Team: Margarida Calafate Ribeiro

Margarida Calafate Ribeiro

Principal Researcher
Margarida Calafate Ribeiro holds a PhD in Portuguese Studies from King's College, University of London; she is a senior researcher at the Centre for Social Studies of the University of Coimbra and she holds the Eduardo Lourenço Chair, from Instituto Camões/University of Bologna, with Roberto Vecchi. She is a lecturer and co-coordinator of the PhD course Postcolonialism and Global Citizenship (CES/ FEUC). She coordinated 13 researcher projects and in 2015 she won a Consolidator Grant from the European Research Council (ERC) with the research project MEMOIRS Children of Empires and European Postmemories. She is currently the PI of MAPS European Postmemories, a Postcolonial Cartography (FCT, 2021-2023). Her research interests bring together memory and post-memory of colonialism and empire, identities, post-colonialism, women and war, and literary and artistic representations

She is the author of Uma história de regressos: império, guerra colonial e pós-colonialismo (A History of Returns: Empire, Colonial War and Postcolonialism) and África no feminino: mulheres portuguesas na Guerra Colonial (Africa in the feminine: Portuguese women in the colonial war) and the co-organisation of Antologia da Memória Poética da Guerra Colonial (Anthology of the Poetic Memory of the Colonial War) (2011) with Roberto Vecchi, Geometrias da Memória: Configurações Pós-Coloniais (Geometries of Memory: Post-Colonial Configurations) (2016) with António Sousa Ribeiro, Memória, Cidade e Literatura (Memory, City and Literature) (2019) with Francisco Noa and Heranças Pós-Coloniais nas Literaturas de Língua Portuguesa (Post-Colonial Inheritances in Portuguese Language Literatures) (2019) with Phillip Rothwell. His most recent book Des-cobrir a Europa - filhos de empérios e pós-memórias europeias (Uncovering Europe - children of empires and European post-memories) (2022) was written with Fátima da Cruz Rodrigues and it is also available in French (Enfants d'empires coloniaux et postmémoires européennes).
 

margaridacr@ces.uc.pt     RESEARCHGATE     ACADEMIA.EDU     CES PROFILE

2022

Uma história de regressos: império, Guerra Colonial e pós-colonialismo

"This book suggests a symbolic reading of Portugal´s relationship with its African empire. It draws extensively upon literary and political texts of the 19th and 20th centuries. This volume is broken down into four stages: Identity, image of empire in the Portuguese political and literary imaginary; the yearning for the empire; the long epitaph for imperial nation in the literature during the Estado Novo (New State); continuity, rupture and transformation of the idea of empire in the Portuguese narratives of the Colonial War, in the aftermath of the 25th April 1974 revolution in Portugal. Of particular import are the works of António Lobo Antunes, João de Melo, Manuel Alegre and Lídia Jorge. The book engages Boaventura de Sousa Santos´ concept of "imagination of the centre" and Eduardo Lourenço´s works on Portuguese identity. It also adopts the classic translatio imperii, and a post-colonial approach.  The culmination of these notions gave birth to the idea for the book: «the empire as the imagination of the centre."

África no feminino: as mulheres portuguesas e a Guerra Colonia

"África no Feminino immerses the memory of the Colonial War (1961-1974). This study distinguishes the testimonies of Portuguese women. It explores the lived experiences of women who accompanied their husbands in three war fronts. These women´s first-hand account of the War, reveal the existence of a plurality of positions, memories and reasons given for the War, including other experiences of the post-war period, not often contemplated in a study of this nature. The myriad testimonies point us to view these women as historical subjects of the Colonial War. The adoption of an ethical recognition and a responsible solidarity capable of generating a more balanced collective cultural memory of the Colonial War is integral to this proposal."

Geometrias da Memória: configurações pós-coloniais António Sousa Ribeiro | Margarida Calafate Ribeiro (ed.)

Geometrias da Memória: configurações pós-coloniais brings together a number of essays which, from different perspectives and positioning themselves at the intersection of different disciplines, approach topics that are relevant for an analysis of the way in which past constellations, in particular coming from a colonial past, project themselves into the present so as to condition this present in decisive aspects: in the way of conceiving the relationship with the other, in the architecture of power relations, in the persistence of forms of violence, in the dynamics through which the political and cultural field struggles to articulate a reflection aimed at the construction of a future which is not merely a repetition of the past. All essays have in common the standpoint of the contemporary: the different historical contexts and different cases under analysis were chosen from the point of view of their relevance for a present which is conceived, not as mere actuality, but as a dense temporality defined by tensions that can only be understood under a long-term perspective.

Antologia da memória poética da Guerra Colonial

2011 | Porto: Afrontamento "The Anthology of the Poetic Memory of the Colonial War consists of approximately 350 poems.
This collection considers the works of consecrated poets who experienced or were inspired by the Colonial War. It displays a number of poems originally distributed in regional newspapers, magazines, military publications or in unheralded author editions.  A significant number of women writers also feature in the anthology.
The traditional western cartographies of macro-themes-images, normally found embedded in war poems, are evident in this collection. The notions of Departures and Returns, Quotidian, Death, Memory of War, Thinking the War, Songbook are also visible. Two specific themes of the Colonial War are sketched: "Reconciling with War" and "The Duty of War." We conclude with two poems in the section "Ainda" (Still) which underpin the permanence of the War in the Portuguese imaginary. Dividing the sections of the anthology is another ´text´, demonstrating the artistic works of Manuel Botelho from his main work on the Colonial War `Confidential and Declassified´, in the series ´Ration of Combat´."

Atlântico periferico: il postcolonialismo portoghese e il sistema mondiale

Atlântico periferico: il postcolonialismo portoghese e il sistema mondiale employs a global counter-hegemonic approach against neoliberal globalization. It purports that it is possible to reflect upon the world from Portugal´s perspective. It takes account of Portugal´s universal precociousness that enabled it to become one of the first actors to operate on a global scale.  Portugal´s experience in the world enables critical reflection for thinking and imaging new and different worlds, using the texts of Boaventura de Sousa Santos, Maria Irene Ramalho, António Sousa Ribeiro, Margarida Calafate Ribeiro, Roberto Vecchi and Vincenzo Russo.

Fantasmas e fantasias imperiais no imaginário português contemporâneo

"Fantasmas e fantasias imperiais no imaginário português contemporâneo convene a set of texts that contemplate the Portuguese post-colonial imaginary. They draw on post-colonial studies, markedly Anglo-Saxon. The focus is Portuguese Imperialism. Using the texts of Eduardo Lourenço, António Sousa Ribeiro, Jo Labanyi, Francisco Bethencourt, Maria Manuel Lisboa, Luís de Sousa Rebelo, Paulo de Medeiros, David Brookshaw, Hilary Owen, Phillip Rothwell, Roberto Vecchi, David Jackson, Cristiana Bastos and AbdoolKarim Vakil, the book makes important contributions to this reflection. With an analysis of literary historiography and artistic works, the 20th century and, particularly, the period following the 25th April 1974, delineate the dreams and ghosts that linger the idea of empire."

Memória, Cidade e Literatura: De São Paulo de Assunção de Loanda a Luuanda, de Lourenço Marques a Maputo Margarida Calafate Ribeiro | Francisco Noa (orgs.)

"Every city contains its history. Luanda and Maputo are no different. Luanda, facing the Atlantic, reveals Western influence in its Luso-Brazilian architecture. Maputo, facing the Indian Ocean, boasts the mix of Africa, Portugal an Asia. The world of these cities is particularly mixed: pluralities and diversities that involve beings, objects, temporalities and spaces are intertwined. The archaic occurs with the modern; progress with backwardness. Political moments crash into one another. All stake claims to historical attention: the precolonial era, coastal settlement, modern colonialism, independence, postcolonialism, post-war and actuality."

Des-cobrir a Europa - Filhos de Impérios e Pós-memórias Europeias

Des-cobrir a Europa - Filhos de Impérios e Pós-memórias Europeias revela-nos as memórias intergeracionais de filhos daqueles que viveram os dias finais do colonialismo e das lutas pela independência de territórios colonizados por Portugal, França e Bélgica. Neste arquivo de pós- memória, ecoam histórias de Angola, Moçambique, Guiné-Bissau, São Tomé e Príncipe, Cabo Verde, Argélia e Congo, através das palavras de trinta e sete cidadãs e cidadãos europeus, cujas narrativas e reflexões interrogam esse passado, as suas sombras e os seus silêncios, mas também exprimem as suas alegrias e realizações, no presente europeu. A partir destes registos pessoais, podemos seguir os fios que ligam as relações coloniais de outrora aos fenómenos contemporâneos das migrações, da nostalgia, do racismo, da discriminação ou da hipocrisia política das relações entre as antigas metrópoles colonizadoras e as antigas colónias. Por isso, são abordadas questões como cidadania, pertença, herança, mas também reparação, restituição e denúncia, gerando uma dialética intergeracional complexa e nova que recusa a prossecução da retraumatização, ao mesmo tempo que rejeita as lógicas do esquecimento.

São olhares atentos a outros lados da história, necessariamente subjetivos e plenos de experiências alheias, geradoras de múltiplos laços afetivos, familiares e políticos, que contribuem para iluminar e compreender o presente europeu e as ligações entre Europa e África. A fechar, um texto do escritor português Paulo Faria, que nos desafia para novas constelações de memórias europeias e sugere outras interrogações.

Enfants d'Empires coloniaux et postmémoires européennes

Enfants d’Empires coloniaux et postmémoires européennes révèle les souvenirs intergénérationnels des enfants de ceux qui ont vécu les derniers jours du colonialisme et les luttes pour l'indépendance dans les territoires colonisés par la Belgique, la France et le Portugal. Dans ce recueil de postmémoires, des récits d’Algérie, du Congo, d'Angola, du Cap-Vert, de Guinée-Bissau, du Mozambique et de São Tomé-et-Príncipe résonnent à travers les mots de trente-sept citoyen(ne)s européen(ne)s, dont les histoires et les réflexions interrogent ce passé, ses ombres et ses silences, mais expriment aussi ses joies et ses accomplissements dans le présent européen. À partir de ces mémoires personnelles, nous pouvons tisser les fils qui associent les relations coloniales du passé aux phénomènes contemporains de migrations, de nostalgie, de racisme, de discrimination ou d'hypocrisie politique des relations entre les anciennes métropoles colonisatrices et les anciennes colonies. Dès lors, des questions telles que la citoyenneté, l'appartenance, l'héritage, mais aussi la réparation, la restitution et la dénonciation sont abordées, produisant une dialectique intergénérationnelle complexe et nouvelle qui refuse de poursuivre la retraumatisation, tout en rejetant les logiques de l'oubli. Ce sont des regards attentifs sur d'autres versants de l'histoire, forcément subjectifs et riches du vécu des autres, générateurs de multiples liens affectifs, familiaux et politiques, qui contribuent à éclairer et à comprendre le présent européen et les liens entre l'Europe et l'Afrique.
Pour finir, un texte de l'écrivain portugais Paulo Faria nous interpelle vers de nouvelles constellations de mémoires européennes et suggère d'autres questions.

Outras Publicações

 

2020 - "Uma história depois dos regressos: a Europa e os fantasmas pós-coloniais" in Confluenze, Rivista di Studi Iberoamericani V. 12, N. 2, p. 74-95.

 

2020 - "A marcha obscura da história: 'a França em questão ou o fim da liberdade como boa consciência'" in IBEROGRAFIAS, Revista de Estudos Ibéricos, V. 16, n. 2, p. 389?398.

 

2020 - "Viagens no contemporâneo - pós-colonialismo, cosmopolitismo e programação" in Viagem, alteridade e tradução cultural , Mulemba, Rio de Janeiro: UFRJ, V. 12, n. 22, p. 127?147.

 

2020 - "Arte e Pós-Memória - Fragmentos, Fantasmas, Fantasias" in DIACRÍTICA, Revista do Centro de Estudos Humanísticos, V. 34,  n. 2, p. 4?20.

 

2020 - "La restitution des œuvres d'art : un pas décisif dans le processus de décolonisation" in Memoires en Jeu (junho), Paris: Éditions Kimé (com António Pinto Ribeiro).

 

2019 - "La guerre coloniale portugaise et les générations suivantes: héritages et interrogations" in Mémoires en Jeu, N.10, Winter, p. 123-128.

 

2019 - "Viagens na Minha Terra de "outros" ocidentais" in Margarida Calafate Ribeiro e Phillip Rothwell (org.), Heranças Pós-Coloniais nas literaturas em língua portuguesa,Porto: Afrontamento, p. 291-307..

 

2019 - "Os mapas das cidades e as letras que as escrevem - de Luanda e de Maputo" in Margarida Calafate Ribeiro e Francisco Noa (org.), Memória, Cidade e Literatura: De São Paulo de Assunção de Loanda a Luuanda, de Lourenço Marques a Maputo, Porto: Afrontamento, p. 37-61.

 

2018 - "Inequalities, in other words - literary portrayls of the cities of Luanda and Maputo" in Francisco Bethencourt (ed. by), Social Inequality in the Portuguese-Speaking World - Global and Historical PerspectivesSussex: Sussex Academic Press.