A guerra entra no faz de conta: Segunda Guerra Mundial, cultura de guerra e brincadeiras infantis no Brasil e nos Estados Unidos

Abstract

This article analyzes the presence of World War II in the childhood universe through the circulation of images and war-related meanings across different media: photojournalism published in Life Magazine (United States) and O Cruzeiro magazine (Brazil), an advertising campaign, and the childhood account of historian Boris Fausto. Using these sources, it investigates how elements of war culture infiltrated the daily and playful practices of children. The study considers the various ways images were mediated in distinct national contexts and discusses how the cultural producers and public policies mobilized children as part of the war effort. Employing categories such as total war, war culture, and transnational history, it argues that play took on patriotic and pedagogical dimensions, becoming a space for constructing social roles and national identities. By exploring how childhood was mobilized within the war imaginary, the article reveals the ways in which war was present in the pretend play and everyday life of Brazilian and American children.