Los niños del carnaval del guarapo y sus representaciones sociales en torno a esta festividad

Abstract

The following investigation is based on the sociocultural field of study focusing on the maintenance and conservation of the “Carnaval del Guarapo” as a cultural and traditional practice of the Sipirra village. Our main goal is to highlight the role that childhood has inside of this preservation process. Likewise, it assumes the assumption of the construction of social subject and society from the Emphasis in History, Imaginary, and Social Representations of Childhood of the Culture and Childhood Masters. In order to determine how childhood contributes to the preservation of this cultural practice, it is necessary to interpret the social representations of the Guarapo Carnival constructed by children through their formation and participation during the festivities. This practice will allow to reveal the images, feelings and actions created on the children and how through all the above they can build up and save their own identity. In this research it is possible to visualize the role that community plays in the transmission of knowledge to kids and the way they interiorize all this information through their everyday experiences and their participation in the carnival. Based on the authors interpretation of the Jodelet theory, four social representations were identified and categorized: Social unity, tradition, festivities and honor. These allowed to elucidate the kids experience in the carnival, as well as offering an insight of the perceptions, representations and the reasons why, kids were able to construct significances that developed a sense of belonging and identity.