Engaging in tourism and believing in tourism

The ideation of the beach city of Jurerê

Abstract

Research in the tourism sector generally presents tourist places as if they had always been desirable destinations for tourism. Few studies show how and through which processes certain destinations have become what they are today. This article examines how the power group responsible for shaping the beach town of Jurerê, in Florianópolis, mobilized a series of material and symbolic resources successfully in building trust and credibility in the venture. The methodology used is thematic content analysis. The empirical material analyzed corresponds to 17 journalistic publications between 1957 and 1958. The theoretical foundation is based on social topology, which allows understanding the power dynamics present in the process of coastal occupation linked to tourist activity. The research reveals that this power group echoed the vision of progress and modernization attributed to tourism. Trust and credibility are anchored through networks of sociability in the environment of political agents and celebrated figures from the local and national scene, with a highlight on architect Oscar Niemeyer. In addition, legitimacy in the economic plan mobilizes the figure of the "businessman," who sometimes merges with the political figure of the main promoter of the venture.