A sodomia como relações assimétricas: escravidão, masculinidade e homoerotismo na Bahia Colonial (1744-1765)

Abstract

This research investigates the dynamics and experiences of homoerotic practices in Colonial Bahia between 1744 and 1765. Specifically, it analyzes how the crime of sodomy intersected with the public and private lives of individuals denounced to the Portuguese Inquisition, and how power relations were embedded in the enactment of sexual acts, often subjugating subjects who faced racial, age-related, and social vulnerabilities. The study is grounded in an analysis of inquisitorial documentation—including denunciations, confessions, and procedural records—from the Lisbon Tribunal, specifically focusing on the Cadernos de Nefandos (sodomy records), Solicitantes (solicitation in the confessional), and the Promotor’s files, all housed in the digital archive of the Torre do Tombo (ANTT). To deepen the historiographical debate, this work also examines the Holy Office’s Repertories, the Ordinances of the Kingdom of Portugal, the First Constitutions of the Archbishopric of Bahia, and the Holy Bible. Through these primary sources, this dissertation explores how "deviant sexuality" was experienced in the 18th century—whether openly or through fear—and how sexual conduct functioned as a mechanism of power capable of both subjugating vulnerable subjects and ultimately condemning offenders to the stake.