"Da boca do povo na língua errada do povo, língua certa do povo"

For Antonio Candido and Afrânio Coutinho, artistic nationalism was a trademark of Brazilian letters, as it corresponded to the search for a national identity. At the linguistic level, Brazilian writers defended “the Brazilian language” as an element of political emancipation and cultural autonomy. This work aims to show, through excerpts from newspapers and literary supplements from the 20th century, how after Brazil's political independence in 1822, literature was used as an instrument to forge linguistic independence. These debates that lasted throughout the 19th century culminated in the Modern Art Week. Brazilian modernism changed the way we see and think about literature and language. In the 19th century, the invention of the “Brazilian language” became a flag, as the Portuguese norm became an obstacle to national affirmation. In the 1950s, in Brazilian and Portuguese literary supplements, such debates still found resonance.