized by each group, the actions of the teachers, the capoeira technique and didactics. My narratological approach, regards understanding the narrative of capoeira practitioners about capoeira. In this approach I look at the personal life story of the practitioners and the way it interrelates with starting and learning capoeira; and the narrative formed around ones group and other capoeira groups that frame the political environment of the capoeira world in São Paulo. Depending on the way these narratives are formed, the structure of capoeira activities of the individual is influenced.
2.5 Embodiment of capoeira
As mentioned in the introduction, and as I will extensively discuss in chapter 3, explaining capoeira is a complicated matter. Different authors have already written about this
complication, trying to further the theoretical discussion by speaking about the
phenomenological perspective to try and explain capoeira and the way it can be seen as an embodied practice. Downey (2005) tries to turn away from looking for just ‘meaning’ when explaining capoeira. He looks at the phenomenon of embodiment that fits capoeira, where one starts practicing a bodily habit in a less conscious way. Capoeira is a practice and a performance. The body changes through capoeira, but this does not happen just in the ways Delamont, Stephens and Campos (2017, p.101) describe in their book: by changing habits of smoking, drinking or maintaining physical fitness and appearance. To understand and explain capoeira, it is necessary to experience it. It is just like describing a flavor. One can explain it in detail but to actually understand the flavor you would need to taste it and physically experience it. The external performance of capoeira is essential for the practice, however the deeper meaning of capoeira becomes visible when we approach capoeira as
an embodied practice that has an internalized philosophy and values inside the external performance.
As a capoeira practitioner myself, I always introduced myself during my fieldwork as a researcher who also plays capoeira. Because of this the participation during capoeira activities was often possible and sometimes even assumed. My participation in the capoeira activities changed my experience doing research. I was able to experience capoeira
together with my informants and base my research not just on the explanations of my informants, but on my personal experience. During one of my interviews I was talking to a capoeira teacher. We were watching videos of him playing in the roda. I had cut the video at the end of the game with one of his students; however, it showed for a second that I was the next one playing with him. He then proceeded to asking me to watch the video of us
playing. As my face was turning red, I opened the entire video. He started commenting about what I was doing right and wrong and also how I had started to adopt certain movements from his group, which I did not use when I just came to Brazil. By seeing how my capoeira had changed just by spending time with him and what he thought about certain movements, decisions or postures I applied in my game, I learned a lot about the way my body has adapted to this environment. I also learned the way that this teacher experiences his own body in capoeira, the meaning he connects to that and what that meant for his capoeira on not just a physical level, but as an expression to the meaning, value and philosophy of capoeira.
The practice of capoeira, the actual physical activity, carries within it the core values of capoeira and its philosophy that I try to unravel in this thesis. Capoeira is not just about which movement you make, it is about why you make it, how you make it and what effect that movement has in the context of the capoeira game. To do this capoeira needs to be embodied by the practitioner that comes into practice once a capoeirista is playing capoeira. This embodiment of capoeira happens throughout the learning process of it (Habjan, 2015, p.120). The importance of the process of embodiment to capoeira, made my participation in the classes ground my fieldwork by experiencing the way capoeira is learned and the way it can relate to a practitioner’s life.
This being said, it is also important to note that the embodiment of capoeira is not a ‘one size fits all’ experience. As Downey (2005, p.210) explains, embodiment of capoeira
does not happen in the same way for every individual. Learning to embody capoeira is both a cultural and a biological process (p.209). There are many elements involved in the
process of embodiment and learning depending on the student, the teacher and the
capoeira practiced, which has many different elements in itself. By participating in capoeira activities during my research, and with that doing embodied ethnographic participative research, I might not be able to experience what every capoeirista in the field experiences, but become more familiar with the process of the embodiment of capoeira as I was going through this process myself. I was able to embody capoeira during the different activities and include my personal experience doing so. I was able to experience the process of learning capoeira in the different groups where I did my research and to understand what capoeira is for the practitioners not just in a verbal way, but in a physical way as well.
Figure 2 These pictures show my participation in the classes. This varied a lot, from playing capoeira, telling about
Chapter 3
Everything that is Capoeira
A capoeira traçou o meu caminho Sua historia carreguei no coração Entrelaçado pelo amor que tenho a ela Eu vou seguindo sempre em sua direcção É Muito Bom
É Bom Demais
Ser Capoeira é Bom Demais
Se me perguntam o valor da capoeira Inestimável não tem como descrever Mais preciosa do que o ouro e diamante Ar que eu respiro pra poder sobreviver
Capoeira showed me the way I carried its history in my hart
Intertwined with the love that I have for it I will always follow in its direction
It’s very good It’s too good
To be a capoeirista is too good If you ask me the value of capoeira Invaluable does not describe it
More precious than gold and diamond The air that I breathe to survive
As mentioned in the introduction, it is difficult to explain what capoeira is. This thesis’ main goal is to understand what capoeira does to its practitioners, but for this it is important to first try to understand what capoeira is for its practitioners. In this chapter I will respond my first sub question by looking at my theoretical approach as well as my data. I will start by looking at different approaches to understand capoeira, recognizing the complications that come with defining capoeira. In an attempt to further understand what capoeira
entails, I will follow by not focusing on a definition or menaning making of it but rather, use my experience in the field to show some relevant narratives that are important within capoeira in practice and relevant for this thesis. Lastly, considering the explanation of capoeira and the narratives that it includes, I will look at where capoeira happens, meaning not only the location, but the social context and activities in which the narratives are
3.1 approaches
Capoeira is discussed in many different ways within the literature: as a martial art, a dance with elements off a fight, a manifestation of Afro-Brazilian culture, a game, and more. As a working explanation for those who are not familiar with it, capoeira can be shortly
explained as the following: Capoeira is a playful game that uses different kinds of movements that resemble a martial art, a dance and acrobatics, and it is practiced with music and songs that are rooted in Afro-Brazilian traditions. Though capoeira can be seen as a practice that is the product of a hybrid of different cultures (Lewis, 1992, p.23), it is most often associated with Afro-Brazilian culture and is rooted in the time of slavery in Brazil (Lewis, 1992, p.18; Assunção, 2004, p.31). Besides the physical performance and its historical roots, which are often emphasized, capoeira has a philosophical dimension as well. Long time practitioners use capoeira as an ideological foundation or a helping tool in their daily life (Lewis, 1992, p.xxii,6; Almeida, 1986, p.147; MacLennan, 2011, p. 317).
It is important to note the difference between what capoeira looks like and what it is. On the one hand capoeira visibly seems to consist out of many different elements as mentioned above and is a performance and a practice where these elements are visible. On the other hand we need to recognize the holistic character of the practice through the eyes of the practitioners. It is not the different aspects of capoeira or a mere analysis of the practice that will expose ‘what capoeira is’, nor ‘what capoeira does’. The verses quoted at the beginning of this chapter mention something that is a reoccurring experience of
capoeira practitioners: the inexplicable value of capoeira. Downey (2005, p.19) writes that to understand capoeira we should not focus on its meaning, but rather on the experience and practice of it. Downey describes this in multiple pages, just like various other authors, like the classic work of Lewis (1992), where in the introduction he reflects on the difficulty to explain capoeira to an outsider and borrows a term of Geertz (1983) ‘blurred genre’ to try and approach capoeira in and academic way. Aware of the same challenges to explain capoeira, Delamont, Stephens and Campos (2017) try to explain capoeira to those who are not familiar with it, by explaining different practices and elements of it in their
introduction. In the introduction I explained my theoretical approach to capoeira, as a practice that takes an ambiguous position between play and game. But I also found that the difficulty of explaining capoeira that all of the mentioned authors discuss in multiple pages
or in a chapter, are summarized by one stanza of the capoeira song I quoted at the
beginning of this chapter. ‘The value of capoeira is so big, that it is indescribable. ‘Or rather, it’s ambiguous positioning as a practice between play and game as a practice creates the inexplicable of capoeira: it’s hidden side.
I was never satisfied with the literary explanations of capoeira, this was for two reasons; firstly, not one of my respondents ever described capoeira in the way that the academic literature often tried to do. Capoeira was not something that could be explained just by describing elements out of which it exists (such as dance of fight). Secondly, the explanations of capoeira did not correspond with my personal experience of what capoeira is. Though it might look like a dance-fight-game for an outsider, I have found that most practitioners of capoeira, including myself experience it as more than that. When addressing the topic of what capoeira is and what the value of capoeira is during my fieldwork, I saw the tears welling up in my informants eyes. I saw how they became emotional as they were struggling to find the right words to explain everything that
capoeira was for them. Because of this, even while using a working explanation of capoeira for the outsider - those who are not familiar with it at all, I find it useful to approach the ‘unexplainable’, the ‘magic’ of capoeira that the practitioners speak of as part of its meaning. The struggle of approaching even the basis of my research topic, is one that different researchers share. Van de Port describes in his book (2011) his difficulty to understand what the Brazilian cult called Candomblé entails. He come to a term to
understand part of the mysticism that it entails by calling it ‘the rest of what is’. It implies that there are different ways of world making. The mysticism that van de Port refers to, just like the unexplainable of what capoeira is, indicate to a different form of world making than the academic mode, that has a hard time grasping such different modes. By recognizing that part of the value and meaning of capoeira lies in something that cannot be explained by words we can better recognize what it is and with that, what capoeira does. My theoretical approach to study the ambiguous position of capoeira between play and game, are related to the meaning that capoeiristas give to capoeira: an inexplicable practice; a practice that entails an element of the rest of what is’. This explanation of capoeira, together with the practice of capoeira being a playful game, provides a perspective of what capoeira is for the capoeirista.
3.2 narratives
To not keep dwelling on a definition of capoeira I will apply a narratological approach to highlight some of the prominent narratives within the capoeira community to illustrate the way capoeira is discussed and thought about. By just explaining the approaches to what capoeira is, as done in the previous paragraph it can still be vague to understand the way capoeira is seen and talked about in practice. Because of this I will provide these narratives. I have chosen five narratives that I see as prominent within the capoeira community based on my experience and my fieldwork. Above this, these narratives are relevant for this specific thesis as I try to understand how capoeira is a useful ‘tool’ that helps in the context of urban inequalities. Having said this it is important to stress that these narratives might not be the same for every place where capoeira is practiced, nor were they the only ones I heard during my fieldwork, they are however good illustrations of capoeira and valuable to share in this thesis.
Capoeira as an entity
Many practitioners speak about capoeira as an entity. This is something that is not
discussed much in the literature, but is essential to understand the role that capoeira has in the life of the practitioners. A common phrase regarding capoeira that is used at roda da República is: Capoeira viva. Capoeira lives. In chapter 6 I will fully discuss the way people frame the role of capoeira in their lives. But the concrete way of referring to what capoeira is, is also important. Long time practitioners frame phrases as ‘capoeira has done so much for me’, ‘capoeira gives, but she also takes from you’ or they speak of the ‘capability of capoeira’. By talking about capoeira in this way they animate it. Capoeira becomes almost a living entity that influences someone’s life.
Fundamentos
When trying to execute my field research as well as possible I was always paying attention to small actions and behaviors of people. I always first tried to let my informants explain to me and tell me whatever they wanted, and thought to be interesting. After noticing certain things multiple times I went up and asked why they do what they do. Why do they order the instruments in a certain way, put their clothes on in a certain way, behave in a certain
way in the roda, play certain rhythms and sing certain songs? One the answers was often that it is part of the fundamentos: the fundamental things that create the foundation of capoeira. These fundamentos are the core of the practice and of a capoeira group. Based on the fundamentos of capoeira one can further develop and grow as a capoeirista. This was one of the important things the teachers tried to pass to their students. Such a framing underlined the important historical aspect and the building on past knowledge that capoeira hold.
History
The style of capoeira and its didactics are connected to an approach that has a historical narrative connected to it. Capoeiristas often reflect on the past of capoeira to explain their own actions, choices and behavior in capoeira. Because of this the contemporary and historical narratives in capoeira become intertwined. The past of slavery and the African diaspora that arrived to Brazil has shaped capoeira to be what it is today (Taylor, 2007). Capoeira is seen as a practice that the slaves in Brazil used in the past to defend and to free themselves. Paintings by Rugendas or descriptions of Muniz Sodré show the presence of capoeira or a similar practice in the 19th century in Brazil (capoeira, 2002, p.118). Being a
hybrid from different practices, other dances, fights or performances that are probably related to capoeira already existed in Brazil and in Africa (Lewis, 1992, p.24; Ministério da Cultura, unknown). The historical ties of capoeira are often made relevant in a way to explain the fundamentos or legitimize one’s action.
Philosophy
Capoeiristas often say that capoeira is their life philosophy. It is difficult to pinpoint the meaning of it as it is very subjective and broad. One of the key beliefs however that is often shared by capoeiristas, is seeing the roda is a symbol to one’s life. The way you behaves in the roda, is how you would behave in your life. Whether you act hesitant, brave, smart or funny during a game of capoeira, you will behave in the same way throughout your life. This metaphor is often not taken very directly but more as an interpretation, idea or a value that the roda holds. This metaphor represents the represent the way that
Other works discuss the meaning of the roda in a more profound way than I do in this thesis (Lewis, 1992). Though the philosophy of capoeira comes back in this thesis, I take it as a narratological way that capoeiristas explain the value of capoeira. However, ‘the philosophy of capoeira’ stays a very subjective matter that cannot be structurally addressed.
Music
The different narratives that I encountered in capoeira which I explained in this paragraph can all be summarized in one aspect of capoeira: the music. The topics of capoeira music can range from the telling of history, tributes to famous capoeiristas or capoeira itself, talking about the instruments about the life of capoeiristas, location relevant to capoeira’s history, or even about religious connotations. During my many interviews and
conversations with various capoeiristas, often, when they were not sure about how to express something, they took a moment and then quotes a song, to explain their ideas in a summarized but direct way. Musicality is a central aspect of capoeira and it represents much of how a capoeirista thinks, expresses themselves and interprets capoeira.
3.3 community & politics
Nowadays capoeira can be found in most countries of the world and throughout the whole of Brazil. In the 1970’s capoeira started spreading from Bahia and capoeiristas started travelling and teaching in different places in Brazil. In the 1970s and 1980s São Paulo saw an influx of capoeiristas from Bahia who started to teach different styles of capoeira to people from varying social classes (Talmon-Chvaicer, 2008, p.124). With the exodus of capoeira from Bahia came many changes. Firstly, while in Bahia there was much rivalry between capoeiristas of different styles, in places like São Paulo there was a merging of styles and more coherence between the different groups. In the past, capoeira was passed on from a teacher to his disciples. After the institutionalization of the different styles of capoeira, it became more structured: capoeira teachers started ‘capoeira schools’ with a distinct name, logo and group identity. Such groups could have multiple teachers and were
