Abstract
The article discusses the book by Graciliano Ramos Memórias do cárcere (Memoirs of prison), posthumously published in 1953. His experience in jail in 1936 meant a cut in the life of the author, who left the home state of Alagoas, never to return, settling in Rio de Janeiro. The book is a kind of literary testament in which he registered his intent to be remembered as a stone in the path of the ruling classes - with which, however, he had ambiguous relations. By recalling the prison Graciliano expressed his unease with the established order, which also placed obstacles to the professionalization and autonomy of the writers, but at the same time it offered them certain privileges. Paradoxically, the explicit intention of registering the arbitrariness suffered in jail also served as an element of distinction and led the author to full public recognition as a writer and an example of intellectual victimized by authoritarianism, although he held positions related to the federal government after his release.
Keywords
Graciliano Ramos; Memoirs; Literature and society; Communist writers; Intellectuals and artists under Vargas' government