Violence, silence and resistance

an analysis of the song "Camila, Camila" in light of power and gender theories

Abstract

This article analyzes the song "Camila, Camila" by the band Nenhum de Nós as a narrative of gender violence, articulating it with theoretical frameworks from theories of power, symbolic domination, and the social construction of the victim. It starts from the premise that cultural productions can operate as critical devices for interpreting social reality, allowing for the highlighting of frequently invisible dimensions of domestic violence. Using an interdisciplinary approach, the study draws on authors such as Foucault, Butler, Bourdieu, and Saffioti to understand violence not as an isolated event, but as an expression of a power structure that permeates social relations and subjectivities. The analysis of the song's lyrics reveals central elements of domestic violence dynamics, such as fear, silencing, constant surveillance, and the internalization of domination. It emphasizes that the violence extends beyond the physical act, operating in the subjective constitution of the victim and contributing to their social delegitimization. This work also examines the mechanisms of victim construction and the processes of blame, highlighting how gender norms and social discourses reinforce the maintenance of violence. Furthermore, it subtly identifies the presence of possibilities for resistance and rupture, understood as complex processes conditioned by structural factors. It concludes that the analyzed song constitutes an important hermeneutical tool for understanding gender violence, revealing the articulation between power, culture, and subjectivity, as well as challenging the boundaries between silence and resistance.