“The Country of the Future?” Introduction to the History of Modern Brazil
(AM220) (Second Year Option Module)
Sample Exam
Exam Length: 2 hours
Discuss FOUR terms from Section A.
Answer ONE question from Section B.
Section A
1) Choose FOUR items from the list below. For each, define the term or identify
the event or individual, and explain its contribution to Brazilian history.
a) Emperor Pedro II
b) Cândido Mariano da Silva Rondon
c) Mário Juruna
d) Luiz Inácio “Lula” da Silva
e) The Paraguayan War
f) The Second World War
g) The military coup of 1964
h) Positivism
i) “Abertura” (opening)
j) Liberation Theology
Section B
Answer ONE question.
2) Why did Brazil become independent from Portugal in 1822?
3) By what point in the nineteenth century, and why, did Brazil achieve genuine political
stability?
4) Assess the impact in Brazil of the closing of the transatlantic slave trade in 1850.
5) Why was a Republic declared in 1889?
6) What was the impact of immigration on Brazil between the 1890s and the 1920s?
7) Was the fall of the “Old Republic” inevitable by 1930?
8) To what extent did the governments of Getúlio Vargas improve life for ordinary
working Brazilians?
9) How far have Brazilian governments been able to combine economic growth with
social justice since 1985?
10) “The forces of the centre have played a greater role in shaping Brazilian history than
those of the region.” Discuss.