Gonzaga Duque e os Cavaleiros da modernidade: Chapéus e cavalos dentro do imaginário do século XIX

As one of the most important components of modernism, the symbolic thinking appears as a dominant orientation within the visual arts and literature. The compulsory modernization imposed by industrialization would compel a rapid transformation of the modernity inhabitant's mental structure, and therefore, a new perception towards symbolic references. The hat and the horse, would come to embody a symbolic humanity— due to the individual's depersonalization among the 19m Century urban multitude. These signs’ presence in works of Russian writers and in works of the Brazilian writer and art critic, Gonzaga Duque, shows how these symbologies got internationalized. Hats and horses are presented as antithetic symbols of modernity: the first by representing the urban standardization,which simultaneously seeks anonymity and distinction in modern cities: the later, by representing the possibility of rebellion against the domination imposed by rationalism, which kept the individuals from giving full rein to their imagination