The civilizing process in the tropics: state and imperial court society formation in Brazil (1822-1889)

The process of formation of a court society in Brazil may be interpreted according the Norbert Elias theory, by considering three major aspects in social formation: 1) socialization codes and rules developed in the Brazilian court and publicized through books on good manners, like the Código de Bom-tom, written by Portuguese canon José Inácio Roquette, published in Portugal in 1845 and declared mandatory in noble circles in Brazil during the imperial State (1822-1889); 2) building a national State in Brazil calls for an analysis on the role and importance of slavery in its formation and continuity, but keeping in mind that at the same time slavery was a deep obstacle in the diffusion of civilizing processes at that time and further on; 3) the meaning of a social institution like the Armed Forces during monarchy in Brazil (1822-1889), which paradoxically may have been one of the most important civilizing forces in the country.