We invite you to join the conversation with Alex Brostoff, the translator of Antônio Bispo dos Santos’s "The Earth Gives, the Earth Wants"!
About the book
This book by the late Brazilian activist and quilombo leader Antônio Bispo dos Santos offers an original perspective on ways of living and relating to others and to the land that is rooted in a quilombo cosmovision – the polytheistic, counter-colonial, confluential worldview articulated by Bispo through quilombola thinking in Brazil. It presents a fresh critique of capitalism and colonialism that emerges from a quilombola perspective.
Nêgo Bispo lays out a set of terms and concepts developed over his lifetime, based on ancestral quilombola knowledge. His key concept is "counter-colonialism" – a practice of confronting and undoing colonial domination through quilombola modes of life, struggle, and thought. He argues that the hyper-individualistic, capitalistic, colonial approach to cultivating the earth sees the land as subservient to its desires. A quilombo cosmovision, by contrast, understands that our desires are always in dialogue with the wants and needs of the earth – we must live in harmony with the earth, animals, and people, and if we take from the earth, we must also give to the earth.
This remarkable book introduces anew perspective on the debates about the destructive consequences of capitalism and colonialism and will be of interest to anyone who wants to think about how we live in relation to each other and to the earth.
About the translator
Alex Brostoff is a writer, translator, and educator. They’ve translated a range of literary nonfiction and critical theory from Spanish and Portuguese, including Indigenous leader Ailton Krenak's Ancestral Future (Polity Press, 2024) and Brazilian activist Nêgo Bispo's The Earth Gives, the Earth Wants (Polity Press, 2026). They are co-editor of the collection Autotheories (The MIT Press, 2025) and have guest-edited "Autotheory," a special issue of ASAP/Journal(2021) and "Trans Literatures," a special issue of the journal College Literature (2025). Brostoff's first book, The Autotheory Effect, is forthcoming with Columbia University Press. They are currently Assistant Professor of English and Women’s and Gender Studies at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. and a visiting scholar at the University of Lisbon.
About the moderator
Salomé Honório is a poet and independent researcher based in Lisbon, Portugal. They are a co-founding member of Quir Research Hub, an ongoing collaborator with the Center for Comparative Studies, and a member of the Urban Transitions Hub. Their work departs from core commitments to the intersectional and interdisciplinary critique of dominant epistemologies of representation. Their current research focuses on autofictional and autotheoretical works by trans and queer writers, theorists, and artists across Portugal, Brazil, France, and the US. They are the author of Lábio/Abril (Traveller, 2015), fox, closet & fist (Face Press, 2023, 2nd ed.), and Raposina (Douda Correria, 2024).
Tickets for this event
The event is free to attend, but registration is obligatory to enter. Space is limited, grab your tickets quickly!
The Venue
Good Company Books is an independent English Bookstore in Lisbon. Born from our love of global literature and our Portuguese heritage, we are crafting a space for people of all backgrounds to gather and enjoy the best books, events, coffee, and wine. Find out more on our Instagram.
How To Find Us
By Metro: We're situated a 5-minute walk from the Campo Pequeno metro (Yellow line) and a 10-minute walk from the Alameda metro (Green & Red lines).
By Bus: There are many convenient bus options 2 blocks away from us on Avenida República, with the closest stop to our store being Campo Pequeno-Av. Republica.
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