Who cares for those who care? Teacher suffering, emotional labor, and the production of subjectivities in early childhood education

Abstract

Inspired by the themes of care and abandonment explored in Jorge Amado’s novel Capitães da Areia, this article examines processes involved in the production and invisibilization of teacher distress in early childhood education. The study was conducted within the project “Subjectivity in Contemporary Times: the Self and the Social Self” and involved the voluntary participation of ten early childhood teachers followed throughout one academic year. Methodologically, the research adopted cartography as an investigative approach, combined with semi-structured interviews. The analysis revealed that teacher distress is produced through complex relations involving emotional labor, responsibility for care, intensification of institutional demands, and the growing platformization of educational practices. Findings indicate that, although teachers are continually expected to care for children and families, their own experiences of suffering often remain invisible or naturalized within educational settings. The dialogue established with Jorge Amado’s literary work enabled a critical discussion of contemporary forms of abandonment affecting teaching work and processes of subjectivity production. The study concludes that understanding teacher distress requires moving beyond individual-centered approaches and considering the institutional, relational, and subjective dimensions that shape teaching in contemporary early childhood education.