The work here developed focuses on Paulo Barreto s unique ability to understand the forces in dispute in the process of formation of the intellectual field in Rio de Janeiro during the First Republic. It also analyses how this enabled him to build for himself the representation – and the genre – which would allow him to be included be included in this controversy. Once inserted in the field, his work would serve as a mediator between the elitist culture of the salons and the popular culture of the streets. To fulfill its objectives, the research starts by understanding the existence of a quarrel between an elite that wanted to be cosmopolitan and Europeanized and several heterogeneous and fragmented groups that resisted the advance of these elites through mechanisms other than institutional politics. Based on this understanding, the investigation focuses on the life and work of Paulo Barreto, a fat man, born on the border between the two universes in dispute, from an interracial family and who was understood as a homosexual by his contemporaries. The work identifies the stigmas to which the author was subjected, and the representation conducted by him in attempt to mitigate its effects. The representation is impersonated by his public alter-ego, by which he became known, João do Rio. In his project of social and financial ascension, the author incorporated in his character symbols that identified him with the images impersonated by the local elites, which, alongside his ability to articulate his social capital and the opportunities that arose from technological advances, enabled the realization of a good part of his project – not without him suffering intense resistance from intellectual circles and local political elites.