“Eu estava vhivendo”: a experiência soropositiva no espaço autobiográfico de bernardo dania guiné

Abstract

The research analyzes the autobiography of Bernardo Dania Guiné, “OOOPS! Learning to live with AIDS”, as a historical source to understand the social representations of HIV/aids in Brazil during the 1990s. Autobiographical literature is investigated as a means of preserving the memories and experiences of marginalized groups. In this context, Bernardo's work reveals the challenges faced by a gay, HIV positive man in a period marked by stigmas associated with the epidemic. The study is based on a bibliographic and documentary analysis, considering autobiography as a biographical space where individual experiences intertwine with historical and social narratives. The research is structured in three chapters: the first consists of the introduction, which presents the theoretical and methodological guidelines of the research. The second addresses the processes of historicization of aids, discussing the construction of identities and metaphors associated with the disease, and the third explores the role of the evangelical religion in the stigmatization of HIV. The analysis highlights how aids was socially constructed as a "behavioral risk disease," perpetuating prejudices linked to homosexuality. Bernardo's narrative reflects not only the impact of stigma but also his responses of resilience, while also denouncing the precariousness of the Brazilian healthcare system at the time. Since the discovery of his diagnosis, Bernardo faces identity ruptures, emotional loneliness, and discrimination, even within the family context. By avoiding support groups, his trajectory illustrates personal resistance against social judgment, while his romantic experiences reveal the challenges imposed by persistent stigma. The work contributes to the understanding of the intersections between history, subjectivity, and social representations of HIV/aids. From the perspective of an "ordinary subject," the research sheds light on the tensions between individual suffering and collective context, proposing a critical reading of the historical construction of the epidemic in Brazil and its influence on the formation of identities and social practices.