Aluísio Azevedo's brother was Artur Azevedo, a writer of comedies and playwright, the elder of the two. Aluísio, born in São Luís do Maranhão on April 14, 1857, was the younger brother.
When Aluísio set off for Rio de Janeiro in 1876 to study at the Imperial Academy of Fine Arts, Artur was already in the city. Later, between 1882 and 1895, the two wrote plays together, alongside the novels, short stories, and chronicles that Aluísio published without interruption.