CANUDOS ALÉM DO LIVRO DIDÁTICO:

LITERATURA, HISTÓRIA E PRÁTICAS DE LEITURA DECOLONIAIS A PARTIR DE CIDADELA DE DEUS – A SAGA DE CANUDOS

Abstract

In this article we analyze the work Cidadela de Deus – a saga de Canudos ([1996] 2003), by Gilberto Martins, through the lens of the contemporary historical novel of mediation, examining its contributions to the formation of literary readers from a decolonial perspective. The study is grounded in theoretical approaches that problematize the coloniality of power, the hegemony of official historiography, and the silencing of marginalized social groups within the context of the War of Canudos (1896–1897). Methodologically, the research adopts a qualitative, bibliographical, and analytical approach, focusing on the critical reading of the narrative and on the articulation between fictional elements and historiographical data. The analysis demonstrates that the metonymic construction of the fictional protagonist Antônio Dantas enables the emergence of multiple historically marginalized voices, challenging univocal and stigmatizing narratives commonly found in traditional educational materials. Narrative strategies such as polyphony, shifts in narrative focus, and chronological linearity are shown to foster a critical re-signification of the historical past and to encourage reflective and decolonial reading practices. It is concluded that Martins’s work constitutes a relevant literary-pedagogical resource, particularly in the context of lower secondary education, as it promotes a decolonial reading of the War of Canudos and contributes to the development of readers capable of critically engaging with the historical, social, and political complexities of the conflict, as well as with the mechanisms of erasure produced by coloniality.