Nicolás Guillén

(full name, Nicolás Guillén Batista). Born July 10, 1902, in Camaguey. Cuban poet and public figure. Member of the Communist Party of Cuba since 1937.

Guillén’s first verses were published in 1919. His poetic cycles Song Motifs (1930) and Sóngoro cosongo (1931; Russian translation, 1967) deal with the life of Cuban Negroes. In the poetry collections West Indies Company (1934) and Songs for Soldiers and Songs for Tourists (1937), Guillén turned to political lyrics. His stay in Spain in 1937 is reflected in the narrative poem Spain: A Poem in Four Sorrows and One Hope (1937). Guillén supported the Republic in the struggle against fascism, actively taking part in the Popular Front’s press. The cycle All Songs (1947) tells of the struggle and the sufferings of Cuba and other Latin American countries. For his progressive activity Guillén was arrested several times by the government of the dictator Batista. During 1954-59 he lived abroad, visiting the USSR and other socialist countries. In 1958 he published the poetry collection The National Dove.

In 1959, after the triumph of the people’s revolution, he returned to his homeland and in 1961 was elected chairman of the Cuban Writers’ and Artists’ Union. His poetry collection All Mine (1964) dealt with the new socialist homeland. Guillén’s work is closely linked to Cuban musical and oral folklore. Guillén was influenced by the tradition of Creole folk poetry, the freedom-loving Cuban poetry of the 19th century, and the classical forms and meters of Spanish poetry. In 1950 he became a member of the International Council of Peace. Guillén received the International Lenin Prize for Strengthening Peace Among Nations (1954).