Comércio, consumo e desigualdade no Rio de Janeiro: um estudo comparativo entre no espaços terciários de Bangu e Leblon

Abstract

The thesis aims to analyze the dialectics between the differentiated consumption practices and the tertiary activity centers in Rio de Janeiro. Based on the analysis of the organization of the tertiary spaces of Bangu and Leblon and, equally, of the consumption practices, it is proposed to highlight the existing relationship between socioeconomic inequality and the production of trade and consumption spaces. These tertiary centralities emerged in the context of the decentralization of tertiary activities in Rio de Janeiro. They show two distinct commercial forms, namely, the street retail trade and the shopping mall. Leblon and Bangu are neighborhoods that have distinct social content and also present differences in the qualitative and quantitative aspects of the supply of products and services due to the unequal income distribution. It can also be said that consumers in Bangu and Leblon exhibit differentiated consumption and distractive practices. Therefore, the tertiary center of Bangu and the tertiary center of Leblon outline elements that allow a comparative study of consumption, with its specificities, due to the differentiated socioeconomic and morphological characteristics. It is noteworthy that, although going back to the past in order to explain the present, the thesis privileges the present as a temporal cut. The applied theoretical-methodological was based on the literature review on Urban Morphology, on the theory of commerce and consumption and also on the theory of the Two Circuits of Urban Economy, in addition to field research, direct observation of the study’s areas and consult specialized websites. The thesis is justified, since the modification of consumption habits, cultural values, tastes and lifestyles, associated with changes in the organization of the supply of products and services, which are qualitatively and quantitatively different due to the existence of the Two Circuits of Urban Economy in Brazil and, particularly, in Rio de Janeiro, have been little explored within the Geography of Commerce and Consumption. The thesis reveals that the commerce and consumption spaces reflect and condition consumption practices in Leblon and Bangu. It also shows that Bangu and Leblon's trade and consumption spaces reflect socio-spatial fragmentation and socioeconomic inequality.