The article explores how the historiography of Brazilian slavery has dealt with the issue of capitalism in recent times. If, in the 1960s and 1970s, the concept was a central concern for historians and social scientists, from the late 1980s on it disappeared from the analytic horizon of the schools that took command of the field. The article assesses the losses produced by such a choice, showing the need to operate with renewed definitions of historical capitalism to advance in the comprehension of our slavery past.
Slavery; capitalism; historiography; Brazil