The Brazilian development in the nineties - myths, circles, and structures

Abstract

The article argues that theories of economic development are metaphors which have a strong mythical content, albeit unacknowledged by social scientists. The policies derived from such theories have two agendas: a 'positive' agenda that states which problems should be tackled and how; and a 'negative' agenda that contains issues and policies to be avoided. This approach is used to interpret the hegemonic view of development, as stated by the Washington Consensus, showing that such view contains all ingredients of a millenary myth - the crossing of the Desert towards a Promised Land. The two agendas of this view of development, which have ruled the Brazilian development strategy of the second half of the nineties, are then analyzed as applied to the Brazilian case. Finally, the article discusses alternative approaches to the present view of development, arguing for open-ended metaphors, as expressed by the Ulysses myth.myths, economic policy, institutional change, productive structure, history