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Other literature type . 2026
License: CC BY
Data sources: Datacite
ZENODO
Other literature type . 2026
License: CC BY
Data sources: Datacite
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Between Suering and Salvation: Liberalism, Happiness, and the Political Economy of Existential Distress in Contemporary Brazil

Authors: Revista, Zen;

Between Suering and Salvation: Liberalism, Happiness, and the Political Economy of Existential Distress in Contemporary Brazil

Abstract

This paper examines three interlocking problematics that have come to define the moral and political landscape of contemporary Brazil: (1) the conceptual decoupling of happiness from political ideology, with particular reference to Isaiah Berlin’s value pluralism; (2) the psychopolitical critique of neoliberalism as a systematic producer of psychic suffering, following Vladimir Safatle’s philosophical sociology; and (3) the sociological success of prosperity theology within neo-Pentecostal evangelical churches as a functional response to the affective and communitarian deficits generated by both market individualization and the historical estrangement of the Brazilian left from the working class. Drawing on philosophical analysis, critical theory, and the empirical sociology of religion, the article argues that the evangelical community model should be understood not merely as a theological aberration or an instrument of ideological manipulation, but as a pragmatic network of social-capital formation operating in territories abandoned by the state and by progressive politics. The paper further contends that no political program—liberal, socialist, or otherwise—possesses the intrinsic capacity to resolve the fundamental tensions of human existence, a claim grounded in Berlinian pluralism and corroborated by the comparative historical record of revolutionary projects. Methodologically, the study situates itself within the tradition of critical political philosophy, combining conceptual analysis with sociological interpretation and Brazilian intellectual history.

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selected citations
These citations are derived from selected sources.
This is an alternative to the "Influence" indicator, which also reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically).
BIP!Citations provided by BIP!
popularity
This indicator reflects the "current" impact/attention (the "hype") of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network.
BIP!Popularity provided by BIP!
influence
This indicator reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically).
BIP!Influence provided by BIP!
impulse
This indicator reflects the initial momentum of an article directly after its publication, based on the underlying citation network.
BIP!Impulse provided by BIP!
0
Average
Average
Average
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