Para além das aguas: o mito do boto na vida cotidiana de famílias ribeirinhas como proposta para a criação geográfica em dança

Abstract

The discussion that guides this investigation points to riverside culture and the enchantment of the river as a central element of Amazonian legends, whose protagonist is the mythological figure of the dolphin. As a general objective, we propose to investigate the relationship between the enchantment of the river and the legend of the dolphin in the generation of children of unknown fathers, which frequently occurs in riverside families. It is in this context that the image of the boto myth appears, represented by a being of charm and seduction who practices abuse and sexual violence with young and naive women. Regarding the methodology, the research is expressed as bibliographic, qualitative and Ex-Post-Facto Survey, by shedding light on the object of study, comparing the subjects' statements with the theoretical bases that underlie it. Among the readings that supported the study, we chose, especially sociology, philosophy and anthropology, pointing out definitions of culture, identity and subjectivity to understand the term enchantment that involved man versus animal. The results were evaluated using content analysis in comparison with data collected in the form of semi-structured interviews that were carried out with four people who live in Manaus, of interior origin. Regarding the enchantment of the river and the relationship with the legend of the dolphin, we conclude that it remains in the imagination of riverside families, as was clear in the narratives of subjects under the age of twenty- four born in the 21st century, and the idea of children of unknown parents corroborates with the statistics of Brazilian mothers who conceived their children prematurely, as well as pedophilia and rape. Last but not least, we hope that the synthesis of this investigation serves as a starting point for other research and that it demystifies the fallacies built around the aquatic mammal and the relationship with the legend of the dolphin.