A dinâmica territorial do patrimônio da ferrovia no ramal do Paranapanema (PR)

Abstract

This work is a reflection on the territorialization process of the railway network of the Paranapanema branch around the towns of Jaguariaíva, Arapoti and Wenceslau Braz, in the state of Parana. The thematic and spatial delimitation is justified by the lack of studies on the railway heritage in the region, as well as by the notion that this proposal may incorporate the canon of consolidated studies about the railway presence in the state of Parana, while highlighting historical and geographical aspects of the towns at hand. Thus, understanding the railway dynamic and the constant construction of this heritage requires a methodology that encompasses both the material and immaterial elements of the railway, in a territorial approach that considers the diachronic and synchronic aspects of the resulting relationships between man, technique, and society. It is understood that power relations take place on different scales and permeate the history of the railway, since its implementation, through the process of leaving state-ownership to its concession to private capital in the 1990s, until the present days. These relations produce territorialities that are regarded as results from the relations between the individuals and the railway territory/network. In the same way, the vestiges created by the technical presence of the railway may be understood as an industrial heritage whose reflections may be noticed in the economic, social, political, and cultural scopes. The principal theme of this work is, therefore, the railway cultural heritage in the Paranapanema branch. However, the theoretical discussion and the results obtained are presented in a methodological perspective that intends to surpass dichotomous views, connecting important concepts to the discussion. For this geographical analysis, the chapters are organized so as to establish the possible relations between three dialectical pairs: territory and network; memory and heritage; and city and countryside. The territorializations of the railway and their consequences in the spatial organization of the towns approached (emphasizing the city-countryside relation) were analyzed based on Santos's (2006) system of actions, answering the challenge proposed by the author of a method of geographical analysis that considers the structures, processes, shapes, and functions. Thus, the general objective of this work is “understanding, based on the analysis of memories and territorialities, the dynamic of the railway heritage in the Paranapanema branch (PR), taking into account the roughness and functionality that are enclosed in geographical spaces”. With that in mind, a bibliographical research and a data collection were conducted, which, examined from the analysis of memories and perceptions, are presented as important elements for comprehending the multiple territorialities produced by this vast territory of the railway network that extends itself on a global scale. “Facts”, “roughness”, and “functionality” were determinant in understanding the dialogue between object, objectives, theoretical concepts, and material obtained through an analysis of the human experience in the appropriation of space.