The wreck of Varig: biographical bifurcations, disillusionment and break of the future

Abstract

The article proposes an anthropological essay on the bankruptcy of Varig - the legendary Brazilian aviation company that became one of the most important in the world between 1970 and 1990 - from the point of view of the employees, especially the flight attendants who remained in that function during the crisis of the company, which reached its peak in August 2006. Based on biographical interviews and an ethnography of the sociabilities of these ex-colleagues today, it recovers the metaphor of the "Titanic Orchestra", used by these workers, to analyze the senses of this disruptive event in their biographies. It is observed a break in the sense of time, understood as a coherent link between past, present and future. In a second moment, three biographical movements after the bankruptcy, denominated adaptation, reconversion and resignation are pointed out. It is concluded that the way to deal with and overcome this rupture depends on variable properties, among which the intersection between gender, age and occupation emerges as particularly unfavorable in the analyzed context.