This paper presents the most important elements of the debate on the role of industrialization for economic development in Brazil. The paper examines several stages of the debate, from its origins up to the recent discussions on deindustrialization. It is argued that the development of the theme influences and is influenced by prevailing historical conditions. Its central conclusion is that the debate is deeply marked by the different theoretical and methodological starting points adopted by the literature.
History of economic thought; Brazilian economy; Industrialization; Productive structure and development; Heterodoxy vs. Orthodoxy