The perennial flow of cordel literature

“virtuous” coincidences between Mário de Andrade and the Northeastern poets

Abstract

Brazilian northeastern poetry, as popularly known as “Cordel”, was overshadowed at the time due to criticism that “popular culture” was deemed of inferior quality. Yet, Mário de Andrade was an unconditional admirer and the genre is present throughout all his body of work (specially in “Na Pancada do Ganzá”). My research shows how refined the style actually was and how it created a sense of unity, mirroring the millenarian therapeutic effect that poetry can awake on. Cordel sparks interest in new readers/listeners, allowing to be constantly transmitted and embedded in some sort of a perennial flow, perpetuating itself as I prefer to believe. Therefore, one can understand why the “rhapsode” Mário de Andrade highly praised the genre and was spellbound by it.