preamble values of the brazilian constitutions - a data visualization
About the project
The project consists of a dataviz experiment that presents the values written in each of the seven Brazilian constitutions. Each preamble text represents the core principles of the respective constitution and reveals a part of the context and political reality of the time. Being able to see the patterns and distributions throughout the years can add a different point of view regarding the events that led to each new constitution.
This was a personal project with the goal of developing innovative dataviz content about Brazilian history and politics, and it has led to many exciting debates and conclusions with friends and colleagues.
Process
I started creating my database by opening all the constitution files and organizing the values in each preamble. They are mostly short so it wasn't hard to know which words are relevant ideologically. The most recent constitution has the longest preamble and a long list of values, some of which weren't included but represented by the value "equality".
When choosing the type of graph I would use, I had a challenge with the way I would differentiate each value. Most of the graphs I experimented with needed additional labels and this made the experience a lot less intuitive.
The solution I came up with was to use the Sankey Diagram, a beautiful chart type that helped me use all the labels I needed right where the information needed to be. I found that it was very easy for people to understand it quickly and move on to analysis.
