The Idea of Patriotism and the National Anthem “A Portuguesa” Between the Nineteenth Century Romanticism and the Euro 2004

Recycled Portugality: The idea of patriotism and the national anthem “A Portuguesa” between the nineteenth century romanticism and the Euro 2004. Jorge Castro Ribeiro Universidade de Aveiro A Portuguesa is the title of a march composed in 1890, by Alfredo Keil (music) and Henrique Lopes de Mendonça (lyrics) which became the Portuguese national anthem in 1911. It was adopted as official Portuguese national hymn1, after the 1910 revolution that deposed the monarchy and founded the Portuguese Republic. The publication and diffusion of this march by the time of its composition unleashed several processes of popularization and political connotations of the music associated to the Portuguese patriotism. The adoption of A Portuguesa as national hymn by the republican government in 1911, gave substance to a new paradigm of the representation of the Portuguese identity which came partially to the present, but has been challenged by new forms – recycled forms, I would say - of express “Portugality”. Its composition took place in the context of liberal nationalist monarchy and one of the goals of its authors was to stimulate the patriotic feelings of his countrymen, since it is related to an episode of patriotic emotion: the quarrel that opposed Portugal and England about the African territories between Angola and Mozambique (the so called pink map or “mapa cor-de-rosa”). The English government launch an ultimatum to Portugal, in January 1890, regarding the transfer of these historic Portuguese colonial possessions to English possession. The Portuguese government wasn’t military prepared to discuss it in a war and so it resigned. This caused a violent popular nationalistic reaction against the Portuguese government and the English claims. For the rest, the lyrics of A Portuguesa points to the expression of aspirations and values that were conceived in that specific political and ideological circumstances – the liberal monarchy – quite different from the present. The Portuguese society elites of the time sought to review themselves in the international context of European civilization (Ramos 2001). In their motivations and habits, as well as their intellectual and aesthetic references related with what is conventionally known as romanticism. Patriotism was one of the central ingredients of this collective identity based on national self- consciousness, history and cultural homogeneity. It was a patriotism based on the kingdom values, its history and on linguistic identity. Both authors of the hymn were engaged in this perspective. According to Habermas this was a kind of patriotism founded on a nationalist citizenship within a cultural homogeneity. But this values are no longer valid for contemporary democratic societies in which citizenship has become a “social integration force”, as it is the modern Portuguese society. What he calls (based on Dolf Sternberger) “constitutional patriotism” (Habermas 1989:256) In my perspective this 1 the english term “national anthem” in portuguese, as in main languages is used as “national hymn” 1 idea gains force by the post-national political reality of the European Union integration. Despite the hymn follow being a central reference to many Portuguese, some other patriotic musical expressions, in different musical idioms, like rap or rock, came in help to young people celebration and supporting the national pride within international sport events. This “recycled portugality” had some important episodes, beginning in 1997 with the official speech of commemoration of the Portuguese national day. The intellectual and writer Alçada Baptista drew a scathing critique towards the national hymn lyrics for its warlike content. In his view this wasn’t aligned with the modern European and civilized perspective of the society (Baptista 1998). Another sign of the change in the patriotic Portuguese view over the Hymn was marked during Euro 2004, the European football Championship which took place in Portugal that year. Those days had witnessed a huge popular enthusiasm around the national football team. People dressed ordinarily in green and red (the colours of the flag) and exhibited national flags outside the windows and cars. The Portuguese patriotism left its usual discretion and emerged loudly and visibly. The philosopher Eduardo Lourenço observes “the Portuguese live in permanent representation, for it is so obsessive for them the feeling of unconscious intimate fragility and its correspondent willing of making good look in person or collectively.(Lourenço 1992:74)” Also in those days there was in the portuguese charts a rap song “menos ais” (“less ouch”) by the Portuguese group “Da Weasel”. Its lyrics expressed in a raw and direct way the contemporary vision of patriotism "without things of hand in chest and heavy air." It established a metaphor from the themes of football towards the country, asking "Why is the country complaining of what might have been?" and promises that this competition "will change our fate, the poor, the conformal, the eaten." At the refrain it calls for "more, more" and, by the way, "less ouch”. This was a new “portugality” that recycled several lines and ideas of the national Hymn A portuguesa in a rap song. A contemporary device of cultural expression related with international hip-hop urban movement. From the musical point of view – melody, harmony, rhythm, orchestration - the Hymn and this rap song couldn’t be less contrasting. But both express patriotic feelings, the pride of “portugality” for an international context. For contemporary Portuguese the connotation of the music with national pride, in the case of the Hymn, was built through a political and ideological rhetoric which was passed by the school, the informal education and the personal experience of living in society with other Portuguese. The rap song filtered some of this values and gave them a new aesthetical frame suited mainly for the young generations. In fact the national Hymn is (and was in the past) a crucial part of the social staging of homeland idea, which in the 21st century is fairly different of the nationalist civic perspective of the 19th. Modern constitutional patriotism is anchored in a conception of democratic citizenship that is able to generate solidarity among strangers. From this perspective music plays the very important role of establishing the idea of portugality and also connecting people with different views, but with a common ideal of democratic citizenship and political belonging to Portugal. The music can incorporate new ingredients that represent the ideological portugality of each time. 2 For now the national hymn, A Portuguesa mantins that ability and that role. The nineteenth-century tonal musical language has not become anachronistic. Conversely, for many it remains up to date. What happened is that other musical genres such as rap, had gained space and had offered new possibilities for expression in a sort of metaphor for the cultural diversity of the contemporary society in Portugal. Especially in real contexts of assertion of constitutional patriotism - as was the case of Euro 2004 - this innovation has proven central for its continuity, since it represents a recycling of portugality. The musical language thus has a crucial role here in being able, or not, to translate the wide variety of patriotic affiliations. Once the musical language is set and choose - whether it is a hymn like the Portugueza by Alfredo Keil or a rap as "Less ouch” by Da Weasel – the social staging of homeland in the concert of nations is ready. References Baptista, António Alçada, (1998): A Pesca à Linha – Algumas memórias. Lisboa. Presença Bohlman, Philip (2002) A Very Short Introduction to World Music. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Habermas, J., (1989) "Historical Consciousness and Post-Traditional Identity: The Federal Republic’s Orientation to the West", in J. Habermas (org. por S. Nicholsen) The New Conservatism: Cultural Criticism and the Historians’ Debate. Cambridge: The MIT Press, pp. 249-267. Lourenço, Eduardo (5ª/1992), O Labirinto da Saudade. Lisboa, Dom Quixote. Ramos, Rui (2001) “O cidadão Keil: “A Portuguesa” e a cultura do patriotismo cívico em Portugal no fim do século XIX”, in Barros, Mafalda Magalhães (Ed.) Alfredo Keil (1850-1907). Lisboa: Ministério da Cultura. 3 .

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