Trabalhadores da Malva: (re)produção material e simbólica da vida no Baixo rio Solimões

Abstract

This research is about the varzeano peasant, malva worker’s way of life, in N.S. das Graças rural communities, Municipality of Manacapuru; Bom Jesus, Municipality of Anamã; and Santos Antônio, Municipality of Anori, all located in Baixo Solimões River. The work process in malva agriculture continues the same since the introduction of this activities in the region from 30`s on. The peasant who is in this stage of production process expose his body to the accident risks with animal and, also, is subject to contract illnesses, since he keeps inside the water about 10 hours per day. Besides the labor process in the malva production, this research is going to deal with others two aspects which compose this social individuals` symbolic and material life. It is about the labor and active life matter. The first is linked to the surviving objective and subjective matter, firstly physical and then symbolic of the varzeano peasant, that is, their usage of the natural resources aiming firstly the life maintenance and subsequently, eventually to trading. The last aspect is linked to the final product – the malva fiber trading sphere. At this moment, the degradation extension takes place, initialized during the desfibrilation process inside the water, directetd to the malva workers subalternation to the trading capital dynamic. It is the extension of the degradation because these social individuals are the weakest link of a productive chain which has as main characteristic the monopoly of the actions. The degradation stops being physical and become moral. This situation could increase from the social technologies introduction on which eliminate the insaltness of the fiber obtaining process, and also, from the public politics on which rule the trading and price process, because the malva fiber is a product which has potential to be socially accessible and economically supportive. In a period when the world seeks for supportively economical alternatives, an agricultural production based in vegetable fibers extraction, whose environment impact is minimum and lays on the family production structure, is an activity which approaches pretty much to the maintenance criteria.