Incorporation of the feminicide by brazilian criminal dogmatics: lethal violence against women between recognition and naturalization

Abstract

Based on the feminist theory of law and the concept of gender justice from the perspective of recognition (Fraser) and domestication (Severi), this article discusses the way in which criminal doctrine interprets feminicide and incorporates the gender. Through qualitative and descriptive research, we used the technique of content analysis in seven Criminal Law handbooks. The summary of the results is that all handbooks refer to related legislation. In most of them, sexism, patriarchy and misogyny are discussed to some extent. In a smaller number, there is an indication of specialized feminist literature. However, in all the handbooks the discussion of the passive subject (woman) is naturalized or not even commented upon. Furthermore, none handbooks make mention documents from a gender perspective for public policies and only one mention the CPMI on violence against women. Therefore, we conclude that the reception of the gender perspective in the interpretation of feminicide by penal dogmatics exists, but it’s partial. Most of the analyzed texts create argumentative spaces for the recognition of feminicide as consequence of socially constructed structures. However, this incorporation is limited by naturalization and domestication strategies, due to the evident lack of familiarity of the analyzed authors with gender studies.