Jesús Urueta, a literary lawsuit (1893)

Abstract

The article intends to map the controversy between the newspaper El Democrat and Jesus Urueta (1867-1920) in Mexico in early 1893. Systematically disregarded by historians and critics, this complaint is simultaneous to that of decadentism and provides other meanings. Both begin when Tablada publishes “Cuestión literaria. Decadentismo”, on January 15, 1893, to which Urueta responds with “Host. To José Juan Tablada”. In the case of Urueta, the publication of two poetic prose in the first fortnight of February of that year unleashed a campaign of discredit to which he responded by signing texts that were from recognized authors. Two days later he revealed the trick. Urueta exhibits that the campaign against him and the incipient decadent movement obeyed exclusively for personal and not literary reasons. After the lawsuit, the opponents of the decadentist group regrouped to discredit the movement itself, avoiding particularizing its criticism in any of its members.