Corpo feminino e deformação retórica na sátira seiscentista

Abstract

This article analyzes how seventeenth-century Luso-Brazilian satire distorts the female body in order to reinforce colonial hierarchies. Based on the analysis of poems attributed to Gregório de Matos e Guerra and Antônio da Fonseca Soares, the study explores deformations articulated through topics such as sexus, associating vices with gender. The research demonstrates that satire, by ridiculing behaviors and bodies, operates as a tool of symbolic and disciplinary control, adapting to the political and moral demands of the colonial state, especially in reaffirming female subordination. The comparison between productions from the colony and the metropolis reveals how Catholic morality and raison d’État structure criticism disguised as humor. Finally, the study highlights the use of symbolic violence to naturalize the colonial order.