Machado de Assis e o cânone : considerações sobre sua inserção e consagração no campo literário oitocentista

Abstract

It is common knowledge that Machado de Assis turned into a canonic author of Brazilian Literature. Also in life, he was recognized by his colleagues, taking on the post of Perpetual President of Academia Brasileira de Letras (ABL). His long career began in the decade of 1850, when Machado de Assis published his first texts at Marmota Fluminense newspaper at the age of 15. The prestige as a respectable critic came in the decade of 1860, with the help of José de Alencar. His fruitful relationship with B. L. Garnier is what conferred him recognition as a writer of poems, tales and novels. In the decade of 1880, with the publication of his second set of novels, he became the gravitational axis of the Brazilian literary field, culminating, in the decade of 1890, with the ABL s creation and its presidency. For Ubiratan Machado (2003), many changes occurred between the debut of the young writer and the consecration of the master. And it was not only Machado de Assis that was transformed, but also the world, the criticism, the habits, the behaviors, the opinions (p. 7). This final paper intends to trace the journey of this author since his debut in Marmota Fluminense until his effective success. For that, at first, we seek to understand how his literary and commercial relationships influenced directly or indirectly his insertion and his permanence in the literary field. After that, thinking about the importance to understand the journey of Machado de Assis in the literary society, we investigate the author s incursions at theatre, journalism and, consequently, in the society, the pillars supporting the career of any man of letters. Finally, to understand how the young writer, the militant journalist and the censor turned into one of the best novelist of that period. We search how the literary field received the Machado de Assis s publishing. For that, we ll discuss the contemporary critical reception of his novels, with special attention to Silvio Romero s publications and also some posthumous critics until the decade of 1950