A EDUCAÇÃO DE SURDOS NO BRASIL IMPERIAL A PARTIR DOS ALMANAKS DO AMIGO DOS SURDOS MUDOS (1888-1889)

Abstract

This article presents historical research on deaf education in imperial Brazil, using as its central source the Almanacs of the Friend of the Deaf-Mute, published in 1888 and 1889. These documents were produced by the then Imperial Institute of the Deaf-Mute, now the National Institute of Deaf Education, and constitute a valuable expression of the practices, discourses, and pedagogical intentions directed at the deaf population in the late 19th century. The research's general objective is to analyze, in light of cultural history, the pedagogical practices, educational concepts, and institutional and discursive strategies present in the Almanacs of the Friend of the Deaf-Mute (1888–1889). To this end, a qualitative, historical, and documentary approach was adopted, focusing on the analysis of the almanacs as cultural artifacts. The research is based on the assumptions of Cultural History, according to Roger Chartier, and engages with authors such as Solange Rocha and Verônica Mariano, seeking to understand how these almanacs functioned as devices for educational, cultural, and political intervention. By analyzing the materiality, content, and communicational objectives of these publications, the research aims to uncover the disputes between oralist and gestural methods, as well as the institutional strategies of propaganda, awareness, and accountability used by the Institute. The analysis highlighted the tensions between oralist and gestural methods, as well as the Institute's strategies for consolidating an educational project focused on the normalization of deafness. It concludes that the almanacs represent not only institutional records, but also instruments of visibility and social control, whose understanding contributes to the valorization of the memory of Special Education in Brazil.