José de Alencar’s Imaginary of the Indian and the Indigenous Theme

Our research looked at the indigenous theme in Brazilian basic education, in the dialogue between Literature and History, focusing on the Curriculum Guidelines for Secondary Education - Languages, Codes and their Technologies (a document with guidelines for basic education in Brazil) to discuss the indigenous theme provided for in Law 11.645/2008. Field research was carried out with teachers who teach Literature, asking about their knowledge of the Law and how they view contemporary Indians. The survey information was used to discuss the relationship with the study of José de Alencar’s 19th century Indianist works, focusing on Iracema, a book that contributed to the naturalised view of the Indian. We realised that the majority of literature teachers are unaware of the law and that this state of affairs perpetuates prejudice and contempt for Indians, making it impossible to implement the law in contemporary Brazil, and in this respect education is not fulfilling its objective.