20 years of the community of portuguese language speaking countries in the brazilian press: discussing the conditions for a possible communitas

Abstract

As the Community of Portuguese Language Speaking Countries (CPLP) turns 20 years old in 2016, this article analyzes information published by the Brazilian press about this community. We propose a discussion on the sense of community, drawing on Roberto Esposito’s (2012) ideas of communitas. According to Esposito an absence unites the members of a community, where some lack or neediness generates obligation and a reciprocal and fraternal duty amongst the members. Under such circumstances, is the CPLP able to be held as a possible communitas? In the case of Brazil, the immediate challenge is to face the community’s invisibility. Our research has found that, in nearly 20 years, the CPLP has been absent of the two largest Brazilian newspapers: Folha de S. Paulo and O Globo, even though the few known records of them are copies that discuss this non-recognition. However, the identity constructions within the CPLP nations, the common historical conditions, and the contemporary environment are potentialities that encourage community building in the light of the communitas.