From the laboratory to the pulpit
scientific society manifestos as an act of political-discursive engagement
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.48075/ri.v28i1.35553Keywords:
Manifestos, Scientific discourse, Science and technologyAbstract
In this essay, we examine, through three manifestos issued by the Brazilian Society for the Advancement of Science (SBPC) during the presidential administrations of Temer (2017), Bolsonaro (2022), and Lula (2025), certain strategies of institutional political‑discursive engagement. The theoretical framework, grounded in discourse analysis, employs M. Bakhtin’s category of dialogism, Foucauldian and Pêcheux‑inspired discourse formation, and the notion of discursive éthos as theorized by D. Maingueneau and R. Amossy. The analysis reveals a predominance of centrifugal forces in the organization’s discourse, signaling tensions between the discursive formations of the scientific community and the government. It also traces the evolution of the SBPC’s éthos, from a “technical advisor” to a “protest agent” and “advocate of social justice.” The study identifies a plurality of discursive formations and a polyphonic vocality that articulates academic, institutional, and social positions. Based on the selected corpus, we conclude that the SBPC constructs a sustained resistance discourse, reinforcing the centrality of science and public education as instruments of sovereignty, inclusion, and national and social progress in Brazil.
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