The classic essay of Francisco de Oliveira, Elegia para uma re(li)gião were completed forty years in 2017. Dedicated to analyse the trajectory of SUDENE - Superintendência de Desenvolvimento do Nordeste, where the sociologist worked between 1959 and 1964, the paper became a reference for the debates on the regional problems in Brazil. Oliveira criticizes the model of development that guided SUDENE’s activities, especially during the dictatorship. He shows the impact of “milagre econômico” on Northeast and the changes in regional division of labour in the country. The essay expresses also the opinions of some left wing intellectuals about the social and economic situations. From the analysis of Oliveira’s main arguments and the debate on the atmosphere surrounding the essay’s creation, this article aims to remind the essay’s impact on Brazilian social sciences in the 1970s and, finally, briefly reflect on its importance for the present.
SUDENE; Oliveira, Francisco de; Northeast - Brazil; Developmentalism; Dictatorship