A rapaziada do Mundo Novo: amizade, rivalidades e produção de diferença

Abstract

This ethnographic study of a group of young men living in “Mundo Novo” (New World), a neighborhood in the outskirts of Juiz de Fora (MG), is a thick description based upon accounts and reflections in dialogue with personal observations and interpretations. A theoretical and methodological approach was developed in the interaction with them. The research question aims to understand these youngsters' moving in large groups through the city streets, albeit the contact with them and most of the here treated subject matters focus on their experiences on the streets and other shared spaces in their own neighborhood. Drawing upon a field research conducted in 2014 and 2015, the author seeks to describe and analyze a set of practices represented by a multitude of typically juvenile, social constructs and reinterpretations. Being part of the New World´s jig as a cohesive and stable group involves a special relationship with the birthplace where these young people grew up, and with the parents-and-grandparents’ generational experiences, which encompasses a daily production of a "different style". The research found that their strong bonds of friendship reveal shared experiences that motivate them to set up varied ways of expression and belonging, which translate into friendship experiences, style buildings and rivalry feelings. The thesis discusses the events shared and experienced by this group of young people, how these events become significant for a youth sociality built on a daily basis.