Inventar a si mesmo: a apropriação do modelo da empresa por microempreendedores individuais em estados extremos do Brasil

Abstract

This dissertation draws from Michel Foucault’s theoretical groundwork developed in his book Birth of Biopolitics. American neoliberalism was developed initially in the 1940s and implemented effectively since the 1970s. It proposes a form of governmentality that exercises specific ways of leading subjects through legal and political tools. The neoliberal model promotes generalized competition in society while acknowledging the sphere of the State as an instance aimed at constructing and maintaining the market order. In this sense, this research understands the figure of the Individual Microentrepreneur as the result of the dissemination of neoliberal policies designed to stimulate competition mechanisms and increase the productivity and performance of companies. Therefore, the homo economicus is considered a subjective model that works in accordance with the neoliberal model of the company. Under the neoliberal model, the subject needs to constantly maximize human capital to meet the market demands. Simultaneously, the subject must deal with the risks of the economic sphere while remaining functional and utile for neoliberal governmentality. In return, the market instance offers the possibility for these subjects to have more freedom and autonomy to undertake. However, the self-entrepreneur figure is required to increase skills and take on their professional life responsibilities constantly. Therefore, this research aims to understand, through semi-structured interview technique, how the company model is appropriated by the category of the legal entity called Individual Microentrepreneur, in extreme states of Brazil. In general, the research found that the appropriation of the company model by individual micro-entrepreneurs constitutes an unstable and provisional process, considering that the company is understood as the place of permanent adaptation. Along with this, the company model is also appreciated as a space where it is possible to obtain autonomy and professional success, in a constant search for a “version of oneself” that surpasses the previous “versions of oneself”.