The present work aims to present some questions that involve Eça de Queirós s trajectory in the construction of his literary production during the second half of the 18th century, by analyzing the modernization project of Portugal used by the writer, in order to accomplish his initial purpose, announced in the Conferences of the Casino: to regenerate Portugal through literature, whose main marks are denunciation and intervention. Starting from the analysis of texts, produced from 1871 to 1888, the thesis attempts to investigate the role of the intellectual played by Eça de Queirós. Through the bitter criticism of his first phase, along with the fine irony of his riper romances, Eça inaugurates the Portuguese modern romance, as part of his project of turning Portugal into a recognized European nation. The sarcastic laughter, the ambiguity and the gallery of typically Portuguese characters are marks of his style, and offer a fundamental tool to the evidence of his role as an intellectual in the arts of Portugal in the 18th century.