Title not available in English

Abstract

This study deals with the universe of teenage fatherhood in terms of the relationship among pregnancy, progress at school, and work among youngsters from low-income groups. Part of the literature on this topic has discussed the adverse effects of pregnancy on boys’ school and professional careers, one of the major consequences being the (re)production of poverty. The field work consisted of individual interviews with young fathers and the mothers of young fathers living in a slum community in the city of Rio de Janeiro. When the youngsters’school and work records were considered, the former could be seen to be interrupted in favour of the latter, more for reasons of material need than as the result of the pregnancies in themselves. A comparison between the histories of the young men and those of their parents showed homogeneity in terms of social origin and of reproduction of class conditions. The category of “accountability” emerges as a central value, marking the passage to maturity and reinforcing male identity. It is clear that the literature on both masculinity and n working class culture has indicated that the function of provider is fundamental to the construction of a man’s identity.