Abstract
This article discusses Elide Rugai Bastos' contributions to the contemporary researches on Brazilian social thought. It analyzes her main texts on the so-called São Paulo sociological school, i. e., the sociological perspective based on Florestan Fernandes' work. Specifically, we focus on how Bastos: (i) understands the process of systematization of Brazilian social sciences, as well the role played by Freyre and Fernandes in this process; (ii) reconstructs the analytical categories that emerge from the sociology proposed by Fernandes and his group; and (iii) renovates this intellectual tradition with the discussion of the role of ideas in social change.
Keywords: Brazilian social thought; Elide Rugai Bastos; Florestan Fernandes; Intellectuals; Ideas and society