Identidade e memória: o olhar dos moradores e frequentadores frente ao centro histórico de Natal/RN
Resumo
The historical center of a city is configured as the first urban nucleus of occupation of
a given locality, therefore being the spaces that went through a process of decline of
its activities over time, leaving to these environments the function of telling, retelling
and keeping alive the memory of the cities. The historic center of Natal, capital of the
state of Rio Grande do Norte, is composed of an architectural circuit composed of the
districts of Cidade Alta and Ribeira, even if it is constituted as a cultural heritage it is
noticeable that the space goes unnoticed in the city's daily life. Therefore, the present
work has as its main objective to identify how the residents and visitors observe the
historic center of the city of Natal, which spaces compose the historic center and what
are the main problems found in these spaces. In order to reach the proposed
objectives, bibliographic and documental researches were carried out, as well as in
loco visits to identify and map the spaces that make up the historic area of the city, and
the elaboration and application of a questionnaire that aimed to understand how the
historic center is observed from the point of view of the residents and frequenters of
the region. With the results obtained it was possible to understand how the historic
center is constituted, as well as the points that integrate it, through the field visits it was
possible to realize that the buildings and monuments that are inserted in the space go
through a process of abandonment by the government, causing social problems for
this area as lack of structure and insecurity, factors that repel the very population to
feel comfortable to frequent these spaces, that the residents and frequenters identify
and understand the importance of this space for the history of the city.