Cultural Analysis: Brazil

Alisia Valdez

Cultural Analysis: Brazil

Brief History

The Portuguese colonized Brazil in the 1500. The Native tribes originally occupied the land, became slaves along with the Africans after the colonization. In 1822 Brazil became independent and slavery was abolished. An end came to the royal family in 1889 and a dictator ruled throughout the 1950's. After a great deal of turnover civilian rule was created in 1985.

Geography

Location. Brazil is located in South America and is the largest nation in the continent covering 3,286,470 square miles. Brazil borders the Atlantic Ocean and neighbors all nations in South America expect Chile and Ecuador. Brazil has a span of four time zones. Climate. The climate is 90% tropical and temperate in the south. Brazil is divided into five climatic regions: equatorial, tropical, semiarid, highland tropical, and subtropical. Topography. Brazil consists of lowland basins, mountains, plateaus, hills, and rivers.

Social Institutions

Family: Brazilians are true to family values and uphold their beliefs. Children are admired. Nuclear. Nuclear families are rare and the majority of families are extended. Extended. Families include close and distant relatives such as stepchildren, godparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. Parental Roles. A father influences authority roles on sons while mothers influence homemaker roles upon the daughters. Marriage and Courtship. Marriages are granted by the civil courts or under the Roman Catholic Church. Female/Male Roles. The men work and have authority over women and children. The women stay at home and tend to the children, but are growing independent, employed are more educated than men, taking over their households. Education. Education is in high demand. Schools are public and private. Primary. Primary school begins at age seven. Public schools are free and crowed. They lack teachers, equipment and money. 60% to 80% of students actually attend; do to absence and malnutrition. Private schools are funded and are attended by upper and middle class students. Secondary. Secondary school begins at age fifteen. Students sign up for one of two programs when they begin. “Colegial” program, which prepares the students for college or the “Tecnic” program, which prepares the students for trade. Higher Education. Of the 37.6 million students enrolled in 1990 only 1.7 million attended universities. Private schools students tend to pass the entrance exam required by universities and are accepted more than public students. Literacy. Today, the total population of literate citizens is at 86.6%. This has increased from 83.2% in 1995 to 86.6% in 2003. Political System: Structure. The structure of Brazil is the Federative Republic. Parties. The political system parties include: “Brazilian Democratic Movement Party, Brazilian Labor Party, Brazilian Social Democracy Party, Brazilian Socialist Party, Brazilian Progressive Party, Communist Party of Brazil, Democratic Labor Party, Green Party, Liberal Front Party, Liberal Party, National Order Reconstruction Party, Popular Socialist Party, Social Democratic Party, and Worker's Party”.1 Stability. Brazil is now stable and was confirmed in January of 2003 by the New Government. Tax Rates. In Brazil the tax rates are based on gross income. The tax rate was increased from 32% to 40%. Local Government. The Local Government of Brazil is Republic consisting of three elements; President: Executive Power; Congress: Senate and Chamber of Deputies, controls Legislative Power; Supreme Federal Tribunal: Heads the Judicial Branch of Government. Legal System: Judiciary. The judicial branch is made up of federal, state, and municipal courts. Code or Common. The common code is based on Roman Codes. They have not yet accepted Compulsory ICJ Jurisdiction. Intellectual Property. The Intellectual Property covers Industrial and Artistic Property. Artistic Properties include: Literacy, Scientific, and Artistic. Industrial Properties include: Inventions, Trade and Service marks. Social Organizations: Groups. There are many social groups in Brazil ranging from those who fight to save the Amazon to those who fight for the welfare of the children. Social Classes. The well off live in large homes located centrally. Private schools, cars and malls are essential. The urban poor live in favelas or housing projects outside the cities. Busses are their transportation. Public schools and small shops are most relied on. The rural poor are almost invisible. Races. Over the decades Europeans, Portuguese, Africans, Italians, Germans, Polish, Japanese, Lebanese, Turkish, and Syrians all migrated to Brazil. Ethnicity. All races have intermingled and intermarried, making it difficult to classify the ethnicities of Brazil. Subcultures.