Ricardo Palma y Francisco Mostajo

Abstract

The link between the young Arequipa writer, Francisco Mostajo, and the celebrated Lima traditionalist, Ricardo Palma, is a subject that needs to be developed. Both were united by liberalism, anti-Catholicism, and literature; and they had different positions on the subject of the Indian. The historical period covered by this article goes from the end of the 19th century until 1919, the year of the death of the Lima writer, years that frame the letters from Mostajo to Palma. Regarding his positions on social problems, Mostajo is between Palma and the anarchist thinker, Manuel González Prada. In his process, Mostajo will participate in the Pro-Indigenous Association (API), which he started at the invitation of the Lima historian José de la Riva-Agüero, in addition to collaborating in El Deber Pro-Indígena, the bulletin of said association. In the development of the argument, the influence of characters such as Mariano Lino Urquieta and Santiago Giraldo is highlighted. The main sources used in these pages are the letters from Mostajo to Palma, also with Pedro Zulen and with José de la Riva-Agüero. While the letters with the first two are kept in collections of the National Library of Peru, those exchanged with the marquis have already been published by the Riva-Agüero Institute.