Portrait of Manuel Maples Arce

Estridentismo underwent a fundamental shift when Manuel Maples Arce accepted a position as a judge in Xalapa, the capital of his home state of Veracruz, after obtaining his law degree in 1925. Why he chose to abandon Mexico City remains a subject for speculation, but it is likely that employment opportunities were limited for someone who had insulted so many individuals and institutions. Certainly, positions in the cultural sphere were out of the question, since so many of them were in the hands …