It was in the city of Recife, in a building on the corner of Hospício Street and Avenida Conde da Boa Vista that Trajano Chacon was born on January 18, 1879. When his father died, he was taken care of by an aunt, wife of the Barão de Lucena.
In 1903, at the age of 24, following his literary vocation, he went to live in Rio de Janeiro, where he founded and directed the magazine Atheneida, a periodical of only eleven issues, similar to some French publications of the same genre, to which great names of Brazilian writers and artists were attracted, such as Rui Barbosa, Coelho Neto, Raul Pompéia, João do Rio and Martins Júnior.
The following year, Trajano Chacon closed Atheneida and began to write, using the pseudonym Justus Junius, a section of theater criticism in the periodical Os Anais: Semanário de Literatura, Arte, Ciência e Indústria, directed by Domingos Olímpio, who was the author of the novel Luzia-Homem (1903).
In 1905, Trajano returned to Recife to complete his law course (1908), which was interrupted at the time while he was involved in political adventures. He was in favor of Florianism (adherence and support to the policy of Marshal Floriano Peixoto – 1849–1896, first vice-president of Brazil. Due to the resignation of Marshal Deodoro da Fonseca – 1891, he assumed the presidency). Trajano also favored the annexation of the Acre territory to Brazil; and was against the mandatory anti-smallpox vaccine. Regarding the annexation of Acre, Trajano Chacon fought in the press in Manaus and in the Federal Capital.
Brazil, by the end of the 19th century and beginning of the 20th century went through intense political turbulence. It was the transition from empire to republic and in Recife, from 1911 to 1915 General Dantas Barreto governed. Trajano Chacon worked in the campaign for Dantas and was given the post of delegate of the 1st district as a reward, but he soon resigned. There was personal incompatibility with the chief of police, Porfírio de Andrade, the function and methods inherent to the position. He returned to journalism and his reports on industries began to appear in an opposition newspaper O Pernambuco. There were attacks against him in the newspaper A República, run by Senator Ribeiro de Brito.
Researchers report that some of Trajano Chacon's articles indirectly attacked General Dantas Barreto, but the most violent were not written by Trajano. An editorial that was not of his authorship provoked the violence that resulted in his death.
On August 11, 1913, on Rua da Imperatriz, in downtown Recife, as he was leaving one of the celebrations for the creation of the Law courses, at the Helvetica Theater, Trajano Chacon was murdered with iron pipes. The commander of the local military police, Colonel Francisco Melo, author of the massacre of sailors granted amnesty in the movement known as the Revolta da Chibata, in 1910, in Rio de Janeiro was then Dantas Barreto’s immediate assistant. In order to silence the opposition, he was held responsible for the crime.
Aggression against journalists in Brazil, and particularly in Recife, was almost always registered in periodicals at that time: Eurico Witruvio, editor of the Gazeta da Tarde (1893); Gaspar Menezes, editor of the Gazeta do Recife (1894); Argemiro Aroxa, chief editor of the Gazeta da Tarde; José Maria d’Albuquerque, chief editor of A Província (1895); Mario Melo, correspondent of the newspaper Gazeta da Tarde (1912), among many others.
The Dantas power favored the criminals and penalized the prosecutors who dared to accuse the defendants: Mena Barreto and Barreto Campelo. Protests against the murder of Trajano Chacon were registered in several newspapers in Brazil, such as A Imprensa, O Século, Gazeta da Tarde, O Imparcial, Gazeta de Notícias, O Debate
Recife, May 15, 2012.
sources consulted
BEVILAQUA, Clóvis. História da Faculdade de Direito do Recife: 11 de agosto de 1827 a 11 de agosto de 1927. Rio de Janeiro: Livraria Francisco Alves, 1927. p. 395.
CHACON, Vamireh. Trajano Chacon, um capítulo da “belle époque” brasileira. Revista do Departamento de Cultura, Recife, n. 4, p. 15-27, 1970.
PARAÍSO, Rostand. Cadê Mário Melo... Recife: Comunigraf, 1997.
PEREIRA, Nilo. Trajano Chacon e a revista Atheneida. Revista do Departamento de Cultura, Recife, n. 4, p. 5-14, 1970.
TRAJANO Chacon. [Imagem neste texto]. Revista do Departamento de Cultura, Recife, n. 4, p. 3, 1970.
how to quote this text
BARBOSA, Virgínia. Trajano Chacon. In: PESQUISA Escolar. Recife: Fundação Joaquim Nabuco, 2012. Available at:https:https://pesquisaescolar.fundaj.gov.br/en/artigo/trajano-chacon/. Accessed on: month day year. (Ex.: 6 ago. 2020)