Democratic Brazil

Brazil has spent the last 40 years in the midst of change. It was a period in which the authoritarian regime imposed in 1964 was overcome and an institutionally sound democracy was built-at least up to the present. During this period, the country successfully tackled the inflationary spiral inherited from the authoritarian era, which had destabilized the economy. The analysis in this book acknowledges, however, that despite the significant measures implemented to combat social inequalities, the country has not yet healed this wound that characterizes its historical development and shapes its social life. Over the past 40 years, the country has seen the emergence of new political actors who, each in their own way, have undergone metamorphoses and established what is termed here "transformism"-that is, a way of "doing politics" through which changes of a historic nature can be both driven and blocked. The reader now holds in their hands a vigorous interpretation of the political history of contemporary Brazil.