A educação sanitária na Escola de Aprendizes Marinheiros da Paraíba (1906-1912)

Abstract

This work aims to analyze the health education implemented in the Escola de Aprendizes Marinheiros between the years 1906 to 1912. Founded with the purpose of collecting the poor and destitute childhood of society, they were one of the few options for educational and military who assisted the children or relatives of the impoverished layer of the population. In this study, we present part of the result of our scientific initiation research efforts entitled: “'Marching with much grace and correction': the disciplining of bodies at the Escola de Aprendizes Marinheiro in Rio Grande do Norte and Paraíba” under the guidance of Prof. Dr. Azemar dos Santos Soares Júnior. Our interest is to understand the medical participation in the institution and how physical activities, especially the practice of Gymnastica Sueca, transformed so-called fragile bodies into vigorous and healthy ones. The first decades of the twentieth century were marked by intense debates among Brazilian doctors who discussed the implementation of sports activities in schools. We used as historical sources, in this way, the Livros de Copiador de Officio (1906-1911), in which they present details of the dynamics of the corporation's functioning, in which it was possible to verify the sanitary conditions of the school environment. Methodologically, we rely on the analysis of Michel Foucault's discourse (2014), in an attempt to understand the discourses produced about the School of Apprentice Sailors with a will for truth. Our theoretical discussions are based on the concept of discipline also by Michel Foucault (2014); the notion of school space as place, by Antonio Frago and Augustín Escolano (2001); physical culture, a term expanded by Azemar Soares Júnior (2019); and Health Education proposed by Afrânio Peixoto (1935) that helps us understand the notions of hygiene at the time. In the end, we found the importance of using Gymnastica Sueca in the training of apprentice sailors, as it contributes to the manufacture of a healthy and robust biotype.