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A Global Nation
by Jorge Caldeira
The first impressions gained by Europeans on landing
in tropical America varied according to the nature of
an age when science and mysticism were one and the same
thing. The pioneering adventurers were those who at
that time were the most knowledgeable from a technological
point of view because, in those days, sailing the high
seas required a mastery of the mathematical, astronomical
and engineering sciences. Ocean-going vessels were built
using the very best techniques, equipped with the latest
instruments and armed with the most advanced weaponry
of the time.
 But
this was not all that was required for a voyage. The
location of the destination depended largely on intuitive
calculations, generally based on the reports of travellers.
In this matter, fantasy and intuition were just as important
as technical knowledge. Above all, each captain had
a hypothesis to be tested, rather than a heading to
be followed. For example, Christopher Columbus thought
he had reached not the Antilles but Cipango (a land
that historians later associated with Japan). Therefore,
when the new land had been reached, it was necessary
not only to calculate its position but also to carry
out a comparative study in order to find out whether
the physical place corresponded with the data that had
produced the initial hypothesis. As the destination
was also a place that had its origins in what would
nowadays be called fantasy, there was no reason to doubt
any of the information that had formed the hypothesis.
Amongst the opportunities offered by the new lands
was the possibility that the tropical regions would
be the physical site of Paradise, as described in the
Bible. Observations made by Columbus on America led
him to agree with statements made by certain theologians
who debated the possibility of having arrived at the
place described in Genesis: a place in the Oriental
latitudes, where night and day were of equal length,
where nature was exuberant and the people lived free
from illness and sin. In one of his letters, Columbus
declared with certainty that the region corresponded
with this description, only a short walk away from Eden:
"I think that by crossing the equinoctial line
to reach it, there is the earthly paradise", he
stated.
The Eldorado
Nowadays, we would certainly classify the Portuguese
navigators who arrived in Brazil as being much more
realistic in attitude than Columbus, who believed he
had discovered the Garden of Eden. The first document
dealing with Brazil, written by the scribe Pero Vaz
de Caminha, does not go much further than his eyes could
see, although here and there were indications of scenes
from Paradise: "Amongst them were three or four
young girls, gentle virgins, with very long, dark hair
falling down their backs, and their private parts exposed
to view and uncovered by hair, yet however much we looked
at them they showed no modesty whatsoever". This
absence of original sin recurs in other parts of his
letter: "The innocence of that people is such that
Adam could not have shown less shame".
 With
the passing of time and experience, the hypothesis of
the physical existence of paradise has come to occupy
the intellect of an increasing number of travellers.
Soon the objective was delimited: a great lake from
which four rivers flowed, in the middle of what would
be Eldorado. Repeated contact with the natives made
this possibility more credible. The location appeared
to be the centre of the South American continent and
as such, the lake of Eldorado appeared on countless
maps until the seventeenth century.
The certainty of Paradise was such that in a short
time, "schools of thought" emerged in order
to define the objectives and the route. Two main aspects
were explored. In the most "spiritual" of
these, if the term could be applied to travellers of
the time, the most sought-after was the Tree of Life
planted in the middle of the Garden of Eden and watched
over by cherubim and seraphim. At its base there would
be a fountain, and whoever drank the water would gain
knowledge of the secrets of the Universe and eternal
youth. The aim of the "materialist" aspect
was something different: the rivers of gold, the silver
palaces set with precious stones, crystal towers and
streets of gold that would mark the city of Eldorado.
All this helped to adapt a vision of America as a land
that would remedy Europe's sexual, spiritual and material
ills. The new lands would feed desires, hopes and purses
- enough to convince anyone to embark on an adventure
to the new continent. But the desire for infinite conquest,
in Brazil at least, was soon to be tempered by a succession
of impasses that would lead to a rapid modification
of this picture.
Reality and Relations with the Native Indians
To travel all over the land in search of wealth was
one thing but to stay there was something quite different.
Whilst there were misfortunes, the division of expectation
moulded itself to the reality encountered. In Brazil,
the reality was that there were no clear indications
of gold or precious stones, whilst there was a growing
certainty that not all was peace and harmony with the
inhabitants who had hitherto seemed so innocent. Before
long, the body of some adventurer had been served up
at a ritual tribal banquet and what had seemed an easy
exercise turned into an dubious adventure. In less than
three decades, the Portuguese government reached the
conclusion that the best thing to do in the absence
of minerals that abounded in Mexico was to try and exploit
the agricultural potential of the place. In light of
the hopes of the age, this was an almost forlorn conclusion.
 But
the decision was to pose an extraordinary problem: it
would be necessary to live side by side with the tribes
of the Brazilian coast, the majority of which were Tupis.
The equation was not exactly a simple one. Brazil was
occupied by a vast collection of autonomous groups.
There were millions of individuals, speaking at least
170 languages, with different origins. With the exception
of Amazônia, it was rare to find a grouping of
less than one thousand individuals. There was no relationship
of subordination amongst them; it was impossible to
conquer the land as had been the case in Mexico, where
the toppling of the king was the equivalent of assuming
sovereignty over the entire Aztec empire. In other words,
becoming established in Brazil involved group by group
contact and its continued repetition.
Contrary to what happened in the United States, this
contact could not be limited to the warlike activities
of driving away or massacring the original occupants.
The motive was very simple: the entire stock of knowledge
at that time was completely useless for the task of
working the land. The Brazilian coast was covered by
the Atlantic Forest, the most exuberant variety of tropical
rain forest. Giant trees took over the entire land and
underneath them lived hundreds of thousands of species
that were completely unknown to European eyes. Seeds
brought from the old continent often did not germinate
- and if they germinated it was not enough to sustain
life. Soon, the pioneer farmers died of hunger under
a tree that produced edible fruit - if only the victim
had known.
The force of arms was on the side of the French, Portuguese
and Spanish who ventured into Brazil. It was not difficult
to shoot an entire tribe. But neither was there any
sense in such action when the aim was to occupy the
land on a permanent basis. The perception of a new state
of affairs began to dawn from that realization in a
very positive way: the success achieved by those who
did not follow the usual rules.
Effective Occupation
 The
effective occupation of the Brazilian territory was
only possible when an agreement was reached that enabled
the Europeans to know a little of what the Indians already
knew - that there was much more than could be obtained
by the force of arms. The natives knew the uses of thousands
of plants (to give some idea of this, the tribes' common
medicine chest generally involved the use of hundreds
of remedies). They knew sophisticated methods of preparing
food, the most important of which at that time was cassava.
They cultivated species that were hitherto unknown (maize,
cotton, tobacco and peanut, the latter being the most
important). They knew how to handle nature: to master
the planting seasons, they moved around seeking out
foods that were appropriate for each time of the year.
The first Europeans to have access to this immense
source of knowledge were precisely those who accepted
the necessary price - a price that gave rise to the
mixture of fascination and incomprehension that nowadays
colours the image of the country and its place in the
Western world. To survive in Brazil, the Europeans had
to forget about their system of values and accept that
of the Indians.
Family Relations
The only possible basis for agreement was the custom,
chiefly Tupi, that governed the acceptance of strangers
in the tribe. From their point of view, the issue was
as follows: the entire cultural structure of the tribe
was based on blood relationships that identified the
members of the group. The notion of the individual,
essential within European culture, was nonsense for
the Indians. To live amongst the tribe meant having
a place in the chain that bound everyone by blood ties
and the organizing of marriages. Only in so far as an
individual was recognized by his relational position
was he part of the group. Therefore, there were only
two possible options for an outsider: to be an enemy
or a relation.
 The
extreme difference was an indication of the radical
option. To accept an outsider was the equivalent of
their being married to a member of the group. The first
to recognize this alternative were those who had fallen
on hard times. Taking a woman made them related to all
the members of the group, holders of a direct ticket
to probable death for a less than satisfactory relationship.
Those first Europeans who married according to native
custom immediately became fundamental instruments in
the organizing of increasingly frequent relationships
with other Europeans.
Instead of returning home when another ship appeared,
they made use of their dual status as Indians and Europeans
in order to establish a new phase. Used to the trading
customs of their equals, in accordance with the traditional
tribal custom of providing assistance, from their relations
they obtained products for supplying ships, trading
the former for metal artefacts and objects that would
be useful for life in the forest.
The new phase signified major progress for the unfortunate
turned trader. Competence in the use of iron instruments
- which soon became the basic merchandise for exchange
- represented an immediate step forward for his relations.
The time taken to cut down a large tree with an iron
axe was infinitely less than that required when using
stone axes - and it was necessary to cut down a great
number of trees to open up a simple forest clearing
in which to plant crops. The opportunity to obtain European
tools was the passport to a highly prestigious position
within the tribe, that would be translated in the local
manner: the offer of women from other sub-groups (polygamy
amongst the Indians in general was seen as a reward
for the most able), which provided better access to
the benefits obtained by the new relation.
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Sports
Although Brazilians are keen on sports in general, in terms of popularity there is one sport that stands out. It is played throughout the country and has become a source of great national pride. It is, of course, football.
For decades Brazil has produced an astonishing number of highly talented professional footballers, many of whom leave the country to spend at least part of their careers abroad. The Brazil national team, widely regarded as the finest exponents of 'the beautiful game', have won the World Cup five times - twice more than any other country. After victories in 1958, 1962, 1970 and 1994, the latest triumph came in Japan and South Korea in 2002.
The Maracanã Stadium, built in Rio de Janeiro for the 1950 World Cup, is one of the largest and most famous sports venues in the world, with a capacity of almost 100,000. Now virtually all-seater, the Maracanã used to be capable of holding even bigger crowds, the largest of which was almost 200,000 (still the world-record football attendance) for the 1950 World Cup final.
Even those who are not keen on football have heard of Pelé (Edson Arantes do Nascimento), internationally acclaimed the greatest footballer of all time, and the scorer of more than 1,200 goals during his 18-year career in Brazil.
Among Brazil's current crop of stars, Ronaldo (whose two goals sealed the 2002 World Cup final victory), Ronaldinho and Robinho are probably the most famous. They play club football in Europe for AC Milan, Barcelona and Real Madrid respectively.
Volleyball is the second most popular sport in Brazil. The Brazilian men's team won gold at the 2004 Athens Olympics for both conventional volleyball, played on an indoor court, and beach volleyball, played outdoors on sand. The women's teams, widely expected to do equally well, had to be satisfied with a single silver medal for beach volleyball.
Brazil is regarded as a major force in basketball, having produced impressive performances at many Olympic Games. In Athens, however, neither the men's nor the women's team won a medal.
Tennis is quite popular, and was given a boost in the late 1990s with the success enjoyed by by Gustavo Kuerten, known to all Brazilians by his nickname 'Guga'. Kuerten has won sixteen international men's singles competitions, including three victories in the French Open in 1997, 2000 and 2001. Before Kuerten, the biggest Brazilian impact on the international tennis scene had been made by Maria Ester Bueno, who won an astonishing seven ladies' singles titles at Wimbledon between 1958 and 1966.
Motor racing has grown in popularity since the late 1960s when Emerson Fittipaldi started accumulating Formula One victories. There have been a number of excellent Brazilian drivers, such as Nelson Piquet, world champion in 1981, 1983 and 1987, and Ayrton Senna, world champion in 1988, 1990 and 1991, who tragically died in a crash at Italian Grand Prix in 1994. Rubens Barrichello, number two to Michael Schumacher in the Ferrari team, and himself the winner of many races, has been Brazil's most successful driver over the last ten years.
Brazilians have also distinguished themselves in international rowing, sailing, judo, swimming and gymnastics competitions, while the country's extensive coastline and warm climate have encouraged ever-increasing participation in relatively new sports such as surfing, windsurfing and hang-gliding.
History of Brazilian football
Englishman Charles Miller was carrying a football when he landed in Brazil at the end of the nineteenth century, hoping to create interest in the sport that was rapidly becoming popular in Britain. No one could have imagined then that the seeds of one of Brazil's national passions were about to be sown, or that a hundred years later the country would be admired worldwide for the beauty with which its footballers played the game.
Football spread through Brazil like wildfire, and by the 1920s the country had established itself as a footballing force in South America. In the 1930s fans were enthralled by the skills of Domingos da Guia, a full-back with a talent for attacking and dribbling the ball out of his own area; Leônidas da Silva, who achieved international fame by inventing the bicycle kick; and Friedreich, a formidable striker who was said to have scored more than one thousand goals.
Brazil would have to wait some time for its first world title, however. Though Brazilian players were blessed with enormous natural talent, the sport remained in a state of administrative disarray.
In 1950 Brazil hosted the World Cup and built the largest stadium in the world, the Maracanã. The shock defeat by Uruguay in the final showed the true intensity of the national passion: the Maracanã fell silent, then erupted into sobs. There were heart attacks, brawls and even attempted suicides. Stars from the 1950 team such as the goalkeeper Barbosa, the full-backs Pinheiro and Juvenal and the attackers Zizinho, Ademir and Jair were greatly affected by what is still referred to as a national tragedy. Another eight years would pass before the golden age of Brazilian football truly arrived.
In 1958, in Sweden, Brazil won its first World Cup with a team featuring Gilmar, Djalma Santos, Bellini, Nilton Santos, Didi, Garrincha, Vavá and Zagallo - and of course a seventeen-year-old now considered the greatest footballer of the twentieth century: Pelé.
Pelé was injured early in the 1962 World Cup tournament in Chile, but Brazil, with Garrincha's dribbling skills deployed to devastating effect, had more than enough talent to win its second consecutive title.
Many football fans consider the Brazilian team that won the 1970 World Cup in Mexico - featuring Pelé, Carlos Alberto, Clodoaldo, Gerson, Jairzinho, Rivelino and Tostão - to have been the best of all time, responsible for producing some of the finest televised moments in the history of the sport.
Over the next 20 years Brazil continued to be a source of great players - Paulo César, Reinaldo, Falcão, Sócrates, Zico, Júnior and Cerezzo - but the national team failed to win the World Cup. The team which participated in the 1982 tournament in Spain won many admirers for its exhilarating attacking football, but was eliminated by eventual champions Italy in a game widely regarded as one of the most exciting ever.
The football tournament that forms part of the Olympic Games is taken quite seriously by Brazilian fans, perhaps particularly because it is a competition in which Brazil has not yet managed to stamp its authority. Twice in the 1980s Brazil fell at the last hurdle, winning silver in Los Angeles (1984) and in Seoul (1988). The best performance since then has been a bronze medal in Atlanta in 1996.
Brazil's fourth World Cup victory came in the United States in 1994. The team did not satisfy its fans' desire for 'football art', but was effectively marshalled by captain Dunga and spearheaded by the diminutive pairing of Bebeto and Romário, the latter widely considered the best striker in the world in the mid-1990s.
That mantle then passed to Ronaldo, a teenage member of the 1994 squad whose pace and finishing ability had already made him a global star by the time of the 1998 World Cup in France. Brazil's team in that tournament was good but not exceptional: weaknesses were exposed in the final against France, and a listless performance led to a 0-3 defeat.
Before the 2002 World Cup in Japan and South Korea the customary confidence of Brazil's fans was somewhat lacking, the team having struggled even to qualify for the competition. When it mattered, however, the '3 R's' of Ronaldo, Ronaldinho and Rivaldo all began to click into gear, as did the two marauding full-backs, Cafu and Roberto Carlos. The team made impressive progress to the final, where they overcame Germany 2-0 with two goals from Ronaldo.
Four years on, Brazil arrived at the 2006 World Cup in Germany as favourites, with fans worldwide looking forward to enjoying majestic attacking football from the 'magic quartet' of Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, Kaká and Adriano. Disappointment was to follow, however: Brazil were beaten 0-1 by France in the quarter-finals without having registered a truly convincing performance in any of their games, although Ronaldo did become the record goalscorer in World Cups by taking his overall tally to fifteen. Their defeat appeared to give substance to the belief, widely held in Brazil, that there is an inverse relationship between the level of expectations prior to the World Cup and the team's subsequent performance on the pitch.
The fact that Brazil has achieved the status of pentacampeão, five-times winner of the most prestigious competition in the world's most popular sport, twice more than any other country, is an understandable source of national pride. The country continues to produce an extraordinary number of talented players, especially midfielders and forwards. However, the domestic game continues to be poorly administrated and most fans have little disposable income, so matches between all but the biggest clubs are watched by crowds which are small by European standards. Clubs lack the resources to keep their stars from pursuing most of their careers in other parts of the world, particularly Europe. Though most Brazilian fans wish it were not the case, footballing talent will remain one of the country's major exports for the forseeable future. |
