The narratives and images of German travelers to nineteenth-century Brazil: The construction of an imagination about indigenous peoples, history, and the nation

Abstract

This analysis of the accounts and iconographic production of German travelers Wied-Neuwied (1815-1817), Karl Friedich von Martius (1817-1820), and Johann Moritz Rugendas (1822-1825) explores the construction of an imagination about indigenous peoples, history, and nation. It shows the relationship between the ideas and images produced by these voyagers and the debate on nature in the New World. Most importantly, it examines their endeavors as a process of constructing a history of Brazil and its people, uncovering the meanings and possibilities relevant to the civilizing process underway and their role in this context.