READINGS, POLITICAL LANGUAGES AND THE INTELLECTUAL FORMATION OF THE LAW GRADUATES OF THE OLINDA LAW SCHOOL (1827–1838)

Abstract

This study examines the intellectual formation of the first graduates of the Olinda Law School between 1827 and 1838, focusing on how reading practices, the press, the public library, and political languages contributed to the formation of the elites who consolidated the Brazilian Imperial State. Drawing on Intellectual History and Political History, it analyzes imperial legislation, newspapers from the Brazilian Digital Newspaper Library, administrative records, and bibliographic catalogs to investigate the circulation and appropriation of intellectual repertoires in legal education. The study argues that the education of these graduates extended beyond formal instruction through the interaction of legislation, the library, and the press as key agents in shaping nineteenth-century Brazilian political culture.