On people and variables: the ethnography of a political belief
In the Brazilian Federal District (Brasilia), the local government's distribution of lots encourages thousands of people to enlist on its housing programs. Applicants are required to provide documentary proofs; these are classified according to variables, which are then fed into an equation des...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro
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| Series: | Mana |
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| Online Access: | http://socialsciences.scielo.org/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0104-93132006000200004&lng=en&tlng=en |
| _version_ | 1818335354373013504 |
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| author | Antonádia Borges David Rodgers |
| author_facet | Antonádia Borges David Rodgers |
| author_sort | Antonádia Borges |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | In the Brazilian Federal District (Brasilia), the local government's distribution of lots encourages thousands of people to enlist on its housing programs. Applicants are required to provide documentary proofs; these are classified according to variables, which are then fed into an equation designed to calculate the 'quantum' of worthiness of each applicant. After being quantified, each applicant is duly hierarchized. Changes in government lead to alterations to the formulas used in this calculation, while changes in people's lives lead to alterations to their classification. In this article, I explore how these vicissitudes on both sides balance out on the basis of a political belief which is at once shared and unstable. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-13T14:22:06Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-7a0fd5f1a2054d32bbaf1d8fe4e0d13b |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 0104-9313 1678-4944 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-13T14:22:06Z |
| publisher | Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Mana |
| spelling | doaj.art-7a0fd5f1a2054d32bbaf1d8fe4e0d13b2022-12-21T23:42:04ZengUniversidade Federal do Rio de JaneiroMana0104-93131678-49442seS0104-93132006000200004On people and variables: the ethnography of a political beliefAntonádia Borges0David RodgersUFRJIn the Brazilian Federal District (Brasilia), the local government's distribution of lots encourages thousands of people to enlist on its housing programs. Applicants are required to provide documentary proofs; these are classified according to variables, which are then fed into an equation designed to calculate the 'quantum' of worthiness of each applicant. After being quantified, each applicant is duly hierarchized. Changes in government lead to alterations to the formulas used in this calculation, while changes in people's lives lead to alterations to their classification. In this article, I explore how these vicissitudes on both sides balance out on the basis of a political belief which is at once shared and unstable.http://socialsciences.scielo.org/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0104-93132006000200004&lng=en&tlng=enethnographical theoryritualsanthropology of politics |
| spellingShingle | Antonádia Borges David Rodgers On people and variables: the ethnography of a political belief Mana ethnographical theory rituals anthropology of politics |
| title | On people and variables: the ethnography of a political belief |
| title_full | On people and variables: the ethnography of a political belief |
| title_fullStr | On people and variables: the ethnography of a political belief |
| title_full_unstemmed | On people and variables: the ethnography of a political belief |
| title_short | On people and variables: the ethnography of a political belief |
| title_sort | on people and variables the ethnography of a political belief |
| topic | ethnographical theory rituals anthropology of politics |
| url | http://socialsciences.scielo.org/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0104-93132006000200004&lng=en&tlng=en |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT antonadiaborges onpeopleandvariablestheethnographyofapoliticalbelief AT davidrodgers onpeopleandvariablestheethnographyofapoliticalbelief |