Abstract
This article approaches the projects for the country idealized by two authors/political agents between the end of the nineteenth century and the first decades of the twentieth century: Rui Barbosa, exponent of liberal thinking; and Alberto Torres, recognized as the mentor of authoritarian thinking in Brazil. The text is divided into three sections: the first presents in a succinct way the authors’ view on Brazil in more general terms, considering the historical context and the position occupied by each one; the second discusses the vision of each one on the economic situation and their respective proposals for the country, focusing the analysis on the agrarianism x industrialism debate; the third brings a more direct comparison between the two authors, going beyond the labels liberal and authoritarian, or idealist and realistic.
Keywords:
Political Thought; Realistic; Idealistic; Agrarianism; Industrialism