A jornada heroica de Pedro Bala: da criminalidade à revolução

Abstract

This study aims to analyze the construction of the heroic figure in literature, tracing its trajectory from classical models to modern reinterpretations, in order to understand how this conception is expressed in Jorge Amado’s Capitães da Areia, particularly through the character Pedro Bala. The research is grounded in theoretical contributions by Kothe (2000), Lukács (2009), Bakhtin (2019), Campbell (2007), and other scholars who discuss the emergence, social function, and transformations of the hero throughout literary history. Additionally, the study examines the aesthetic project of the 1930s generation and the ideological context that informs Amado’s writing, situating his characters within a perspective of modern heroism marked by class struggle and the representation of popular and marginalized groups. Through bibliographic research and analytical readings of Cacau, Suor, Jubiabá, and especially Capitães da Areia, the analysis demonstrates how Amado shifts the heroic focus to marginalized subjects, revealing a form of heroism rooted in resistance and everyday survival. Within this framework, the study highlights that Pedro Bala, though socially regarded as a delinquent, undertakes a symbolic trajectory that resonates with the patterns discussed by Campbell (2007), reaffirming that a hero may emerge from contexts of poverty, exclusion, and collective struggl