About a slave who could read and the begginings of a supposed insurrection in Campos dos Goytacazes (1871-1877)

Abstract

This article discusses an accusation of insurrection led by a literate slave, in the city of Campos dos Goytacazes, province of Rio de Janeiro, during the period of the slavery crisis. In a conception of social subjects as agents-based approach, based on sources such as police questionings, journals, reports and inventories, the objective is to investigate how the inscription of these slaves in other discursive positions rather than those of submission to the logic of class, led them to appropriate a liberal statement to rebel against the slave-owning order. In the end, we conclude that the relationship between ongoing socioeconomic transformations and the reflection of slaves on what was acceptable or not in their condition contributed to the redefinition of their position in the relationship with their masters.