Republicanism in the Mirror

Abstract Traditional republican theory understands freedom as non-domination of the person. In the colonial context, however, given the widespread forms of domination, freedom has a wider meaning, referring to non-domination of the person, but also to other forms of non-domination, such as that of the land and of culture. Taking the writings of Nísia Floresta as evidence, the chapter shows that these forms of non-domination constitute the meaning of freedom in a postcolonial context, forming the identity out of which an independent nation is build. Looking at the political philosophy of women in nineteenth-century Brazil through their presence in newspaper periodicals, the chapter shows women thinkers constructing a culture of freedom in the public sphere, claiming equality as a fundamental condition for citizenship. Offering a methodological contribution, the chapter motivates the idea that modern political philosophy can benefit from contextual expansion and, considering the Atlantic enlightenment, avoid Eurocentric bias.