Moral economy of saliva: Bolsonaro, Covid-19, and the contagion policies in Brazil

Moral economy of saliva: Bolsonaro, Covid-19, and the contagion policies in BrazilAbstract: This work analyzes how saliva is central to guarantee a “contagion policy” during the Covid-19 pandemic in Brazil. We present how that fluid/substance becomes an important tool for the National States and their biopolitical and necropolitical borders. Thus, focusing on Jair M. Bolsonaro's speeches and actions in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic and observing his contempt for hygiene care and protection against coronaviruses, we highlight the correlation between the State in the conduct of the virus and the rise of conservative groups with a religious orientation. They mobilize saliva as a necessary fluid to enable a moral economy that manages the production of relationships, family, nationalism, masculinities, and religion.

Keywords:
saliva; bolsonaro; moral economy; contagion policies; covid-19