The counterpoint of history

blacks and indigenous people on river paths to Mato Grosso in the narratives elaborated by travelers (18th and 19th centuries)

Abstract

This article aims to analyze the mention and approaches of blacks and indigenous peoples in works produced by travelers who traveled through Mato Grosso between the 18th and 19th centuries, especially through the river routes. Provoked by the methodological proposal defended by Walter Benjamin about the need to read as a counterpoint to historical sources to give a voice to those who were defeated or placed on the margins of historical narratives, we will analyze the writings of Hércules Florence, João Gonçalves Fonseca, João Vasco Manoel de Braun and Alexandre Rodrigues Ferreira. In the course of reflection, it will be noted that the material has great potential also to think about the colonial expansion and consolidation process in the west of the current Brazilian territory, mainly during contacts between different civilizations and cultures.