The ENEM Essay and the Closure of Discourse

Abstract

High school education in Brazil has undergone several changes regarding its primary objective, being strongly associated with the National High School Exam (ENEM), one of the main gateways to higher education. The ENEM essay, one of the components of the exam, follows a standardized argumentative-essay format, requiring candidates to defend an opinion on social issues and propose an intervention while respecting human rights. Based on Herbert Marcuse's theories, the article discusses how the structuring of the essay may limit candidates' critical thinking, favoring the reproduction of dominant discourses. Thus, the essay-writing process, which should foster critical thinking, becomes an exercise in conformity to predetermined norms. The analysis of Marcuse’s work, particularly the idea of "discourse closure," suggests that the ENEM essay, despite its intention to assess candidates' argumentation and writing skills, reinforces a discursive standardization, in which candidates are encouraged to follow predefined formulas to achieve a good score. This leads to the reflection that the exam merely perpetuates a one-dimensional and operationalized discourse.