“Nenhum lar sem o lar católico!”: discursos e vivências sobre gênero, família e sexualidade no jornal Lar Católico (1954- 1986)

Abstract

This dissertative text is an attempt to recover the speeches about family and sexuality presented in one of the most influential Catholic newspapers in Brazil, the Lar Católico. This newspaper, published by the Verbo Divino missionaries, circulated by virtually the entire twentieth century, especially in the states of Minas Gerais, Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo. The time frame established by this research that covers the years 1954 to 1986, was not set at random. In fact, this historical period contains modifications in the context of familiar and sexual relationships, with the approval of the law that allowed divorce in the country and with the advent and popularization of contraceptive methods. In the field of Christianity occurs The Second Vatican Council, which was intended to approach the Catholic Church with the contemporary world. The intention of this research is to analyze how these changes were perceived by the editors of Lar Católico and how they were mobilized to suit the design of the newspaper, which consisted of the social order by building family relationships. Thus, it is interesting to observe how the newspaper conducted the discussion about family, showing its position on divorce, the number of children and motherhood and how it intended to control the bodies, emphasizing issues such as virginity, abortion and female sexuality. Furthermore, this dissertation also try to perceive how the speeches elaborated by the newspaper, which allowed the construction of different representations of gender, family and sexuality, were appropriated by readers and had based their practices. To achieve this goal, the discussion was undertaken regarding the content of a particular column, named Intercâmbio com os Leitores, which consisted of a space in which they could develop bonds of sociability, report their discontentment about their spouses, reveal their conflicts and familiar union and even find new relationships.