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Reinaldo Arenas

Born

in Aguas Claras, Holguín, Oriente region, Cuba

July 16, 1943

Died

December 07, 1990

Genre

Gay and Lesbian, Poetry, Biographies & Memoirs

Influences

Marcel Proust, Gustave Flaubert, Robert Louis Stevenson ...more

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Arenas was born in the countryside, in the northern part of the Province of Oriente, Cuba, and later moved to the city of Holguín. In 1963, he moved to Havana to enroll in the School of Planification and, later, in the Faculty of Letters at the Universidad de La Habana, where he studied philosophy and literature without completing a degree. The following year, he began working at the Biblioteca Nacional José Martí. While there, his talent was noticed and he was awarded prizes at Cirilo Villaverde National Competition held by UNEAC (National Union of Cuban Writers and Artists). His Hallucinations was awarded "first Honorable Mention" in 1966 although, as the judges could find no better entry, no First Prize was awarded that year.

His writings Arenas was born in the countryside, in the northern part of the Province of Oriente, Cuba, and later moved to the city of Holguín. In 1963, he moved to Havana to enroll in the School of Planification and, later, in the Faculty of Letters at the Universidad de La Habana, where he studied philosophy and literature without completing a degree. The following year, he began working at the Biblioteca Nacional José Martí. While there, his talent was noticed and he was awarded prizes at Cirilo Villaverde National Competition held by UNEAC (National Union of Cuban Writers and Artists). His Hallucinations was awarded "first Honorable Mention" in 1966 although, as the judges could find no better entry, no First Prize was awarded that year.

His writings and openly gay lifestyle were, by 1967, bringing him into conflict with the Communist government. He left the Biblioteca Nacional and became an editor for the Cuban Book Institute until 1968. From 1968 to 1974 he was a journalist and editor for the literary magazine La Gaceta de Cuba. In 1973, he was sent to prison after being charged and convicted of 'ideological deviation' and for publishing abroad without official consent.

He escaped from prison and tried to leave Cuba by launching himself from the shore on a tire inner tube. The attempt failed and he was rearrested near Lenin Park and imprisoned at the notorious El Morro Castle alongside murderers and rapists. He survived by helping the inmates to write letters to wives and lovers. He was able to collect enough paper this way to continue his writing. However, his attempts to smuggle his work out of prison were discovered and he was severely punished. Threatened with death, he was forced to renounce his work and was released in 1976. In 1980, as part of the Mariel Boatlift, he fled to the United States. He came on the boat San Lazaro captained by Cuban immigrant Roberto Aguero.

In 1987, Arenas was diagnosed with AIDS; he continued to write and speak out against the Cuban government. He mentored many Cuban exile writers, including John O'Donnell-Rosales. After battling AIDS, Arenas died of an intentional overdose of drugs and alcohol on December 7, 1990, in New York City. In a suicide letter written for publication, Arenas wrote: "Due to my delicate state of health and to the terrible depression that causes me not to be able to continue writing and struggling for the freedom of Cuba, I am ending my life... I want to encourage the Cuban people abroad as well as on the Island to continue fighting for freedom... Cuba will be free. I already am."

In 2012 Arenas was inducted into the Legacy Walk, an outdoor public display which celebrates LGBT history and people ...more

Combine Editions
Reinaldo Arenas’s books

Average rating: 4.11 · 11,871 ratings · 1,393 reviews · 58 distinct works • Similar authors

	Before Night Falls 4.21 avg rating — 7,265 ratings — published 1992 — 20 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Singing from the Well by Reinaldo Arenas, Andrew Hurley (Translator), Thomas Colchie (Introduction) 3.91 avg rating — 785 ratings — published 1967 — 35 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Hallucinations: or, The Ill-Fated Peregrinations of Fray Servando by Reinaldo Arenas, Andrew Hurley (Translator), Thomas Colchie (Introduction) 4.10 avg rating — 701 ratings — published 1966 — 51 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Doorman by Reinaldo Arenas, Dolores M. Koch (Translator) 3.71 avg rating — 421 ratings — published 1989 — 7 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Farewell to the Sea: A Novel of Cuba by Reinaldo Arenas, Andrew Hurley (Translator), Thomas Colchie (Introduction) 4.09 avg rating — 341 ratings — published 1985 — 26 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Color of Summer: or The New Garden of Earthly Delights by Reinaldo Arenas, Andrew Hurley (Translator), Thomas Colchie (Introduction) 4.15 avg rating — 237 ratings — published 1991 — 27 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Assault by Reinaldo Arenas, Andrew Hurley (Translator), Thomas Colchie (Introduction) 3.76 avg rating — 229 ratings — published 1990 — 11 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Old Rosa 3.87 avg rating — 221 ratings — published 1980 — 16 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Palace of the White Skunks by Reinaldo Arenas, Andrew Hurley (Translator), Thomas Colchie (Introduction) 4.11 avg rating — 202 ratings — published 1972 — 21 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Arturo, la estrella más brillante 4.26 avg rating — 179 ratings — published 1984 — 13 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by Reinaldo Arenas…

Series by Reinaldo Arenas

Pentagonía (5 books)
by

Reinaldo Arenas,

Andrew Hurley (Translator),

Thomas Colchie (Introduction)

3.98 avg rating — 1,794 ratings

Quotes by Reinaldo Arenas (?)

“Mine is not an obedient writing. I think that literature as any art has to be irreverent.”
― Reinaldo Arenas

435 likes

“I have always considered it despicable to grovel for your life as if life were a favor. If you cannot live the way you want, there is no point in living”
― Reinaldo Arenas

42 likes

“La diferencia entre el sistema comunista y el capitalista es que, aunque los dos nos den una patada en el culo, en el comunista te la dan y tienes que aplaudir, y en el capitalista te la dan y uno puede gritar.”
― Reinaldo Arenas, Before Night Falls

25 likes

See all Reinaldo Arenas's quotes »

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