This article analyzes two decisive moments of the history of ideas in Brazil. Images and syntheses became fundamental references to the history of the Brazilian culture, especially those with a "realistic tradition" which originated in the 19th century from the writings of Visconde do Uruguai, followed by Silvio Romero, Alberto Torres, Oliveira Vianna and Alberto Guerreiro Ramos. These authors brought to light the image of Brazil separated in two countries: the legal country and the real country. From 1902 Euclides da Cunha, who projected the backlands as a metaphor for the nation, becomes the fundamental mark of this tradition. In the '50s, along with Anísio Teixeira, intellectuals such as Antonio Candido, Florestan Fernandes, Luiz Pereira, Fernando de Azevedo and many anthropologists, again, made full use of the "euclidianas" metaphors and composed new images about the regional culture in Brazil which was on modernization.