Filhos da violência conjugal : pesquisa biográfica com órfãos

Abstract

This research presents a discussion about domestic violence and orphanage. Through the methodological approach developed by the German researcher Gabriele Rosenthal, sociologically established by the studies of Alfred Schutz, it was possible to permeate Joaquim’s life-world and understand how he experienced his mother’s death in a context of domestic violence. The focus of this research refers to the subjective and biographical construction of orphanage in a domestic violence context. After the biographical analysis steps, it was possible to compare manifest and latent contents of Joaquim’s narrative and come to the conclusion that, despite the importance in the interviewee’s life, the death of his mother is not the main episode of his biography. The connecting thread of his trajectory is the fact that he grew up in an orphan asylum, without his father and his mother. This situation is what makes Joaquim try to find resources to survive and get rid of the stigma. One of the distinguishing aspects of this work is that it connects the individual to the social spheres with the analysis of a single case – Joaquim’s mother was murdered when he was five years old – and, with this methodological approach, produces theory. Concepts of family, marital violence, death and orphanage are presented. The goal is to contribute with a discussion that still is not very explored in Brazil and to demonstrate how the biographical narrative approach can contribute with sociology in Brazil.