Abstract
The article analyses the central role played by the term “closed circuit” (circuito fechado) in Florestan Fernandes’s studies of Brazilian society. This is one of the main theoretical and methodological tools of his reflection, which allows him to question different approaches used for interpreting Brazil: the linear vision of history, the idea of Brazil’s dualism, the analytical proposition based on the notion of formation, the acceptance of the autonomy of institutions. The article also asks whether the term is pertinent to contemporary social and political conflicts.
Keywords:
Closed circuit; dualism; formation; institutionalization; Florestan Fernandes