Ana de Castro Osório, uma intelectual transnacional: feminismo e mediação cultural

Abstract

This study, conducted for the History Postgraduate Program, has the objective of analysing Ana de Castro Osório’s role as a cultural mediator for feminist movements, considering the transnational transmission of her ideas, aiming at strengthening gender studies in History teaching. Ana de Castro Osório was a portuguese intellectual, author, journalist, teacher and feminist leader. Contemporarily, in Brazil, Ana is still almost unknown; in History she is recognized for her role as a feminist. So, as a research question, we analyze: How Ana de Castro Osório’s role, as a cultural mediator for the various feminist movements she took part in, can contribute towards building a link between gender studies and History teaching. Works by Scott (1995, 2012), Gomes (2011, 2013, 2016), Sirinelli (1996), Esteves (2000, 2003, 2008, 2011, 2014) and Burke (2004) are of fundamental importance for developing a theoretical framework for this research. Methodology consists of a historical documental analysis, and among the examined sources, the following were selected: the General Report of the Women’s Crusade, New Statutes of the of the Portuguese Women’s Crusade, and the Monthly Bulletins of the Portuguese Women’s Crusade. Besides these, three works by Ana de Castro Osório were studied: To Portuguese Women (1905), In Wartime (1918), The Great Alliance (1924). And, as a way to comprehend the repercussion of the Portuguese Women's Crusade (PWC) in Brazil, we analyzed newspapers in circulation between 1910-1919, which are digitally available in the National Library’s Archive’s website. As a proposed product, we organized an extension course entitled “Feminism, Gender and History teaching: the works of Ana de Castro Osório as an educational tool”. The course was 20 hours long, consisting of three on-site meetings (lasting four hours each) and long-distance learning (eight hours of activities). The course’s goal was to disseminate knowledge on the feminist movement and gender studies, providing theoretical and methodological frameworks to present and future educators, and as such contributing towards their future use in educational practices. From the documental analysis we conclude that through her books, which had circulation not only in Portugal, but in many countries, including Brazil, through her taking part in various feminist movements and her role as one of the directors of the Portuguese Women’s Crusade, Ana de Castro Osório accomplished extensive cultural mediation, her work and ideas having reached numerous social groups. Themes such as feminism, education, women’s labor and the “social conduct and roles” expected from men and women, as approched by the author over 100 years ago, are still important today and in need of reflection; and by implementing the extension course its lasting relevance can be noted and confirmed. As such, we believe that Ana de Castro Osório’s oeuvre can work as a new source for inserting feminism and gender studies in History teaching.