José de Alencar and the clashes around literary property in Rio de Janeiro (1856-1875)

Abstract

The paper analyzes the Brazilian imperial parliament discussion on three bills designed to protect literary property. The projects emphasized the importance for the authors of their theater plays, which, in contradiction, became a source of profits for theater entrepreneurs and publishers. The analysis underlines the project presented by the congressman, jurist and novelist José de Alencar in 1875. From the adaptation of his novel O Guarani to be played on stage, Alencar framed a legislation in order to recognize literary property as an expression of intellectual labor materialized by the press.

Keywords:
theater; intellectual labor; literary property