Garrincha x Pelé: soccer, cinema, literature and the construction of the national identity

Abstract

This article has the propose of discussing the question of national identity construction considering the debates between writers and journalists of Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo at the time of Garrincha, alegria do povo (Joaquim Pedro de Andrade) and Rei Pelé (Carlos Hugo Christensen) movies release in 1963. I attempt to establish a dialogue of these positions with the thought of Nélson Rodrigues, on his intention to check the possibility of the construction of the nation from the soccer fields, concerning the possible contributions of the two players to the Brazilian society.