El estilo de la historia en los tiempos de guerra: Gilberto Freyre y los ensayistas latinoamericanos en la obra de Fernand Braudel

Abstract

This article aims to reflect upon the Latin American experiences and interpretations regarding Fernand Braudel's work in the context of the historical formation of the Annales School and the genesis of his foundational work on the Mediterranean, published in 1949, in the post-World War II period. During his stay in Brazil (1935-1937), and later during in his war captivity in Germany in the post-war years, Braudel was a thorough reader not only of Gilberto Freyre's work, but also other Latin Amrican authors, for instance Ezequiel Martínez Estrada and Benjamín Subercaseaux. His interest in the longue durée structures made him prone to the scenic representations of the Brazilian colonial "Casa Grande" and other texts by Freyre, but also the expressive descriptions of Latin American geology and landscapes by other authors of the continent. The author of the longue durée history and the "mare nostrum", a work that also shows his stylistic sensitivity, he is displayed as a careful reader of Latin American writings, appreciated by him not only for their search for an identity, but, specifically, the essayistic and literary style.