Customary actions and production of meaning in the city of São Paulo

Abstract

The project has the objective to develop a comparative study between the cities of Sao Paulo and Rome analyzing customary actions, performances and habits in interactions between people and places, such interactions having media visibility or not. This project results from a series of investigations made by the Center of Sociosemiotic Research (Centro de Pesquisas Sociossemioticas - CPS- PUCSP), from the Catholic University of Sao Paulo (PUCSP), having co-orientation of Eric Landowski (CNRS, CEVIPOF) and Ana Claudia Mei Alves de Oliveira (PUCSP:COS), researchers who develop sociosemiotic theory and methodology. The project therefore aims to analyze visibility forms in the city focusing on various forms of expression in the city, as well as forms of interaction between people and places. The ways the city shows itself imply, in various contexts, the ways people envision and see the city. As the project has the objective to identify, describe and analyze narrative and discursive paths of the city, as well as the construction of the meaning of places, it will probably identity that these constructions often vary tremendously from the urbanistic and administrative views and plans of large cities. As one begins to understand the production and development of meaning in the city of Sao Paulo, it is possible to analyze the intelligible and sensitive aspects of the city, as well as the ways languages create meaning, interaction and social practices. A map of experience in the city, encompassing multimedia presentation and publication of books are some of the goals the project aims to achieve. The conclusions reached by the research developed in the city of Sao Paulo will allow us to compare the South American city to the studies developed in the city of Rome by researchers of "La Sapienza" and "Tor Vergata" Universities with whom the Catholic University of Sao Paulo, through the Center of Sociosemiotic Research (CPS), signed cooperation agreements for the development of this inter-institutional research project. (AU)