Here is a well-written interpretation of Brazil from the Communist point of view. No attempt is made to cloak the author’s position that class war is inevitable and that the Communist Party is the true representative of the working class. The chief virtue of this publication is that it presents a clear statement of the current Communist “line” on Brazil, and the arguments by which the Party justifies its policies. It explains, for instance, the party’s alliance with the Partido Trabalhista Brasileiro, which, the author frankly admits, is dominated by the haute bourgeoisie and large landholders “some of whom are extremely reactionary” (p. 119).
His interpretation of the Brazilian past is of particular interest to historians. Of course, the revolution of 1930 is seen as the bourgeois revolution. But more interesting are the views such as that the Brazilian spirit of compromise is the result of the dominant classes’ great craftiness in avoiding popular revolutionary movements, knowing exactly when and how to give in outwardly to reformist demands and still retain their positions of power. Another point is that the revolt at Canudos led by Antônio Conselheiro was a peasant revolt against the feudal aristocracy. Even Brasília is explained in purely economic terms: its construction reflects the shift from a colonial economy centering in its ports to an industrializing economy aimed at an internal market; and while it provides markets for the new industrialists it also relieves the pressure on the landowning aristocracy, thus satisfying the two classes that control the government and the seats of power.
Finally, the author makes no bones about some of the more questionable elements of the Party line. The favelas of Bio are a good thing as they provide “una manera de ejercer presión” (p. 37). The suffering of the Northeast is due solely to the socioeconomic structure and not at all to climatic conditions. The Brazilian government agency for the relief of this region, Sudene, should be opposed, as it ignores the basic problem of land holdings to concentrate on bourgeois palliatives. Reform movements are generally viewed with suspicion as they are only another attempt made by the dominant classes to postpone the true revolution.