O cientista Vital Brazil, o estabelecimento do Instituto Butantan e o mito das serpentes

Abstract

This work is an attempt to analyze the impact of the image and the discourse of Instituto Butantan, both to the people in general and to the scientists, in the early years of its secular trajectory. It is assumed that this discourse was settled on the construction and institutionalization of an autochthonous science as an instrument for the modernization of the nation (in particular, the city of São Paulo). The biography of Vital Brazil is presented, since his history is intimately related and even mixed up with the history of the Butantan. The texts he produced, particularly his book "A Defesa Contra o Ophidismo”, are also analyzed. Finally, an attempt to draw a profile of the literature related to snakes (and to ophidism) in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries aligned with popular beliefs and concepts is made. The main objective is to demonstrate the importance of the work of Vital Brazil in changing the way venomous animals, particularly snakes, were conceived. Also, it is shown that, even working in the medical field, Vital Brazil made a fundamental contribution to biology and natural history. Finally, this work seeks to clarify a part of the history of Instituto Butantan that has always remained obscure. Using Vital Brazil’s project of scientific dissemination together with images and texts related to his work with the media of the time, an attempt is made to demonstrate that the conception of snake and ophidism he introduced along with his intelligent and sagacious work, were important pieces for the success of the Butantan