The conquest of territorial space has played an important role in the construction of a national identity in Brazil. The article discusses the different meanings that have been assigned to the term ‘sertão’ within Brazilian social thought, using Euclides da Cunha’s work as a reference point. It explores some reflections of the myth of the backlands found in the notion of frontier and in the conquest of new territorial space as a product of the bandeirante movement. Lastly, it analyzes the question of recapturing the image of the bandeirante as a mythical force that can organize the symbolic world of Brazilians in general and Paulistas in particular.
sertão; backlands; national identity; Euclides da Cunha; frontier; bandeirante