This book identifies 2 polarising concepts used by Brazilian mainstream sociology to explain the formation and identity of Brazil as a society: corruption and human rights.

As the 1988 Constitution is a milestone in the Brazilian transition to democracy and part of a broader movement of Brazil's integration into international law, the impact of international legal regimes on the attainment of human rights and the fight against corruption is analysed to evaluate the state of Brazilian democracy.

The book examines the outcomes of 4 specific international human rights regimes in Brazil, involving rights and policies related to:
– the right to food, the fight against hunger, and conditional cash transfer programmes;
– the right to health and the public healthcare system;
– the right to racial equality and affirmative action in superior education; and
– the right to recognition and the protection of Indigenous populations.

This approach is then applied to the examination of the international anti-corruption agenda. It focuses on Brazil's determination to deal with corruption against the backdrop of its worst democratic crisis of the last 35 years using meticulously researched case studies on the most prominent investigations, including Mensalão and Lava Jato (Car Wash). The book traces back to the origins of the international anti-corruption agenda and key legitimising efforts aimed at aligning the discourses with the developmental, good-governance trends, and delves into its repercussions within the Brazilian context, with a glance at their collateral effects in other parts of the world.

Thus, the core focus of the work revolves around human rights and the fight against corruption, shedding light on how democracy evolves or recedes over time under their influence.