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Imaginative Communities: Admired Cities, Regions and Countries

This book is written for readers who wish to understand why some communities, cities, regions and countries are admired and others are not; for those who feel that their community is perceived in a negative, stereotypical or clichéd way; and for those who want to find out what can be done about it.

Whether we like it or not, there is no escaping the perceived image of a place. Internally or externally. And the problem is not being perceived; the problem is having nothing to say when it happens.

This is the tension that runs through Chapter 9, ‘Brazil and the Imaginative Communities’, written by Caio Esteves for this Brazilian edition. Brazil is a prime example of a place with undeniable uniqueness and an enormous difficulty in sustaining it as an argument. Whilst we do not know what unites us as a nation, we suffer from perceptions circulating beyond our reach: old stereotypes, narratives imposed by others, images we never asked for but which we carry.

The chapter examines Brazilian identity as a field in constant dispute: between what we invented about ourselves during the Estado Novo, what we export as a caricature, and what we insist on not recognising. More than a historical diagnosis, it is a question about the present: what do we do with who we are?

Caio Esteves also wrote the foreword to this edition and provided technical editing.

Book details

Title: Imaginative Communities: Admired Cities, Regions and Countries
Original title: Imaginative Communities: Admired cities, regions and countries
Authors: Robert Govers & Caio Esteves
Foreword to the Brazilian edition: Caio Esteves
Translation: Juliana Doiche
Editing: Noemi Zein
Technical review: Caio Esteves
Publisher: Reputo Press, Antwerp, Belgium
Year: 2020 (original: 2018)
Pages: 180
ISBN (paperback): 978-90-828265-5-5
ISBN (hardback): 978-90-828265-4-8
ISBN (e-book): 978-90-828265-3-1

composição da marca lugares futuros FAQ

Caio Esteves is co-author of the book, has written the foreword and provided technical editing for the Brazilian edition, and has written Chapter 9 — Brazil and Imaginative Communities —, which examines Brazilian identity as a strategic and under-explored field in place branding.

The Brazilian edition was published by Reputo Press in 2020, translated by Juliana Doiche and with technical editing by Caio Esteves. The full title is Imaginative Communities: Admired Cities, Regions and Countries. ISBNs: 978-90-828265-5-5 (paperback), 978-90-828265-4-8 (hardback), 978-90-828265-3-1 (e-book).

Caio Esteves is co-author of the Portuguese edition and responsible for the foreword and Chapter 9, dedicated to Brazil. The chapter explores why the country, with all its cultural uniqueness, struggles to construct a consistent narrative of identity, and what this means for Brazilian cities and places.