The admission of the theory of co-culpability in the judgment of João Grilo in “Auto da Compadecida” by Ariano Suassuna

Abstract

Written by Ariano Suassuna, Auto da Compadecida was conceived in the light of novels and popular stories from the Northeast. In this sense, the narrative revolves around João Grilo and Chicó. Caricatured figures, the protagonists are humble and represent the northeastern people who live at the mercy of public policies, who do not have access to their basic rights and who, faced with this reality – the lack of opportunities – see no other way out but sin. Within this scenario, the theory of co-culpability of the argentine jurist Eugenio Raúl Zaffaroni is inserted, which consists of recognising the influences of social inequality in determining the subjects for crime, that is, understanding that social, political, economic and educational needs influence particularly in the free will of agents, who without means of livelihood, lean towards the commission of unjust criminal acts – in Auto da Compadecida, of sins. From this perspective, supported by the deductive method of approach, and by the methods of explanatory and comparative procedure, the present research, in short, has the purpose of bringing to light the intersections between the judgment of João Grilo in the work of Ariano Suassuna and the theory of criminal co-culpability taught by Eugenio Zaffaroni.