How did Oswald de Andrade’s Cannibal Manifesto describe Brazil’s relationship with foreign culture?

In his literary movement known as Antropofagia (Cannibalism), Oswald de Andrade proposed a unique approach to Brazil’s relationship with foreign culture. Rather than simply rejecting external influences, he advocated for a process of "cannibalizing" them—metaphorically devouring foreign ideas, techniques, and art, digesting them, and transforming them into something authentically Brazilian.1

This concept was a central pillar of the Modernist movement in Brazilian literature. Andrade argued that Brazil should move away from a submissive dependence on traditional Portuguese and European literary values. By adopting a "cannibalistic" stance, Brazilian artists could selectively absorb the best of international avant-garde trends while simultaneously asserting their own national identity, folklore, and native themes. Ultimately, this strategy aimed to liberate Brazilian expression from colonial academicism, fostering a new, independent cultural synthesis that reflected the country's own heritage and reality.12