Este artigo trata do ambiente rural, considerando três momentos historicamente diferenciados: o rural tradicional, o rural moderno e o rural socioambiental. Para analisar esses momentos, o autor leva em conta as formas de organização social no campo e respectivas formas de sociabilidade, as relações com a natureza e os atores construtores do ambiente rural. A análise fundamentou-se em dados e informações de estudos realizados sobre o rural de distintas regiões do país e consagrados pela literatura.

This article deals with the rural environment, considering three historically diferentiated moments: the traditional rural, the modern rural and the socio-environmental rural. In order to analyze these moments, the author takes forms of social organization in the countryside into account, along with their respective forms of sociability, relationships with nature and the actors involved in the construction of the rural environment. Analysis is based on data and information from studies on the rural in different parts of the country which have been recognized for their contribution to the literature.