About this series of lectures

Suicide of the President of the Republic, Getúlio Vargas, in 24.08.1954. Vehicles of the newspaper O GLOBO attacked and turned by popular in Rio de Janeiro – Brazil – Photo Archive / Agência O Globo – No negative

How are violence, state and power related to each other – and how does this complex relationship manifest itself in fields such as Literature, History and Law? How does violence unfold in different spaces and times? What shapes does it take? Is violence a language itself or does it conversely reveal a lack of language? The lecture series aims to analyze the origins and the effects of violence in Europe, Africa and Latin America. This implies discussing topics such as wars, political instabilities, social riots, terrorism, slavery and violence generated by the State. Adopting an interdisciplinary approach that includes Literature, Cultural Studies, Philosophy, Political Studies, History and Law, the lecture series has a twofold aim: on the one hand, we will draw up a general framework for understanding violence in its different manifestations; on the other hand, we will discuss specific cases to illustrate the various shapes that violence can take. Starting from the overarching question: «What is violence?», we will explore the different answers provided by a number of scholars and authors.