University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses

Nicolas Guillen: Poet In Search Of 'Cubanidad'

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Nicolas Guillen: Poet In Search Of 'Cubanidad'

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Content This dissertation has been microfilmed exactly as received 69-4526 FARRELL, Joseph Richard, 1941- NICOLAS GUILLEN: POET IN SEARCH OF CUBANIDAD. University of Southern California, Ph.D., 1968 Language and Literature, modern University Microfilms, Inc., Ann Arbor, Michigan NICOLAS GUILLEN: POET IN SEARCH OF CUBANIDAD by Joseph Richard Farrell A Dissertation Presented to the FACULTY OF THE GRADUATE SCHOOL UNTVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY (Latin-American Studies) June 1968 UNIVERSITY O F S O U T H E R N CALIFORNIA TH E GRADUATE SC H O O L UNIVERSITY PARK LOS ANGELES. C A LIFO R N IA 9 0 0 0 7 This dissertation, -written by under the direction of his,....Dissertation C om mittee, and approved by all its members, has been presented to and accepted by the Graduate School, in partial fulfillment of requirements for the degree of q s epJh^ IU c hjax d. JT.a k £ . e l L D O C T O R O F P H I L O S O P H Y Dean Date. DISSERTATION COMMITTEE I C hairm an TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter Page I. INTRODUCTION ................................... 1 Cubanidad ...................................... 1 Scope ........................................ 2 Purpose ........................................ 2 Me t h o d ..................................... . . 3 II. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND............... 7 Sugar and Slaves............................. 7 Cuban Interests of the United States .... 11 The Struggle for Independence............... 15 The Republic under the Platt Amendment, 1902-1934 22 Cuba under Batista, 1934-1959 ............... 31 Cuba under Fidel Castro ...................... 34 III. NICOLAS GUILLEN............. . ................. 40 The Early Years, 1902-1920 _ 41 Literary Adolescence, 1920-1930 . 53 Literary Maturity, 1930-1959 64 Guillen and Castro's Revolution, 1959- . . . 75 IV. NEGRO LITERATURE AND THE AFRO-CUBAN MOVEMENT . 84 Beginnings ..... 84 Proximate European Antecedents . 8 6 Proximate United States Antecedents ......... 88 Negrismo in Cuba ............. 89 I ' Poesia Afrocubana in the Island's Literature 9 8 Nicolas Guillen" and Afro-Cuban Poetry .... 102 V. GUILLEN'S POETIC STYLE ........................ 107 Modernist............................... 108 Vanguardist................................... 113 Mulatto-Social ............................... 116 ii Chapter Page Social........... 134 Propagandistic ............................... 138 ~ VI. THE SEARCH FOR CUBANIDAD: THE POSITIVE ASPECT 146 Part I. The Mulatto Character of Cubanidad........... ........... 14 6 The Ciboney element............. 14 7 The African element............. 150 Part IIr Mulatto Manifestations in NicolSs Guillen's Poetry: The Positive Approach ............. 157 Motivos de s o n .................. 157 SSngoro cosongo .................. 165 West Indies Ltd. ............... 171 E spana.......................... 180 El son entero ........... 180 La paloma de vuelo popular . . . 184 Tengo........................ .. . 187 VII. THE SEARCH FOR CUBANIDAD: THE NEGATIVE ASPECT -190 Part I. Cuba and the United States.......... 190 Part II. Anti-Yankee Manifestations in Nicolcis Guillen's Poetry: The Negative Approach ......... 19 6 Motivos de s o n .................. 197 Sdngoro cosongo .................. 198 West_ Indies Ltd. ............... 201 Esparia.......................... 206 Cantos para soldados y sones para turistas............. 207 El son entero.................... 213 La paloma de vuelo popular . . . 215 Tengo............. ................ 2 22 VIII. CONCLUSIONS................. 233 BIBLIOGRAPHY ............................................ 241 CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION Nicolcls Guillen is convinced that one of the most fundamental factors contributing to the ills of Cuba has been the lack of cubanidad in Cubans themselves. He feels that the course of history has impeded the development of cubanidad, and has chosen poetry as his vehicle to amelio-' rate this situation. Cubanidad The term is very difficult to define because the English language does not have an exact cognate. The two basic elements of the word are cubano, an adjective meaning "Cuban," and -dad, a suffix vaguely denoting "the state or condition of being . . ."1 The English suffix "-ness" is the closest equivalent of the -dad in cubanidad, and if English possessed the word "Cubanness," it would come close to defining cubanidad. It is the state of being Cuban in the sense of having a deep awareness of national conscious ness. It is a cognizance of the common traditions and -*-For example: libre (free) +dad=libertad, i.e., the state of being free, i.e., freedom. experiences that bind a people together and make a nation of a group of individuals. Scope This study is based on the poetry written by Nicol&s GuillSn from 1930--the beginning of his so-called "Afro- Cuban" phase-rto the present. All of the poems of this period have been studied and analyzed. Brief mention is made of the Cuban's early Modernist poetry and of his prose — mostly journalistic— only insofar as they are essential to a complete understanding and appreciation of the more important part of his literary production. Purpose The raison d'etre of this dissertation is to analyze Guillen's poetry in terms of his search for cubanidad. It will attempt to discover if and to what extent his work is a manifestation of this search. The poet's main themes are two of the most significant phenomena in the history of the Cuban people. The first theme--a positive approach— affirms the mulatto essence of the nation by emphasizing the contribu tions of the Negro to Cuban culture. Guilldn strives to make Cubans 'aware of their common heritage. The second— a negative approach--is a striving to unite his people by con demning what he believes to be the common enemy responsible for impeding the development of a national consciousness: United States interference and influence. A secondary purpose is to present a contemporary account of NicolSs Guillen, placing him,, as much as is possible, in perspective with reference to Cuban history and literature in general, and to the Negro and Afro-Cuban move ments in particular. Method ■Chapter II is a general outline of the development of Cuba in its social, historical, and economic aspects from discovery to the present day. The dual character of any artistic phenomenon--that of being at the same time a conse quence of and a testimony to the times in which it was created— makes a certain amount of historical and political knowledge prerequisite to any attempt to understand and analyze the work. This chapter, then, functions as a neces sary background for appreciating completely what follows. Those facts which bear significantly on Guillen's formation and work are stressed: in the colonial period the emphasis is on the Negro importations and the sugar industry rather than on colonial administration and institutions. After independence, the focus is on the relationship of Cuba with the United States. This chapter serves as a general overview of the conditions under which Guill§n's ideas and convictions were formed. Critics are generally in accord in insisting that in order to arrive at a truly valuable interpretation of a poet's work it is necessary to know his biography. Chapter III presents a somewhat detailed account of the life of NicolSs Guillgn. It places him in perspective in relation to Cuban history and suggests the environment which sur rounded him. Again, the major emphasis is placed on those events and facts which most directly influence his work. Extensive research indicates that so far there is no "up-to-date" biography of Guillen. This chapter provides, with acknowledged limitations imposed by the availability of data and by the scope of the dissertation, such a biography. In addition, the chapter enumerates the author's works and relates them to their social and historical setting. Chapter IV is a very brief resum§ of the development of the negrista movement and of the impact it had upon Europe and the Americas. It also traces the evolution of poesla negra in general and of poesia afrocubana specific ally. This information is essential to a full understanding of Guillen's work. Chapter V examines the poet's literary style. It is included because an awareness of his stylistics and mechan ics is necessary background for a basic understanding of his literary development and of the poems themselves. However, the chapter does not pretend to be a detailed stylistic analysis. Important literary influences on Guillen are pointed out, and the works of his early modernista period are dis- 5 cussed briefly. The transition from modernists poetry to propagandistic verse is traced, with emphasis on those fac tors which are pertinent to the scope of this dissertation. Chapters VI and VII constitute the primary contribu tion of this work. They analyze, respectively, the positive and negative aspects of Guillen's search for cubanidad. Each of these chapters is divided into two parts. Chapter VI: Part one reaffirms the mulatto charac ter of cubanidad by considering data pertinent to this chap ter but too specific to be included in the scope of the gen eral historical chapter. The existence of a Ciboney tradi tion is refuted while, on the other hand, the impact of the African element is expanded. The basis for what follows is established. Part two analyzes, chronologically, Guillen's poetry in reference to the positive aspect of his search for cuba nidad. This is accomplished by examining the poet's use of Negro themes, words, rhythms, rites, and customs— in short, his manifestations of pride in the African heritage of the Cuban people. The poems are also studied with reference to the extent to which they demonstrate the role of the Negro and the Mulatto in everyday Cuban life. The poet's attempt to make Cubans aware of the strong cultural bonds they share as a nation, and to instill in them a genuine appreciation of these bonds, is examined in his poetry in this chapter. Chapter VII: Part one expands the question of Cuban-United States relations which was presented in a gen eral way in the historical background chapter. Here the question is related more intimately to GuillSn. .Jt is a necessary point of departure for what follows. Part two analyzes Guillen's negative approach to the problem of developing cubanidad. His poetry is examined, chronologically, in reference to manifestations of anti- United States sentiment. In this negative aspect of his search, GuillSn calls for unity in exposing and condemning the country responsible (in his opinion) for the deplorable conditions that prevented Cubans from developing a proud sense of national consciousness: the United States. Chapter VIII presents the conclusions of this dissertation. 4 CHAPTER II HISTORICAL BACKGROUND Cuba's Negro ancestry, which NicolHs Guillen uses as a positive expression of cubanidad, along with United States influence— the basis for his negative expression— are two of the most important historical phenomena basic to an under standing of the works of the poet. Therefore, in keeping with the scope of this study, the history of the Cuban Republic will be discussed with emphasis on the origins and influences of the Negro, and the role played by the United States, especially in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. This chapter does not pretend to be a detailed history of the island, but rather it will serve as a point of departure for a better understanding of the development of cubanidad in the works of NicolSs Guillen. Sugar and Slaves Cuba was discovered by Christopher Columbus on his second voyage, in the spring of 149 4. Later, military lead ers were sent out from the island of Espanola by Diego Columbus, son of Christopher, to begin the subjugation and 7 occupation of Puerto Rico, Jamaica, and Cuba. In 1511 Diego Velasquez led the expedition to con quer Cuba— a feat he accomplished easily.-*- The natives were compelled to work for the Spaniards and furnish them gold and supplies. Cuba's Indians were rather gentle and deli cate and, like their counterparts in the other Antilles, were soon exterminated by hard labor, war, and epidemics of smallpox and other diseases.2 Sugar cane--the most important single factor in the island's future development--was introduced into Cuba with the Velasquez expedition. It grew bountifully, but was not a major economic interest because of the competition with gold. In 1523, the Spanish Crown took its first official action to establish a sugar industry in Cuba. This action was in the form of subsidizing settlers to establish sugar mills.3 Soon it became obvious that there was a need to replace the labor supply that had been cut off by the vari ous decrees prohibiting the enslavement of the Indians, and •^For a detailed account of the discovery and con quest see: Charles Edward Chapman, A History of the Cuban Republic (New York, 1927), Chapter II. ^The fate of the Indians is discussed in: Fernando Ortiz, Cuban Counterpoint: Tobacco and Sugar (New York, 1947), pp. 97-103, 111-183. ■^William R. Lux, "The Development of the Sugar Industry in Colonial Cuba, 1511-1895" (unpublished Master's thesis, The University of Southern California, 1963), pp. 4- 5 : 9 also by the high death rate among them. Negro slaves were imported from Africa. By 1535 there were at least a thousand Negro slaves on the i s l a n d . 4 in 1669 planters at - Havana received permis sion to import four hundred new slaves, and planters at San tiago made a request for the same number.5 Mass importa tions of slaves in the 1690's served to stimulate Cuba's sugar industry, but at the end of the seventeenth century' the island was still relatively unimportant as a sugar producer.6 For the next hundred years the sugar industry con tinued to grow and prosper, and along with this expansion came the necessity to import more and more slaves. The period between 1789 and 1800 marked the definitive estab lishment of the sugar industry on the island. Due to scientific and technological improvements and new methods of ^The archbishop of Santo Domingo, who was also the president of the audiencia, in a letter to the Crown, requested that slaves be imported free of duty into Cuba, Espahola, and Puerto Rico, because a good supply was vital to the welfare of the island. Evidently favorable action resulted from these attempts to satisfy Cuba's labor needs, for by 1532 there were at least five hundred slaves on Cuba, and by 1535 the number had doubled. Ortiz, op. cit. , p. 280. ^Lux, op. cit., p. 45; see also Chapman, op. cit., p. 25. C DSanto Domingo and Mexico were the main sugar exporters in Spain's Caribbean colonies. Europe, on the whole, still received most of its sugar from Brazil. Hein- reich E. Friedlaender, Historia econdmica de Cuba (La Habana, 1944), p. 32. 10 business management, the Cuban sugar industry in the last decade of the eighteenth century developed more than it had in the preceding two and one-half centuries.? Heinreich Friedlaender, an expert on this era, reported that between 1792 and 1800 at least 38, 659 new slaves, were imported into Cuba.8 The nineteenth century saw an even larger increase in sugar production and in the importation of slaves. Between 1838 and 1853, 99,239 new slaves were brought in from A f r i c a .^ These figures reflect not only the growth of Cuba's sugar industry, but also the economic dependence of a large segment of the population on a one-crop economy. By 1851 Cuba was the world's primary source of sugar, and by 1860 her sugar exports totaled 447,000 tons--36 per cent of the entire world output.10 The emancipation of Cuba's slaves was not accom plished until twenty years after the American Civil War. Unlike that of the United States, it was a slow and gradual process which occurred between the years 1880 and 1890. By this time the Negro comprised a large percentage of the ^Lux, op. cit., p. 74. 8Friedlaender, op. cit., pp. 106-107. See also Callahan, op. cit.,.pp. 31-32. ^Ibid., p. 156. These figures reflect only the numbers of slaves imported. The birth rate among the Ne groes already living on the plantations was tremendous. ^Lux, op. cit. , p. 119. 11 Cuban population and had definitely established himself as a social, cultural, and economic factor in the island's devel opment. Cuban Interests of the United States Cuba's location only ninety miles from the south eastern part of the United States has placed the island within that country's special sphere of interest. It is not surprising, therefore, that Washington early directed its attention to the island's affairs. In 1810 James Madison wrote that the position of Cuba gives the United States so deep an interest in the destiny of that island, that although they might be an inactive, they could not be a satisfied spectator at its falling under any European Government, which might make a fulcrum of that position against the commerce and security of the United States. H While other countries of Latin America were waging their wars for independence, Cuba remained under Spain's domination. Many factors contributed to the island's con tinued colonial status. Its isolation from the South Amer ican continent prohibited a development of strong sentiment for independence. With the great advances of the sugar industry in the late eighteenth century, the creole element of the island experienced a growth of prosperity. There was also fear of a Negro revolt if Spain should withdraw her llRussell H. Fitzgibbon, Cuba and the United States 1900-1935 (Menasha, Wisconsin, 1935), p. 6. See also Calla han, op. cit., pp. 1-3. forces. The United States also contributed to the continua tion of the colonial system. Her policy came to be one of seeing that Cuba remained under the dominion of a weak Spain — if it could not be gained for the United States— rather than to permit it to fall into possession of a powerful and dangerous England or, later, France. The Monroe Doctrine in 18 2 3 made these intentions explicit. One of the major features of the doctrine stated that the United States would not view with indifference the extension of the European political system to the American continents. It also stated that the United States would not interfere with the existing colonies of the European powers. In succeeding years American interest in Cuba continued, but the interests of England, France, and the United States off set each other, allowing Spain to continue to control Cuba. However, by 184 0 United States influence in the Caribbean largely supplanted that of England and France. In 1848 the Cabinet of President Polk approved his proposal to purchase Cuba from Spain. "Secret and cautious negotiations were undertaken by the American minister at Madrid, the proposed consideration being a round hundred million dollars."12 But Minister Saunders was told that the -^Fitzgibbon, op. cit., p. 9. For a detailed account of Polk's policy see: James M. Callahan, Cuba and International Relations (Baltimore, 1899), pp. 19 5-2 20. ~ 13 Spanish, "sooner than see the island transferred to any power . . . would prefer to see it sink in the ocean."!3 United States efforts to purchase Cuba continued. Fitzgibbon maintains that in the Pierce Administration the chief diplomatic positions were filled with a view to manip ulation of affairs to bring about the purchase of the i s l a n d . 14 Legations at London, Paris, and Madrid were headed by James Buchanan, John Y. Mason, and Pierre Soul§, respectively. The latter in particular was well-known for his extreme views on Cuba.13 .Secretary of State Marcy wrote S~ould in August of 1854 that it would be advisable for him, Buchanan, and Mason to hold a conference in which they might exchange views on the acquisition of Cuba. In October the three ministers met at Ostend, Belgium: the result of their deliberations was the Ostend Manifesto. This controversial document main tained that the United States should purchase Cuba if prac ticable, but that since the island was to the United States "an increasing danger and a permanent cause of anxiety and alarm," if it could not be purchased "we shall be justified in wresting it from Spain . . . upon the very same principle that would justify an individual in tearing down the burning house of his neighbor if there were no other means of l3Fitzgibbon, op. cit., p. 9. l^ibid., p. 11. 13Ibid. 14 preventing the flames from destroying his h o m e ."16 The manifesto was repudiated by Secretary Marcy, and Soule resigned his post at Madrid. Four years later, President Buchanan, in his annual message to Congress, reported that Cuba, in its existing colonial condition, was "a source of injury and annoyance to the American people. "1*7 He also asserted that the island was the one spot on earth yet tolerating the slave trade, and that in the hands of another power it would constitute a danger to the Mississippi River commerce.18 In 1859 John Slidell, Chairman of the Senate Commit tee on Foreign Relations, called for the purchase of Cuba. The Committee maintained in its report that "the ultimate acquisition of Cuba may be considered as a fixed purpose of the United States— a purpose resulting from political and geographic necessities."19 With the outbreak of the American Civil War in 18 61, United States interest in Cuba underwent a considerable eclipse. The immediate exigencies of war demanded the unre mitting attention of all parts of the country. For nearly three decades after the war matters such as emancipation, l^House Executive Documents, 33 Congress, 2 Session, number 93 (serial 79 0), pp. 127, T32. l^Fitzgibbon, op. cit., p. 12. l^ibid. l^senate Reports, 35 Congress, 2 Session, number 351, p. 1. 15 reconstruction, westward extension of frontiers, and indus trial adolescence so absorbed the nation's energies that correspondingly less attention was paid to the problem of Cuba. However, the sustained desire of the United States for a Caribbean naval base caused her policy to consider Cuba as well as other favorably situated points for that purpose. The Struggle for Independence Cuba's first large-scale attempt at independence occurred during the years 1868 to 1878— referred to as the Ten Years War. There were manifestations, however, of dis content and rebellion prior to that time. As early as 1848 the Venezuelan Narciso Lopez went to Cuba, where he began his fight against Spain. L6pez organized three invasions of the island from the United States in 1848, 1850, and 1851. He was finally caught and hanged as a traitor. Growing increasingly tired of Spain's repressive administration and armed with a desire for freedom, young Cubans drafted the Grito de Yara in 1868, calling for inde pendence. This started the Ten Years War, which pitted a force of Cuban guerillas against the troops of Spain. Despite efforts by the United States to mediate the war, brutalities were committed on both sides, and the war continued. Violation of United States citizens and property in 16 Cuba led to claims on the part of America against Spain. These claims were arbitrated before a mixed tribunal, and the United States received three million dollars from Spain.20 Cuban patriots soon began to quarrel among them selves, and shortly thereafter Spain sent General Arsenio Martinez Campo to restore order. He was able to negotiate with the rebels the Pact of Zanj6n on February 12, 1878. Conditions of this agreement promised administrative reforms, amnesty for rebels, and emancipation for all slaves. These promises, with the exception of the emancipa tion, were not honored by Spain. By this time the Cuban sugar industry depended almost entirely upon its market in the United States. Spain, after imposing new taxes and restrictions, cancelled the U.S.-Cuban trade agreement in 189 4. In addition to this, the so-called Wilson Tariff placed prohibitively high tariffs on sugar when it arrived in the United S t a t e s . 21 The effects were disastrous: Cuban sales to the United States declined from 89 million dollars to 56 million in 20pavid l. Larson (editor), The "Cuban Crisis" of 1962 (Boston, 1963), p. 282. For more details on the role of the United States during this period see Callahan, op. cit., pp. 34-71. 2lLarson, op. cit., p. 284. 17 1897.22 After the Ten Years War large numbers of Cubans were in exile in the United States. By 189 2 most of the Cuban patriots were in New York City or Florida, and no organized revolutionary party existed in Cuba.22 By 1895 there were uprisings in eastern Cuba, undoubtedly inspired and aided by the juntas in the United States. On February 24 of that year the "Grito de Baire" in Oriente Province marked the beginning of the Revolution, which was led by Salvador Cisneros Betancourt, Mdximo G6mez, Antonio Maceo, and Tomas Estrada Palma. The soul of the movement, however, was the young patriot-poet Jos§ Marti, the hero and martyr of the revolution.2^ The Independence of Cuba was proclaimed on July 15, 189 5: however, by the following year the Spanish, under General Veleriano Weyler, had put down these revolts. The struggle for independence seemed to have been lost, but the United States was to have the last word. 22Hubert Herring, A History of Latin America (2d ed. , rev.; New York, 1964)“ p"! 404 . : 22Revolutionary juntas existed in New York, Washing ton, and several Florida towns. They assumed an active role in directing the oncoming struggle. See: Fitzgibbon, op. cit. , pp. 14-16; Callahan, op. cit. , pp. 75-77. 24-p-^-Ls acknowledged father of the movement, by his magnetic personality and tireless zeal, was the recognized head of all Cuban patriotic activities until he was ambushed and. killed by the Spanish in eastern Cuba in the spring of 1895. For more on the revolutionary leaders see: Fitz gibbon, op. cit., pp. 15-18. 18 President McKinley said that intervention was justi fied for the sake of humanity, for protection of United States citizens in Cuba, because of injury to American com merce, and because of the menace to the peace of the United States caused by conditions in Cuba.2- ^ Undoubtedly another reason was that leaders in Washington had decided on an isthmian canal and thought it unwise to leave a foreign power in control of the island which dominated the Carib bean . Whatever the reasons, the United States did become directly involved in the Cuban situation. Early in 189 8, stirred by public opinion and distorted sensational news paper reporting, along with the sinking of the Maine,2^ the Congress of the United States declared itself to be at war with Spain. The Spanish American War was brief. The superiority of the United"'States forces routed the Spanish in four months. On December 10, 1898, the Treaty of Paris was signed, ending the war. The main terms of the treaty were: ^Spitzgibbon, op. cit. , - p. 23. 2^It is believed that the Maine was destroyed by the participation or negligence of the Spanish authorities, some of whom had expressed resentment at her presence. For details see: Callahan, op. cit., pp. 84, 87. For a Spanish version of the incident, see: Antonio Ballesteros y Bereta, Historia de Espaha y su influencia en la historia universal, vol. 8 (Barcelona, 1936), pp. 421-4 25; Claudio SSnchez Albornoz and Aurelio Vihas, Lecturas Histdricas Espanolas (Madrid, 1960), pp. 588-589. 19 United States annexation of the Philippines, Puerto Rico, and Guam; United States protectorate over Cuba; and payment to Spain of twenty million dollars. The United States now found itself with the job of pacification and reconstruction of Cuba— a task given to the Army. United States occupation of Cuba lasted from 1898 to 1902. After a brief administration by John R. Brooke, the office of Military Governor was filled by Dr. Leonard Wood, an army surgeon, who rode with Theodore Roosevelt and the Rough Riders. His administration has become almost legen- dary. The first problem attacked by the Wood regime was that of reform in the administration of justice, especially in connection with prisons. Conditions were very bad: the ory was punitive rather than correctional, and many prison ers had no idea of the charges against them. The second greatest problem attacked was diseases, especially yellow fever. From the point of view of accomplishments, the solu tion of this problem was probably the outstanding achieve ment of the entire military occupation. The third major problem attacked was education: Wood created an efficient and efficacious department of pub lic instruction and appointed Jose Enrique Varona as its head. The military governor also initiated.a vigorous 20 public works program.2? In 19 0 0 Wood announced the election of an assembly to draft a constitution under which the new republic would be governed. Washington dictated certain measures which had to be accepted by the Cuban people before she would relin quish control. One of these measures, often a target of the scorn of Nicolas Guillen, was the infamous Platt Amendment. This amendment incensed Cubans, but they ultimately yielded and added the document as an amendment to the Cuban consti tution, which was adopted in June of 19 01. Because of the controversy of the Platt Amendment, under which Cuba lived for thirty-two years, it is essential to outline here some of its major points:28 Cuba was to permit no treaty impairment of her own independence nor was she permitted to allow any foreign power to obtain control in the island in any way. In the second place, contract debts were to be limited to sums on which it would be pos sible for the Cuban government to make interest and amorti zation payments after meeting current governmental expenses. The most important clause was the third— the famous "intervention article"— which authorized the United States 27por more about Dr. Wood's policies and administra tion see: Joseph Hamblen Sears, The Career of Leonard Wood (New York, 1919). See also: Fitzgibbon, op. cit., pp. 30- 66. 28The year 19 02 was a most important date in Cuban history: it marked the beginning of thirty-two years of United States domination of the island, and also the birth of Nicolcis Guillen. 21 to intervene for the maintenance of a Cuban government cap able of protecting life, property, and liberty. The fourth article provided that the Cuban government validate the acts of the intervention government while the succeeding clause bound the island administration to carry out certain mutually agreed upon plans for sanitation. The sixth provi sion pertained to the subsequent settlement of title to the Isle of Pines by treaty, and the next article concerned the sale or lease of Cuban naval bases to the United States. In the final clause it was provided that the Cuban government embody the provisions in a treaty with the United States.^9 The terms of the Platt Amendment were included not only in the Cuban constitution but also in a treaty with the United States, known as the "Treaty of Havana." Until the abrogation of the Platt Amendment in 1934, Cuba was more or less a United States protectorate. John Gerassi, a Latin- American correspondent and editor of Time magazine from 1957 to 1961, maintains that Cubans bear their grudge to the present day.3 0 29 Fitzgibbon, op. cit. , pp. 78-79. For more on the Platt Amendment see: Samuel Flagg Bemis, Latin American Policy of the United States (New York, 1943), pp. 138-141, 278-282; Callahan, op. cit., pp. 135-137, 140-145, 638-647. ■^John Gerassi, The Great Fear (New York, 1963), p. 213. 22 The Republic ""under the Platt Amendment, 1902-1934 With the adoption of the Cuban constitution elec tions were held. Tomas Estrada Palma was elected the first President of the Republic of Cuba, and in May of 1902 Dr. Wood turned over the reins of government to him. In domes tic affairs Estrada Palma proved to be a man of honest and efficient intentions. He reduced graft in public office, enlarged the public school system, and increased the size of the treasury. In his dealings with Washington the new president won a reciprocal trade treaty under which Cuban sugar was given a twenty per cent reduction in tariff duties. . This stimulated a rapid increase and expansion in sugar produc tion, which was reflected in the economy, but it also bound Cuba even more to a one-crop economy with all its inherent problems. By this time Cuban politics had divided into two main camps: the liberals and the conservatives. The latter backed Estrada Palma while the former charged him with being a puppet of the United States. 31- In 1905 there were elections to choose a successor to the presidency for the following year. Charges and countercharges of fraud were exchanged by the two parties in ^Herring, op. cit., p. 409. 2 3 this disgraceful exhibition. Fitzgibbon says that the cam paign "had no issues, only personalities. Rioting, theft, arson, and even murder were concomitants of the c a m p a i g n . 11 ^2 Estrada Palma was re-elected to a second term, and inaugurated on May 20, 1906. The liberals' charges of fraud provoked a revolt that spread over the entire island within a few months.^3 the revolt grew, and anarchy was becom ing a menace, Estrada Palma, unable to quell the distur bances, announced his decision to resign. His administra tion appealed to President Theodore Roosevelt to intervene under the terms of the Platt Amendment. The American presi dent complied with the request. The United States named Charles Magoon as governor in 1906. He brought stability to the political scene, but was thoroughly unpopular, even detested, in Cuba. Cuban writers have made almost a fetich of criticizing him.^4 ^Fitzgibbon f pp. cit. , p. 114. ■^The revolt, which gained full momentum by August, was led by the liberal General Faustino Guerra. It was asserted that he had been elected to the House of Represen tatives because of his popularity as an accordian player at country dances, and that the direct incentive for his going out in rebellion lay in Estrada Palma's refusal to help him pay off $7,000 in gambling debts he had accumulated. (Fitz gibbon, op. cit., p. 115). ■^He has been called everything from "the synthesis of the Czar of Russia added to the Shah of Persia and the Grand Turk" (Manuel Marquez Sterling quoted in Fitzgibbon, op. cit. , p. 142) to "a magnificent example of Yankee honor.: gross in type, rude of manners, of a profound ambition, avid of constant rapines. He falls like a buzzard on the treasury of Cuba and devours it . . . a hurricane of admin- 24 Extravagance, waste, introduction of the botella {the "soft job"), and abuse of the pardoning power are a few of the charges against Magoon. It is generally agreed that as a governor Magoon was an unwise choice, but he was neither dishonest nor inefficient. An historian who carefully exam ined the evidence vigorously refutes any charges of dishon esty against Magoon.35 He left Cuba in 1909, after setting up the machinery for honest elections,-^® and the United States intervention ended. The victor of these elections was Jos§ Miguel Gdmez, a liberal. Upon taking office he restored the lottery, legalized cockfighting and became rich on graft. The Cuban people soon became disgusted by the president's laxity and the general corruption of the administration. During this term the Negroes of Cuba demanded to be heard, and a race war in 1912 almost toppled the Gomez regime. Evaristo Estehoz, an insurrectionest general, had organized the Independent Colored Party. It worked for greater recognition for Negroes in the distribution of patronage, and was especially opposed to the Mortaa Law, which attempted to forbid the organization of any political istrative immorality ..." (Lozano Casado quoted in Chap man, op. cit., p. 230.) Chapman, op. cit., Chapter X. ^For more on Magoon and the United States interven tion see: David A. Lockmiller, Magoon in Cuba: a history of the second intervention, 1906-1909 (Chapel Hill, 1938). party on lines of race or color. On the refusal of Estehoz and his colleagues to drop the word "Colored" from their party name, President G6mez declined to aid them in any way. They became provoked, and on May 2 0 armed bands of Negroes rose in Havana, Santa Clara, and Oriente. The government immediately sent troops to quell the uprising, and on May 23 the United States sent Marines to Guantanamo, which was in the vicinity of much of the disturbance. The revolt grew worse, and disorder in Havana caused the U. S. to send two warships there. But before any action was taken by the Americans, the Cuban gov ernment forces rallied, and Estehoz was killed on June 27. This signaled the end of the rebellion, and United States vessels and Marines were ordered h o m e . 3 7 Gdmez continued to allow his cronies, both Cuban and American, to enrich themselves on government concessions. Cuban politics after T909 was characterized by venality in public offices, betrayal of trust by presidents, violence, and gross missrule. Washington intervened, sometimes by sending a battleship, landing marines, or appointing an "advisor." Often intervention took the form of a discreet warning to the Cuban president by the American ambassador. In 1913 Gdmez was succeeded in office by Mario Garcia Menocal, a conservative and a graduate of Cornell ■^Fitzgibbon, op. cit., pp. 149-150; Callahan, op. cit., pp. 307-313. ' 26 University. Many hopes were shattered when Menocal also succumbed to the lure of easy money for himself and his friends. In the elections of 1917 the conservatives manipu lated the vote to bring about the re-election of President Menocal. This was probably the most ridiculpus of all the infamous elections in the island's history.It was _ believed immediately after the election that the liberal Zayas had won, but later returns, which came in suspiciously slowly, gave the victory to Menocal. Liberals retaliated by starting a revolt on Febru ary 10, 1917. The leaders of the uprising were G6mez, Zayas, Guerra, and Gerardo Machado. United States Marines intervened to restore order, supporting the Menocal govern ment against the insurgents. By the end of June the revolt was stamped out. When the United States declared war on Germany in ■1917, Menocal's congress did the same. During this period Cuba's sugar business boomed, but the profits were handeled carelessly by the government. By the end of the war United States citizens and corporations owned much Cuban property. U. S. investment and control were prominent in sugar produc tion, both growing and refining. *3 O On election day, November 1, 1916, there were 800,000 votes cast; yet a census taken three years later, in 1919, indicated only about 500,000 eligible voters in Cuba. Chapman, op. cit., pp. 353-354. With the controversial and doubtful election of con servative Alfredo Zayas as president in 1920, Cuba was caught in the post-war collapse of sugar prices. The national treasury was empty, and the new president's plunder made matters even worse. Graft in the Zayas administration, along with the discovery of flagrant violations of the electoral laws in his election caused United States obser vers to be shocked. At this time Cuba was negotiating a $50 million loan from the United States. So when President Woodrow Wilson sent General Enoch Crowder as an advisor, without formal diplomatic status, Zayas was forced to accept him. Crowder's greatest triumph was the appointment of the so-called "Honest Cabinet" in June of 192 2. The incum bent cabinet resigned to be succeeded by men who were undoubtedly approved, if not suggested, by General Crowder. The new cabinet cooperated with Crowder in his reform efforts, and some results were seen in reducing budgets, eliminating unnecessary employees, sifting the fraudulent O Q public works contracts, and other matters. ^ Cuban reaction to Crowder throughout 1921-1922 was mixed: his presence was a deep affront to Cuban pride, yet at the same time many Cubans considered him an invaluable ^For more on Crowder and the "Honest Cabinet" see: Chapman, op. cit., pp. 433-482 and Fitzgibbon, op. cit., pp. 174-175. 28 check on possible governmental excesses. But Crowder's good was very short-lived: once Zayas had secured the loan from the United States, he abandoned his promises, dismissed the "Honest Cabinet," named his old cronies to the key posts, and reverted to the disgraceful practices temporarily blocked by the Crowder interlude. Zayas was succeeded in the presidency in 1925 by Gerardo Machado. The new president immediately launched a campaign for crop diversification to counterbalance the country's dependence on sugar. Mineral production~arrd industrial expansion were encouraged by loans from New York banks. Politically, Machado was much more astute than his predecessors had been. He created a personal political machine by distributing to leaders of all three parties lucrative collectorships for the national lottery.^0 In 1927, with his power now consolidated, Congress approved an extension of the president’s term from four years to six. Disregarding his previous one-term pledges, Machado became the candidate for all three parties, and was re elected in 1928 for a six-year term. The latter- part of the first and all of the second term were characterized by a constantly increasing amount of political oppression, ille gal arrests, press censorship, assassinations, and other ^°Fitzgibbon, op. cit., p. 188. 29 forms of tyranny. The University of Havana was closed in 1929. By this time Communism was making its appearance in Cuba. The environment was propitious, and early in Macha do's regime La clase trabajadora habia librado memorables jornadas combativas y el nuevo gobierno fue expllcito en su dici- sion de re"primir ese ascenso creciente de la organiza- cion y conciencia revolucionaria de las masas laborio- sas. El Partido Comunista aparecla como un nuevo actor de imprevisible futuro en el escenario nacional ... y tendrla pronto confirmaciSn en la actitud reaccionaria del nuevo gobernante ... 41- Opposition grew: students demonstrated against Machado, and professional men organized a society called the ABC, whose purpose was the overthrow of the Machado r e g i m e . 42 a reaction to this opposition the president organized the dreaded Porra in 1931. The porristas, Machado's private army, shot students, invaded private homes and terrorized professional people in order to squash the opposition. The Cuban political situation presented an obvious problem to the Herbert Hoover administration. Increasing criticism and bitterness on the part of Cubans came to be directed at the United States and its ambassador in Cuba for 41-Angel Augier, Nicolas Guillen: notas para un estudio biogr^fico-critico (La Habana, 1962), p. 89. 42For more about the ABC see: Theodore Draper, Castroism: Theory and Practice (New York, 1965) , p. 7. 30 alleged support of the dictator and his policies.^ Further criticism was aimed at the U.S., both internally and from abroad, when the Hoover administration elected to follow a course of non-intervention. This situation was inherited by Franklin D. Roose velt when he took office in 1933. Roosevelt, in turn, appointed Sumner Welles ambassador to Cuba, with instruc tions "to apply discreet pressure to effect a change."44 In August, 1933, the ABC, backed by students and other opposition groups, became more active and called a general strike. Having lost the support of the army, Machado fled the country, and order was quickly restored by a provisional government headed by Carlos Manuel de C£spe- des. Machado's fall marked the end of the era of the Platt Amendment for Cuba. Washington had learned that intervention was not the most prudent way to settle Cuban af-fairs. Also, 1933 marked the beginning of Roosevelt's Good Neighbor Policy, which, strengthened by Sumner Welles' report and recommendation, led to the abrogation of the Platt Amendment in 19 34.45 ^Fitzgibbon, op. cit., p. 192. 44fierring, op. cit. , p. 411. 45For a detailed account of Machado's dictatorship see: Alberto L. Schweyer, Como cay6 el presidente Machado; una p£gina oscura de la diplomacia norteamericana (Madrid, 1934). Cuba under Batista, 1934-1959 The post-Machado provisional government existed for only twenty days when it was overthrown by the "Sergeants' Revolt" led by Sgt. Fulgencio Batista. Batista had a most amazing career: after deposing-almost five hundred of his superior officers, promoting his cronies to replace them, and elevating himself to the rank of Colonel and Chief of Staff, he became, almost overnight, the most powerful man on the Cuban political scene. Batista appointed Ramdn Grau San Martin provisional president. That government lasted only four months, and from 19 34 to 1940 Batista ruled through puppets— seven of them in as many years.46 In 1940 Batista himself assumed the presidency. He consolidated his power by patronizing the army, especially the enlisted men: he raised their £>ay, built new barracks, provided excellent uniforms and food, and established pen sion funds. He also cultivated the middle class by improv ing wages and working conditions. Prosperity resulted from favorable sugar contracts, and when Batista turned over the presidency to Grau San Martin in 1944, conditions in Cuba seemed good.47 jn the election of 1948 the government of 4®Some of the most important of these puppets were Carlos Mendieta, Miguel Mariano Gdmez and Federico Laredo Brfi. 47gatista did not fail to take millions of dollars of Cuba's money when he took up residence in Florida. " 32 Grau San Martin was succeeded by that of Prio SocorrSs. In the eight years between 1944 and 1952 government administration deteriorated and degenerated to such an extent that many Cubans became convinced that Batista was indispensable. Graft and inefficiency had once again become the by-words of Cuban government. In March of 19 52 the government of Prio SocorrSs v/as overthrown by a "cuartelazo" which marked the triumphant return of Fulgencio Batista. Two weeks after his illegal seizure of power the United States granted recognition to Batista’s regime.^8 Batista's popularity turned out to be short-lived: he returned as a typical strong-arm dictator. The press was censored, the University closed, and critics exiled. As with all dictators, the stronger the opposition the stronger the measures employed to control it. The country's economy boomed, and sugar provided eighty per cent of all export revenues. Life for the middle and upper classes was good, and Havana became the tourist and gambling mecca for wealthy United States citizens. To the increasing dismay of many Cuban liberals, U.S. influence in Cuba under Batista was growing at an alarming rate.^ ^Draper, op. cit. , p. 116. ■^Direct United States investments in Cuba in 19 57 totaled $850 million, of which $344 million was in public utilities. (F. Benham and H. A. Holley, A Short Introduc tion to the Economy of Latin America [London, 1961] , 73) . 33 But the peasants1 life changed little. They were still bound to the plantations and refineries. Most of Batista's army was made up of raw peasants who saw their commanders use their positions mainly to enrich themselves, while they (the peasant soldiers) were paid the sum of thirty dollars per month.3^ The great mass of the agricul tural population had so little at stake in the existing regime that, once it began to show signs of weakening, they hastily abandoned it. Batista's take-over in 19 52 had brought a stability that resulted in prosperity and a sounder economy. But the same Cuban merchants and businessmen who had supported him for that reason, abandoned him when they interpreted the United States arms embargo of 1958 as a sign that the U.S. wanted to get rid of him.33- By late 1958 Batista's strong-arm tactics had cost him the support of a wide segment of the Cuban population, and on January 1 of the following year Batista and many of his top aides fled Cuba,33 leaving a vacuum that was In 19 60 Cuba bought oyer seventy per cent of its imports from the United States (ibid., p. 62), and it is estimated that under Batista private U.S. corporations owned sixty per cent of Cuba (Gerassi, op. cit., p. 145). ^Draper, op. cit. , p. 105. 3-*-On March 14, 1958, the United States suspended all arms deliveries to Cuba. 33Gerassi (op. cit., p. 228) reports that Batista took $250 million with him. 34 immediately filled by Fidel Castro, the leader of the revolution against the dictator. Cuba under Fidel Castro Shortly after Batista seized power in 1952, Fidel Castro emerged as a political figure with an unsuccessful attack on the Moncada Army Post in Santiago de Cuba. Although the attack of July 26, 1953 failed, it was impor tant because it marked the beginning of Castro's revolution ary activities and gave a name to those activities— "The 26th of July Movement." In October of the same year Castro was captured, tried, and convicted, and imprisoned on the Isle of Pines s * 3 until May of 1955. After he was released he went to Mexico, where he organized a small group to invade Cuba. The invasion of 1956 failed, but Castro and his men escaped to the Sierra Maestra mountains, which became the head quarters for his guerrilla war on the Batista regime. For the next three years Castro waged war against the dictator, who was unable to subdue him. "The 26th of July Movement" picked up a large following among the peasant class, the middle class, and the intellectuals. While in the Sierra Maestra, Castro's forces drafted 5 3 It was in this prison term that he actually wrote, in its present form, La historia me absolverg. (Fidel Castro, La historia me absolvergj [Lima, 1961]), a speech originally delivered at his trial. 35 a document that outlined their basic program. The "Mani- c A festo de la Sierra Maestra" was primarily a plea for unity of all the anti-Batista forces. It called for free demo cratic elections and a return to the freedoms and rights of the Constitution of 1940. It also called for agrarian reform, nationalization of foreign-owned companies, and a campaign against illiteracy. Considered by many observers to be the basic document of the period,the manifesto encouraged widespread confidence in Castro's democratic convictions. Castro and his army finally succeeded, along with other opposition forces, in defeating the Batista regime, and marched triumphantly into Havana in the first days of 1959. After his victory, Castro set up a provisional gov ernment with Manuel Urrutia as President and Jose Miro Cardona as Prime Minister. On January 7 this government was recognized by the United States. Fidel Castro soon assumed the office of Prime Minis ter, and he replaced President Urrutia with Osvaldo Dorticos T o r r a d o . S ® During 1960 Castro continually seized United *^The text of this document can be seen in: Fidel Castro, La Revoluci6n Cubana: Escritos y Discursos, edited by Gregorio Selser (Buenos Aires, 1960), pp. 393-422. ^Draper, pp. cit. , p. 12. ■*®For details of the intrigue and illegal means Cas tro employed in these maneuvers see: Manuel Urrutia, Fidel Castro & Company, Inc. (New York, 1964), pp. 35-71. See also: Draper, op. cit., pp. 118-119. 36 States companies in Cuba on one pretext or another. The U.S. protested the seizure of these companies, especially oil refineries, as being "arbitrary, inequitable, and contrary to Cuban law."~^ Castro established diplomatic and economic relations with the Iron Curtain countries. In 19 60 sugar comprised eighty per cent of Cuba's exports.58 m July of that year President Eisenhower cut the sugar quota to the United States by 700,000 tons, and in the following year President John F. Kennedy reduced the quota to zero.^9 It is academic at this point to speculate whether or not Castro began as a Communist. Whatever the case, by mid- 19 61 he was well entrenched in the Communist camp. On Janu ary 3 of that year the United States severed diplomatic relations with Cuba. The great forces of repression that Castro had built up in the army, police and militia induced a sense of help lessness among Cubans. Many who opposed his tactics went into exile; those who did not choose to go were virtually driven out88 or executed. The majority of the exiles fled ^Larson, op. cit., p. 299. On October 24, 1960, 166 properties owned whoTly or partially by United States interests were nationalized. (Draper,' op. cit., p. 86.) ^8Benham and Holley, op. cit., p. 60. ^Larson, op. cit. , pp. 299-302. 88The wholesale purge of the University of Havana in July, 1960 is an example of this. to the United States. On April 17, 1961, Cuban exiles--"trained, equipped and transported by the United States"®1— invaded Cuba's Bay of Pigs--the Playa Gir6n. The invasion failed miserably, and United States prestige suffered a severe setback. Castro began turning more and more to Russia for economic support. By 1962 Russian aid was pouring in fast, and Castro paid by "opening his office doors to Communist Party regulars."®2 It is possible that he had hoped to oust the Soviets later, but they became too powerful. After the Bay of Pigs, Castro asked the Russians for more aid and arms. When the Soviet Union began arming Cuba, many United States congressmen demanded an immediate inva sion and attack upon the island. President Kennedy, how ever, calmly insisted that no such intervention would be contemplated so long as the Castro regime did not acquire an "offensive capability." But Castro had Russian nuclear missiles installed in Cuba--ninety miles from the United States. These were offensive weapons. President Kennedy denounced this as a breech in the balance of power--justification for the Cuban arms blockade that followed. The United States demanded ®1For details see: Gerassi, op. cit., pp. 241, 260- 261. 62Ibid., p. 375. 38 that Russia remove the missiles, ancj that country capitulated.64 Since the "missile crisis" in 1962, Cuba's relation- ship with the United States has changed little. The island is a known center for Communist propaganda and exportation of doctrine to other parts of Latin America. At the present time Cuba remains in the Soviet camp, with the United States maintaining a policy of economic blockade. How long Castro's regime can endure is a question only time can answer. However, one thing is certain: Cuba under Castro's social revolution has changed dramatically. In the earliest days of the colonial period Negro slaves were brought to Cuba to replace the depleted Indian - population in providing labor for the Spanish. These Negroes came in ever-increasing numbers, and, clinging faithfully to their African customs and beliefs, became tied to the land. They formed the base of the sugar industry and were relegated to the lowest class of colonial society. The island remained a colony of Spain until 189 8, although the first attempt at independence occurred thirty years earlier. Life in the colony was geared to the 6^It is interesting and significant to note that the confrontation was limited to Russia and the United States; Cuba was left out completely. 64por details of the missile crisis, pertinent docu ments and an excellent chronology see: Larson, The Cuban Crisis of 1962. op. cit. >m w u i i 39 advantage of the mother country. One of the direct results of the Ten Years War was the emancipation of the slaves in 188 6, but the Negro gained no social mobility. Independence was finally achieved in 1898, not as the result of a war between the colony and the mother coun try, but as a consequence of the war between the United States and Spain. From that time to recent years it was the United States who exercised the dominant role in Cuba's history and development. Since independence the Republic has had its share of dictatorships, revolutions, and poor administrators. United States relations with Cuba have been very controversial. Because of her strategic location with ref erence to the U.S. Caribbean policy, Cuba's relationship with the northern republic has completed a cycle: from direct intervention and control under the Platt Amendment, to indirect control by "dollar diplomacy," to direct expul sion of United States interests and controls under the Com munist regime of Fidel Castro. Economically, Cuba has always been, and continues to be entirely dependent upon the monoculture of sugar and the aid of a strong foreign country. The Negro--sugar— the United States: the three principal phenomena that have directed the course of Cuban history, are precisely the three vehicles by which Nicol&s Guillen conveys the spirit of his people in his search for cubanidad. CHAPTER III NICOLAS GUILLEN Biographical information on Nicolcis Guillen is dif ficult to locate and the material presented here has been gathered from a variety of sources. Angel Augier's book, Nicolcis Guillen: notas para un estudio biogrcif ico-critico, is valuable because it offers many personal insights into the poet's life from the point of view of a close friend. Augier intended the work to be a collection of facts and data for future consultation in the preparation of a defini tive work on Guillen.. Although it contains many photographs as recent as 1954, the study itself goes only up to 1934; a proposed second volume will continue from that date. Also helpful in the preparation of this study has been the Nicolas Guillen Scrapbook,^ an unpublished collec tion of fifty-four pages— unnumbered— containing personal 1-Angel Augier, Nicolas Guillen: notas para un estu dio biogrcifico-critico, tomo I (La Habana, 19 62) . ^Due to its fragile condition, the scrapbook cannot be copied or loaned. It can be examined by special arrange ment with Mrs. Jean Blackwell Hutson, Librarian, The Schom- burg Collection of Negro Literature and History, The New York Public Library— Harlem Branch, 103 West 135th Street, New York City. 40 41 letters and poems sent by Guillen to his friend Arthur Schomburg during the period 1931-19 38. Information for the period after 1938 has been taken mainly from periodical articles and various books. The Early Years, 1902-1920 The Republic of Cuba and Nicolas Guillen both began their lives in the same year. They were both the products of the mingling of two bloods, two cultures— the Spanish and the African. Nicolcis CristQbal Guillen y Batista was born on July 10, 1902,4 in a modest dwelling at 2 1/2 Calle San 3 Indispensable tools in piecing-together Guillen's post-1938 biography have been: Luis AlemSn, "Charla con Nicolas Guillen," Repertorio Americano, 45 (December, 1949), 376-378; Martha E. Allen, "Nicolcis Guillen, poeta del pue blo," Revista Iberoamericana, X (July, 1949), 29-43; Agusti Bartra") "Adcin negro," Cuadernos Americanos, CXXXIV (May- June, 1964), 199-218; Alejo Carpentier, Nicolcis Guillen: sus mejores poemas (La Habana, n.d.); Ben Frederic Carruth- ers, "Eusebia Cosme and Nicolas Guillen," Theatre Arts Monthly, 29 (November, 1945), 662-663; Raimundo Lazo, "Con motivo de una biografia de Nicolcis Guillen," Universidad de la Habana, 28 (November-December, 1964), 7-21; Pablo Neruda, "Homenaje a Guillen en Chile," Revista Cubana, 64 (December, 1948), 344-349; Lino Novels Calvo, "Dos poetas para alcal des," Romance (May, 1940), p. 8; Jos£ Antonio Portuondo, Bosquejo hist6rico de las letras cubanas (La Habana, 1960); Eric Williams, VFour Poets of the Greater Antillies," Carib bean Quarterly, 2 (October-December, 1952), 8-19. Also: the collected articles of Guillen in Prosa de prisa: cronicas, ed. Samuel Feijoo (La Habana, 19 62); and the miscellaneous unbound articles of Guillen cited in the Bibliography. ^Most popular histories of Latin American literature erroneously give 1904 as the birthdate. The year 1902 is more probable because the week of October 20, 1962 was offi cially designated "La Semana de Homenaje a Nicolcis Guillen" in honor of his sixtieth anniversary, by various government Ignacio, Camagttey, Cuba. His parents— both mulattos— were Nicolcis Guillen y Urra and Argelia Batista y Arrieta.5 The senior Guillen had attained public prestige: he was a noted journalist and co-director of Camagfiey1 s first newspaper of the new Republic, Las dos Reptiblicas. A lieutenant in the Ej^rcito Libertador, he had participated actively in the Cuban wars for independence. The elder Guillen also figured prominently in the local political scene: in 1901 he was elected Consejero Provincial of the Partido Nacional. When the political parties reorganized in 1903, Guillen figured among the provincial directors of the Partido Liberal Nacional. "Nicolasito" was the eldest of six children. The others were Francisco, Maria Josefa, Salvador, Concepcidn, and America. The paternal grandfather, Francisco Guillen, was a man of culture who loved to read the works of the French romantics— especially Victor Hugo and Lamartine— in Spanish translation. NicolSs, Jr., believes that he inher ited his poetic gift from his grandfather.6 and cultural institutions— among them the Universidad de La Habana. See: Juan Marinello, "El homenaje de la esperan- za," Universidad de La Habana (January-February, 1963), p. 7. The article is a manuscript of a lecture given by Mari nello on Oct. 20, 1962 at the University's convocation honoring Guillen. ^Pictures of Guillen's parents can be seen in Augier, op. cit., p. 129. ^Claude Couffon, Nicolas Guillen (Paris, 1964), p. 14. 43 Camagiley, capital of the province of the same name, has been, since Colonial times, one of the cultural and patriotic centers of Cuba. The city produced many illustri ous people, such as Silvestre de Balboa, who, in 1608, wrote the epic poem Espejo de paciencia, the first poetic expres sion in Cuba's literary history. Other famous Camagtleyans are Ignacio Agramonte, Gertrudis Gomez de Avellaneda, Carlos Finlay, and Josd Enrique Varona. It is not surprising, then, that a setting of such deep historical and cultural roots nurtured many of the "greats" of Cuban literature and I furnished an atmosphere propitious to the development of a potentially great poet.^ On the other hand, Camagttey was one of the most tradition-conscious cities in Cuba--a place where the divi sions of society were manifested in every way. One-third of the city's population was of African descent,^ and, at the time Nicolas Guillen was born, Camagtiey was the_most race conscious area in Cuba--noted for its discrimination.^ At age five Nicolas Guillen began his formal educa tion in a neighborhood school, and soon developed an unusual ^For more on Camagtley's role in Cuba's cultural development see: Felipe Pichardo Moya, "Camagtiey y la cul- tUra nacional," Mensuario de la Direccidn de Cultura del Ministerio de Educacion, La Habana (Abril, 1950), pp. 2-6. ^Augier, op. cit., p. 14. ®Juan Bosch, Cuba, la isla fascinante (Santiago de Chile, 1955), pp. 77, 161. 44 attraction towards books. His father's library contained a large collection of Spanish classical literature, which Guillen read and re-read. In these early school days the young boy became very conscious of his Negro ancestry and of racial prejudice. He later recalled of this time: Estuve en la Escuelas Plas, situada en la Plaza de San Francisco, donde mi gran tortura era que habla que oir misa todos los dlas. Me iba a recoger— y conmigo mi hermano menor Francisco--a nuestra casa, una "vagoneta" del colegio. Fue entonces cuando sent! las primeras manifestaciones del prejuicio racial, pues eramos muy pocos, poqulsimos, los ninos negros que figuraban en aquella escuela cat61ica, practicamente para blancos.^ Theoretically the Cuban Constitution of 1901 was democratic and liberal, but in reality all of the prejudices of Colonial society lived on. Existla la diferencia tajante entre ricos y pobres y, sobre todo, entre blancos y negros, y aun la subdivisi6n de estos dltimos en una ancha gama de gentes de color ... realmente no habia un solo pueblo, sino varios pueblos en coexistencia regulada por leyes, institu- ciones y costumbres que hoy llamarlamos segregacionis- tas.11 From earliest childhood the boy was a witness to the political and social development of the country. After 1906 Nicolas, senior, became prominent in higher political •^Nicolas Guilldn quoted in Augier, op. cit., p. 235. Rai.mundo Lazo, "Con motivo de una biografla de Nicolcis Guilldn," Universidad de La Habana (Noviembre-Dici- embre, 1964), p. 13. When Lazo was a little boy he over heard a neighborhood lady remark about Guillen: "Si, Nico- lasito es todo un caballero; s6lo le falta el color." Ibid., p. 15. 45 circles. He was a crony of the caudillo of the Liberal Party, General Jos£ Miguel Gdinez, who opposed the re-elec tion of Cuba's first President, Tomds Estrada Palma. The series of events that took place in 1906— the renunciation of President Estrada Palma, civil war, and another North American military occupation of the island— undoubtedly pro voked much excitement in the Guillen household. Nicolas, Jr., only four years old at that time, must have been gifted with either a tremendous memory or a vivid imagination; for he was able to remark, fifty-four years later, that he remembered "la guerrita de agosto, sobre todo de hombres con grandes sombreros, muchos de ellos a caballo, llenando las calles. Era en 1906 . In the elections of 1907 Gomez was elected Presi dent, and Guillen's father won a seat in the Cuban Senate to represent Camaghey Province for the 1908-1912 term. Early in his father's term in the Senate (probably in 1909), Nico- lasito was enrolled in his first large school by his god father, don Sixto Vasconcelos, who was President of the Audiencia de Camagtley. Vasconcelos, noted throughout the province as a man of culture and of literary ability, pub lished many articles under the pen-name "Juan de Solis. This school, conducted by Professor Rodriguez ■ ^ N i c o l a s Guillen quoted in Augier, op. cit., p. 13. l^&ugier, op. cit., p. 14. 46 Adcerias, was not the only one Nicolasito attended: later he went to the Plaza de Carmen school, where his teacher was Rafael Zayas BazSn. Later he transferred to another private school run by Luis Manuel de Varona. The fact that even at this early age Nicolcis Guillen demonstrated signs of nonconformity and independence is sub stantiated by his leaving the "Escuelas Pias" because he did not approve of the obligatory attendance at Mass there. One of his schoolmates recalls that "No era Guillen un estu- diante tranquilamente adicto al estudio disciplinado ... "14 Guillen attended several other private schools during his adolescence, and also took music lessons. All these expe riences and names are recorded and retold by the poet later in "Elegia Camagtieyana. "I5 When his congressional term expired in 1912, Guillen's father returned to journalism: he assumed the directorship of the newspaper La Libertad, official publica tion of the Liberal Party. It appears that ex-Senator Guillen was a man of principles and sincerity. In spite of the fact that the Gomez Administration was notorious for corruption and graft at many levels, Guillen retired from office so poor that he had to begin publishing La Libertad l^Lazo, op. cit., p. 9. — l^Nicolas Guillen, La paloma de vuelo popular, Elegias (Buenos Aires, 1959T~ , "Elegia Camagtieyana," pp. 133- 138. 4 7 on a delapidated printing press which he rented until he could save enough money to buy a better one.^ Guilldn often thinks back to those days after his father's term- expired— "bitter days of poverty and want" in the GuillSn household. For the ex-Senator retired from office "without a cent . . . and our table was sometimes bare.But Guillen loved his father all the more for his ■honesty and high ideals. During his school days the boy manifested a fascina tion for all aspects of his father's profession of publisher and journalist: "Las cajas le revelaban al muchacho cu- rioso los secretos de las silabas y las palabras con mlis eficacia que sus maestros en la escuela. Lentamente lo envolvia el embrujo de la letra impresa, le penetraba ese veneno sutil que viene de ella ... It is impossible to pinpoint the moment in which a man becomes a poet. In a broad sense, Nicolas Guillen was probably a poet from earliest infancy. Guillen himself does not know exactly the origin of his literary preoccupation: however, he does venture that — - debe de haber sido desde muy temprana edad. Lo que si s£ es que me viene de mi abuelo paterno, oriental de -^•^Augier, op. cit. , p. 15. l^Nicol&s Guillen, "Noche Buena, otra vez," Hoy (December 2, 1959), reprinted in Prosa de prisa: Cr6nicas, Samuel Feij6o, editor (La Habana, 1962), p. 261. l^Augier, loc. cit. 48 Bayomo, el maestro carpintero Pancho GuillSn, que escri- bi6 d^cimas y letrillas a los rios, a las aves, y a las muchachas bonitas. Me viene tambign de mi padre ... que fue periodista. Whatever the case, by age fourteen he had already written poems. Although he has long since lost them, he still remembers the first lines of some of his favorites, like Por linda pradera sembrada de flores, que ya por doquiera derraman olores, se alarga, cantando, un manso arroyuelo, lamiendo, besando sus aguas el suelo.^ During these adolescent years Nicolasito grew closer to his father. Guillen himself often recalls the love and respect he and his father shared, even to the point of the young child's being permitted to be present at the political meetings in the home-- Entre los recuerdos que guardo de mi infancia camagtle- yana pocos me presentan de manera tan en^rgica como aquellos que hunden su raiz en el quehacer politico del hombre que me di6 la vida ... En mi casa se celebraban juntas o reuniones varias veces al mes y a mi me era permitido presenciarlas bajo palabra de guardar silen- cio ... 21 to participate in the father's work— Recuerdo ... la primera imprenta provinciana, en la que 19"charla de Nicolas Guillen en el Lyceum Lawn Tennis Club de la Habana," El Comercio, Lima, July 26, 194 6, not paged. 20Ibid. ^Guill^n, "Don Juan," Ultima Hora, 1952, reprinted in Prosa de prisa, op. cit., p. 145. mi hermano y yo §ramos los Gnicos obreros y mi padre administrador .. . 2 and in activities at home— Pero cuando se acercaba volando con sus alas blancas la Noche Buena, mi padre la esperaba junto a una ancha mesa luminosa. Desde muy temprano, el gran dla ... sallamos con §1 mi hermano y yo, y a lo largo de la calle de Santa Ana ... 22 Father and son must have spent many memorable hours togeth er, for Guillen later wrote, in a nostalgic and moving poem to his father's memory: "Tenme siempre a tu lado como antes me tenias."2^ In 1917 tragedy struck the Guillen family. Once again the liberals had instituted an armed protest against new efe'ction frauds. Menocal, the conservative President for 1912-1916, had made illegal provisions to succeed him self in the elections of 1917. Ex-Senator GuillGn joined the rebel liberal forces in the revolt against Menocal's government troops. The attack failed and the liberals had to retreat to their hideout at the San Ramon de MGcaro ranch. The government troops, in hot pursuit, were soon upon the liberal encampment, and the outnumbered rebels were beaten. Guill§n insists that his father was killed in 22Guillen, "Noche Buena, otra vez," loc. cit. 23Ibid. ^NicolSs GuillGn, Antologia mayor (La Habana, 1964), "Cancion Filial," pp^ 15-17. battle while bravely defending the camp from the government troops. But the newspaper accounts of the incident were a bit different. The journalist Ram6n Vasconcelos later reported that the defeated rebel begged for his life, and, on the promise he would be spared, surrendered his arms and turned himself over to the government troops. They then shot him in cold blood--murdered him.25 At any rate, Guillen's father was dead— a result of his opposing the fraudulent re-election of Menocal. To hun dreds of thousands of Cubans the .failure of the revolt was a— tragedy; but to Nicolas Guillen, Jr., it also carried untold personal pain— the loss of his best friend, his best teacher, his motivator. The death of the father had a tremendous impact on the boy, and he would certainly feel deeply the loss of the one que vigila con atenta pupila todas las tempestades que rugen [tras mi frente.26 Many years after his death, the father was still very much a part of the poet's world. In "Elegia Camagileyana" Gui.llen wrote: No puedo hablar, pero me gritan 25For more details on the death of Guillen's father see: Lazo, op. cit., pp. 17-19; and Augier, op. cit., pp. 19-20. 25Guill£n, "Cancidn Filial," loc. cit. 51 la noche, este misterio; no puedo hablar, pero me obligan el perfil de mi padre, su indice de recuerdo; no puedo hablar, pero me llaman su detenida voz y el sollozo del viento.^7 Only a poet could convey the total sadness incurred with the loss of a parent: Quizes no sepas, padre, que cuando tu tpartiste yo empezaba a ser triste. Ya estaba frente al vasto pizarrSn de [las cosas, con su sistema de ecuaciones odiosas, la tiza que me diste, en la mano y la frente fruncida, tratando de arrancarle, en vano, su incdgnita a la Vida.^8 The widow Argelia Batista de Guillen was now in charge of the home that consisted of three sons and three daughters. The trade that Nicolasito and Francisco learned in their father's printing shop, "mas por gusto que por obligacidn," was now put to use in order to support the household. As a result of the senior Guilldn's participa tion in the revolt, his shop, home of La Libertad, had been destroyed by the government. So Nicolasito and Francisco went to work as printers (tipdgrafos) for Felipe Correoso, publisher of El Nacional— also a liberal paper.^ Complyingwith her late husband's wishes that his sons finish school, senora de Guilldn saw to it that the ^7Guilldn, " "Elegia Camagtleyana," loc. cit. ^Guilldn, "Cancidn Filial," loc. cit. ^Augier, op. cit. , p. 22. 52 boys studied at every opportunity. Fifteen-year-old Nico las, who had already completed the requirements for the preparatoria diploma, passed the exams for that degree in September of 1917, although his job had prohibited him from attending classes for many months. Still maintaining his job, NicolcLs took night courses, thanks to the generosity of Professor TomSs V^lez, a good friend of the late ex-Senator. Guill§n applied him self 'with such diligence and perseverence that he was able to complete his BachiHerato in two years. Meanwhile, with the assassination of his father, Guillen's liberal convic tions became even more firmly fixed, and his thinking more radical. But other changes were effected in the young man also. Completely disenchanted with the world he saw— denied his father's companionship, subjected to prejudice and poverty--Guill§n began to withdraw into himself. He had a poetic gift, and now he found comfort by engrossing him self in liricism, just as did so many of the "escapist" poets of the Modernist movement that was so de moda at this time in Cuban literary circles. Many of the modernistas sought refuge from the unpleasant world of reality by retreating into their poetic ivory towers. GuillSn later confessed that when he was about seventeen or eighteen years old, he became totally fascinated with Ruben Dario, the 53 modernista.^ Literary Adolescence, 1920-1930 By the time Guillen received his BachiHerato his name was already familiar among members of Camagttey's liter ary circles. Almost every night Guillen met with other young modernista poets in the Plaza de las Mercedes to dis cuss and recite their works. "All! ... nos reuniamos los literatos y poetas camagtteyanos de 1920 ... para confesarnos en secreto gue la Sonatina es una bella obra de arte. Continuing his work as tip6grafo, Guillen assumed charge of the literary page of Las dos RepGblicas, and he established friendships with writers from other cities— especially La Habana. One such friend, Paulino Bciez, director of a Havana literary journal, Castalia, published several of Guillen's verses. Nicolas Guillen's name was now in print in the Capital. Havana held many attractions, for young Guillean, especially in reference to his literary aspirations. He also wanted to attend the University of Havana's School of Law to fulfill not only his own dream, but that of his deceased father also. In 1920 he went to the Capital and enrolled in the School of Law. But hard times were to ensue: Guillen had no money, and the ex-Senator's contacts ^Augier, op. cit. , p. 26. ^Ibid. , p. 24. 54 and friends could do the young GuillSn no good in securing a public job because the Conservatives were still in power. While in Law School Guillen sought out other stu dents with lyric aspirations, several of whom became his constant companions. Along with his new friends Guillen became a vociferous critic of the modernist poetry of the older poets. The new group were looking for a more sincere poetry— a poetry of genuine artistic quality. They were reacting against the false values and the mediocrity into which Cuban poetry was falling, as well as to the turbulent political realities and semi-Colonial conditions that pre vailed at this time. Guillen's verses appeared in Castalia, Orto, and the Revista de Avance— the"vehicle for Cuba's new generation of poets.32 But Guillen soon became disenchanted with life in the Capital, and in August of 19 2 2 he withdrew from Law School to return to Camagiiey. The poet himself recalls that turbulent year of his life: Todavia en modernista vine a La Habana para estudiar De- recho. No me agrad6 la capital. Atraido por el sen- cillo ambiente camagfleyano, sentiame mal aqui, en lo que llamaba yo el bcLrbaro bullicio de la infernal metr6poli ... Eran, un poco, razones de ingenuo desencanto. La Universidad distaba mucho de ser como yo la habla ima- ginado: le dedique unos sonetos; los editores de cierta revista en que colaboraba me parecieron vulgares y egofstas vistos de cerca ... El habanero me lucio como un tipo excesivo para mi natural timido y respetuoso; lo zaheri en unas d^cimas. Termini mi ano, el primero y ^Giuseppe Bellini, Poeti Antillani (Milan, 1957), p. 10. tinico, de la carrera, y regresS a mi prado natal, donde decidido a no ser abogado, entretuve largamente mi tiempo en una revista literaria de norabre francos, y en labores de periodismo local.33 Around this time Guillen collected all the poems he had written to date into a book he called Cerebro y Corazdn, which he never permitted to be p u b l i s h e d . 34 Now Guillen began attending the regular Sunday meetings of the Circulo de Bellas Artes, where he rubbed elbows with Camagtiey's intellectually elite. Guillen had become a firm post modernista. A power ful trend toward esthetic renovation was the guiding force behind the new group, and the literary passion all but obscured the political. Among those poets who gave artistic "boost" to a poetry suffering from decadencia modernista were Martinez Villena, Jos§ Z. Tallet, Juan Marinello, and Regino Pedroso. But the political and social realities that sur rounded the poets could not be ignored, and were bound to influence literary production. When Guilldn decided to leave law school he wrote the poem "Al margen de mis libros de estudio." This work expressed not only Guilldn's per sonal disenchantment, it was also a "grito desesperado de 33Quill^n, "Charla ... Lyceum Tennis Club," loc. cit. Angel Augier (op. cit., p. 237), identifies the "re- vista literaria de nomnre trances" as Lis, a publication that lasted only six months. 34E-Lg]1t-een of these poems appear in the first sec tion of the Antologia mayor, op. cit., pp. 11-24. 56 una generaci6n insatisfecha y desorientada ... "35 The poem, written one year before the University Reform Movement was launched, affords the reader many insights: I Yo, que pensaba en una blanca senda florida, donde esconder mi vida bajo el azul de un sueno, hoy pese a la inocencia de aquel dorado empeho, muero estudiando leyes para vivir la vida. Y en vez de una-alegrla musical de cantares, o de la blanca senda constelada de flores, aumentan mis nostalgias solemnes profesores y aulas llenas de alumnos alegres y vulgares. Pero asisto a las clases puntualmente, Me hundo Asi llenan y cubren esta vida que hoy vivo la ciencia complicada del Admiiiistrativo y el libro interminable del Derecho Romano. II Luego, en el mes de junio, la angustia del examen. Pomposos catedrSticos en severos estrados, y el andnimo grupo de alumnos asustados ante la incertidumbre tremenda del dictamen que juzgara el prestigio de su sabiduria ... Aplaudir aquel triunfo que talento pregona, y mirar como a veces el dictamen corona --- con un sobresaliente una testa vacia. Ill iY despuis? Junto a un titulo flamante de abogado, ira el pobre poeta con su melancolia- a hundirse en la ignorancia de alguna notaria o a sepultar sus ansias en la paz de un juzgado. -^Augier, pp. cit. , p. 34. 57 Y pensar que si entonces la idealidad de un ala musical en la noche de mi pecho resbala o me cita la urgente musa del madrigal, tendre que ahogar, senores, mi llrica demencia en los considerandos de una vulgar sustencia o en un estrecho artlculo del Cddigo Penal ... 3 6 Not only the technique, but even the very atmosphere of the poem reflects the times. Angel Augier sees in the work a "cabalgadura displicente del alejandrino, la repulsa a la vulgaridad circundante a travds de un intencional pro- salsmo, como contraste con el lirismo exagerado y cursi que entonces predominaba: la ironia desgarrada, la angustia sonriente."3 7 In 1923 the University Reform Movement, led by Julio Antonio Mella, went into high gear. In the same year the corrupt regime of President Alfredo Zayas provoked the Movi- miento Civico de Veteranos y Patriotas. When this movement failed, one of its leaders, Rubin Martinez Villena, a friend of Guillin, joined Mella and the other initiators of Marxism in Cuba. 38 was probably at this time that Guillin began to develop a more than passive interest in Marxism. As a journalist39 he could express the desires and needs of the more inarticulate members of Cuban society: he was fast ■^^Guillen, Antologla, op. cit. , pp. 13-15. -^Augier, op. cit. , p. 33. 38xbid. , p. 30. ^^Guillin was writing for the newspaper El Camagtie- yano at this time. 58 becoming a spokesman for his race. The five-year period from 1922 to 1927 constitutes a "black out" in Guillen's poetic production. During this time he wrote magazine and newspaper articles, frequented literary discussion groups, and read a great deal. But he did not write any poetry: "Nada de poesia"— he later said-- "Desde 1922 a 1927 no escribi un verso. Guillen took up a bohemian existence and tried to live life to its fullest. It was during this period that the poet, having abandoned his ivory tower, came to know the Cuban people. He rubbed elbows with real people and soon became very much aware of their daily lives, their problems, their sufferings, their music, and their language^ He came to know the many individual tragedies of real people, as well as the great drama in which Cubans were participating-- especial.ly the Negroes of Cuba. Step by step he was discov ering bases for his search for la cubanidad. During these years, having accepted adulthood with its ever-increasing responsibilities, Guillen was able to make the journey from his ivory tower down to real life. At this point he renounced all the poetry he had previously written, for he had come to believe that the true value of verse lies in the participation in and the communication of life's realities. The poet must ^Guill^n, "Charla ... Lyceum Tennis Club," loc. cit. Alza tu voz sobre la voz sin nombre de todos los demlls, y hay que se vea junto al poeta, el hombre.^l The final poem of Cerebro y Corazdn, "Ritmo," is most appropriate. It formally closes the collection and, more significantly, it marks the end of Guillen's modernista phase. Inherent in its verses are not only Guilldn's new attitudes toward" poetry and the poet, but also— more impor tant— his ideas on life and reality in general. It is a testimony to the poet’s evolution. Just as Enrique Gonzdlez Martinez' poem "broke the neck" of the swan that symbolized El modernismo, signaling the end of that “ movement and initiating a new one, so did Guillen's "Ritmo" signify the destruction of his dream world and his emergence into the realities that surrounded him. This poem, which marks the closing of a phase of Guillen's life and work, also serves as an excellent point of depar ture for a new phase. It points out the utter contradiction of what came before it: Verso doloroso, — queja suave y triste— verso doloroso: I Riel Venus impasible, piedra de su estatua; Venus impasible: jAma! ^Guill^n, "Palabras fundamentales," from Cerebro y Corazdn, quoted in Augier, op. cit., p. 48. 60 Nieve de la cumbre, clara nieve excelsa; nieve de la cumbre: iQuemaI Alma mta, que raueres de pena y angustia; alma mia, que mueres: iLucha!42 Here Guillen sets forth the ideas and ideals— the mission— that will guide him for the rest of his life. He exhorts the sad verse— pessimistic, complaining--to smile; the deco rative, indifferent muse— to love; the cold snow— to burn; and his spirit--his soul, dying from pain, anguish and in difference— to fight! Guillen had many opportunities to experience, first hand, the reality of racial prejudice in his country. There were many activities in Cuban life which excluded the Negro, "probablemente s61o por ser negro," as Guillen once stated. He saw all around him, in a democratic Republic, that no matter how competent a Negro might be, he was often denied employment in offices--especially in banks and railroad com panies. In conservative Camagiiey, shortly after the death of his father and at a time when his family was in dire economic straits, Guillen tried to obtain a position as a typist in the offices of the Ferrocarril de Cuba. Although he was extremely well-qualified for the job, he said it was denied him; "que mientras no cambiara de color me serla imposible teclear en la mSs humilde de las 'underwoods' de ^2Guill§n, "Ritmo," quoted in Augier, op. cit., p. 49. 61 aquellos departamentos. " This experience was just one of many that were to leave a bitter mark on the young poet's sensibilities. In 19 25 the liberal party had come to power under General Gerardo Machado. When Abelardo Mola, an official in Machado's Secreterla de Gobernaci6n and an old friend of the late ex-Senator Guillen, offered Nicolas a position in his department, the youth, by now bored with bohemian life, accepted. Thus Nicolas Guillen left Camagtley once again for Havana. It was 1927. GuillSn found that the.political and cultural cli mate of the Capital had changed since his student days there: it was going through a vigorous period of renovation — probably a reaction against the immoral and scandalous Zayas regime, and a reflection of general post-War trends. Intellectuals, labor leaders, and students were filled with zeal for the development of a national consciousness. In literature these ideas and attitudes were mani fested in the vanguardista movement. Echoes of post-War European avant-garde literary and artistic schools such as Futurism, Cubism, Dadaism, ultraismo, Surrealism, resulted in vanguardismo in Cuba.^4 Guillen was completely taken ^Augier, op. cit. , p. 23. ^Angel Augier, "Presencia cubana en la vida y la obra de Nicolcis Guillen," Universidad de La Habana (January- February, 1963), p. 19. 62 with "la nueva est§tica," and became one of its foremost proponents. Guillen believes that the two persons most directly responsible for launching his career— his "verdadera resur- recci6n po£tica"--were Lino Dou and Gustavo E. Urrutia. Dou was a mulatto known and respected throughout the island as a man of great culture and patriotism. He had been a Senator with Guillen's father and had become a very close friend of the son, who referred to him as an "amigo a quien yo quiero como a un p a d r e . "^5 Dou was one of the driving forces behind the struggle against racial discrimi nation in Cuba.^ . Gustavo E.' Urrutia was the founder and editor of the Ideales de una Raza section of the Havana newspaper Diario de la Marina. The page, part of the. Sunday Supplement of the newspaper, was dedicated to making the Negro aware of his rich traditions and of his rightful place in the Cuban nationality. It drew many well-known and respected collab orators from among the Negro literati. Lino Dou, one of these collaborators, convinced Urrutia to publish some of Guillen's work in the December 16, 1928 edition of the paper. Guillen recalls his "debut" into Havana's literary ^Augier, Nicolas Guillen: notas para un estudio biogrcif ico-crltico , op. cit. , p. 168. ^For more about Dou see Guillen's article "Estampa de Lino Dou" in Prosa de prisa, op. cit., pp. 22-24. 63 public: ... mi verdadera resurrecci6n po6tica dibese a Gustavo - - E. Urrutia, quien siguiendo consejo de Lino Dou me pidio colaboracion para una pSgina titulada Ideales de una Raza, de la que 61 era redactor principal, y que apare- cla cada domingo en el Diario de la Marina ... entonces tenia veinticinco anos ... A su insistencia dile unos poemas que yo mismo titul6 Versos de Ayer y de Hoy. Ahi estaban los "vanguardistas", (que eran los de "hoy") junto a otros (los de ayer) en que figuraban un soneto a un lirio, unas estancias a la muerte, y algunos mSs que no recuerdo.^ Besides publishing Guillen's poetry, Urrutia's page furnished him an outlet for his struggle against racial dis crimination. Among other things,' it allowed him to present interviews with Cuban Negroes who had attained professional and artistic prominence. Guillen’s first article, "El camino de Harlem," treated the problem of race relations in Cuba, and concluded that "Si, sehores, todavia tiene prob- lemas la raza de color en Cuba y todavia necesita luchar mucho para resolverlos." He later contributed to Revista de La Habana, Social, Bohemia, Grafos, Adelante, and Resumen, and was a founding member of the learned and scholarly organization Sociedad de Estudios Afrocubanos.^® ^Augier, NicolSs Guill6n; notas, op. cit., pp. 62- 63. ^NicolSs Guillen, "El camino de Harlem," Diario de la Marina (Ideales de una Raza section), 21 abril de 1929, not paged. ^Ronald Hilton, ed. , Who's Who in Latin America (3rd ed., rev.; Stanford, 1951), p. 22. 64 Sporadically a poem of Guillen’s would be published in a paper or review in Havana or CamagUey, but it would attract only passing attention. Then on April 20th, 1930, eight little poems appeared on the page Ideales de una Raza. They were entitled Motivos de son, and, almost overnight, Nicolcis Guillen was famous--the topic of all literary con versation . Literary Maturity, 1930-1959 Nicolcis Guillgn himself recalls the interesting and unusual origin of the Motivos: El nacimiento de tales poemas esta ligado a una expe- riencia onirica de la que nunca he hablado en pdblico y la que me produjo vivisima impresidn. Una noche— corria el mes de abril de 1930— habiame acostado ya, y estaba en esa llnea idecisa entre el sueho y la vigilia, ... cuando una voz que surgia de no si d6nde articuld con precisa claridad junto a mi oido estas dos palabras: negro bembon. dQu§ era aquello? Naturalmente no pude darme una respuesta satisfactoria, pero no dormi mas. La frase, asistida de un ritmo especial, nuevo en mi, estGvome rondando el resto de la noche, cada vez mGs profunda e imperiosa: Negro bembdn, negro bembdn, negro bembdn, ... Me levantd temprano y me puse a escribir. Como si recordara algo sabido alguna vez, hice de un tiron un poema en el que aquellas palabras Servian de subsidio y apoyo al resto de los versos ... Escribi, escribi todo el dia, consciente del hallaz- go. A la tarde ya tenia un punado de poemas— ocho o diez— que titulG de una manera general Motivos de son The meaning of the Motivos was immediately under stood in Cuba, and so was the nature of'GuillGn's achieve- 50 GuillGn, "Charla ... Lyceum Tennis Club," loc. cit. 65 ment. Only a person unfamiliar with Cuba or with her cul tural history could fail to understand that Guillen had poetized the Cuban people--that he had made a significant contribution in the search for cubanidad. One week after the publication of the Motivos, the Diario de la Marina printed a letter from a reader who anticipated much of what has been said of the Motivos: "El lector de fina percepcion encuentra en esos 'motivos' sabor intenso y rico de cosas tipicas, admirablemente dichas. Esos 'motivos' son ... retratos fieles de algo muy nuestro, cubanisimo."51 "Rave notices" and more enthusiastic letters of con gratulation followed: " ... es posible que antes ni despues una colecci6n de poemas haya provocado mayor revuelo perio- distico en Cuba."^2 Federico Garcia Lorca, Emilio Ballagas, Langston Hughes, Alfonso Hernandez Catci, Jose Antonio Fer nandez de Castro, Regino Boti, and Fernando Ortiz were among those who voiced p r a i s e . 53 In this same year (19 30) Guillen met Federico Garcia Lorca, who was visiting Cuba. Each of them was immediately 5^Mary Castan Pontrelli, "The Criollo Poetry of Nicolcis Guillen" (unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, Yale, 1958), p. 390. 52Angel Augier, Nicolls Guillen: notas, op. cit., p. 10 5. ^For details of the accolades see: Augier, ibid., pp. 122-131. 66 impressed with the other. The Motivos influenced Lorca to c : / write a son, which he entitled "Son." Lorca's influence on Guillen was also pronounced: "La huella de Garcia Lorca ... es tangible ... al gitanismo corresponde aqui el mula- tismo."55 Florence E. White-*6 notes the similarities between the two men: both were interested in the folk ele ment as a basis for what they wrote— Lorca in the Gypsy, Guillen in the Negro. They shared a similar awareness in the dramatic and the tragic in the life of the common man. One and a half years after the Motivos appeared, Guillen used money he had won in the National Lottery to publish a second^ book of poems— S6ngoro Cosongo,^^ which included the poems from Motivos de son. Federico Garcia Lorca, "Son," Musicalia, II (abril-mayo, 1930), pp. 43-44. See also: Josi Sanz y'Diaz, Lira negra (selecciones espaholas y afroamericanas), (Madrid, 1945), p. 153. 5 5 JosS Luis Varela, Ensayos de Poesia indigena en Cuba (Madrid, 19 51), p. 98. ^Florence E. White, "Poesia Negra in the Works of Jorge de Lima, Nicolcis Guillen and Jacques Roumain 1927- 1947" (unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, University of Wiscon sin, 1952), p.. 241. ^The first (Motivos) was published in a limited edition of one hundred copies shortly after they appeared in the Diario de la Marina: Nicolcis Guillen, Motivos de son (La Habana, 1930). - ” ^Nicolcis Guillen, S6ngoro Cosongo, poemas mulatos (La Habana, 1931). A limited edition of 300 presented to friends and admirers of Guillen. An autographed copy given to Arthur Schomburg can be seen in the Harlem Branch of the New York Public Library. 67 The publication of the second book precipitated yet another barrage of laudatory letters and congratulatory tributes. Miguel de Unamuno wrote to Guillen from Madrid: Hace ya tiempo, sehor mio y compahero, desde gue recibl y lei— apenas recibido— su "Sdngoro Cosongo", gue me propuse escribirle. Despu^s lo he vuelto a leer— se lo he leido a amigos mlos— y he oido hablar de usted a Garcia Lorca. No he de ponderarle la profunda impresidn gue me produjo su libro, sobre todo "Rumba", "Velorio de Papa Montero", y los motivos de son. Me penetraron como a poeta y como a lingflista. La lengua es poesia ... vengo siguiendo el sentido del ritmo, de la mfisica ver bal, de los negros y mulatos ... Es el espiritu de la carne, el sentimiento de la vida directa, inmediata, terrenal ... 59 Guillen's popularity skyrocketed: he and the Cuban people had an uncanny attraction toward one another. He "pas6 a cantar los cantares de la c a l l e " 6 0 with his unigue ability to transform popular speech into poetry. This poetry, with its "catchy" rhythm and its candid, spontane ous, and sometimes picaresgue language, soon could be heard emanating from the markets and stores, taverns, urban neigh borhoods, and the suburbs of Havana. His understanding and communication of the Negro spirit led Guillen to establish many deep and lasting friendships. When the well-known North American Negro poet, Langston Hughes, visited Cuba in 1931, he immediately S^GuillSn sent a photostatic copy of the original handwritten letter signed by Unamuno to A. Schomburg. It is contained in the Nicolds Guillen Scrapbook, loc. cit. The text of the letter is also contained in Nicolcis Guillen, El son entero: suma pogtica 1929-1946 (Buenos Aires, 1947), pp. 11-12. ^Bosch, op. cit. , p. 162. 68 sought out Guillen. The two men had much in common in the material they employed: both were liberal in their beliefs and defenders of the common man. Hughes was especially intrigued by the Motivos, which were in many ways similar to his collection The Weary Blues.61 The North American trans lated some of the Cuban's poems into English.62 After leav ing Cuba, Hughes went to Haiti, where he met Jacques Rou- main, who was himself later to translate some of Guillen's work into French and who was to become a close friend of the Cuban. Another important friend who had a great influence on GuillSn was Romulo Lachatanere, author of Manual de Satanerla, a scholarly study of the rites, cults, folklore, and mythology of the Africans in C u b a . 63 Although Guillen's first books of poems brought him celebrity, they did not prove to be financially lucrative. Therefore the poet continued in his government position in the Secretaria de Gobernacion. In 1932, while still a gov ernment employee, GuillSn became the editor of Orbe, a ^Langston Hughes, The Weary Blues {New York, 1929). ^They were later published in Cuba Libre, Poems of Nicolas Guillen, translated by Langston Hughes and Ben Frederick Carruthers (Los Angeles, 1948). 63R6mulo Lachatanere, Manual de Satanerla (La Ha bana, 19 42) . For more on Lachatanere see: Nicolcis Guillen, "R6mulo Lachatanere," El Nacional (1951) reprinted in Prosa deprisa, op. cit., pp” 169-73. 69 weekly magazine in which he published articles concerning the poverty and misery he saw about him. By this time the poet had become popular as a speaker and guest lecturer. The fact that.GuillSn was able to keep his govern ment job is a source of constant wonder and amazement: he was an outspoken critic of the Machado regime. On Febru ary 20th, 1932, while addressing the intellectual Ladies of the Lyceum Society of Havana, he concluded the recital of his poems with the prediction of a victorious anti-Machado revolt: " ... y como todas las conspiraciones, esta va tra- bajando en la sombra. Estalla y se frustra a veces, pero acabarcl por romper la tierra, en una pugna misteriosa de arbol nuevo.Needless to say, this sort of thing did not make his employers at the Secretaria de Gobernacifin eu phoric. The fall of the Machado regime in 1933 had a pro found effect on Guillen.65 For one thing, he lost his position in the Government. But, more important, he felt guilt and remorse to think that he had been connected with the regime, even in a minor capacity. Intensified political confusion and social inequi ties in the post-Machado Cuba ruled by Batista provided the ^Augier, Nicolas Guill§n: notas, op. cit., p. 193. 6^When asked thirty years later what events of his life had the strongest effect on him, Guillen answered: "Podrla hablar de cuatro: la muerte de mi padre en 1917; la calda de Machado en 1933 ... " Augier, ibid., p. 197. 70 atmosphere for West Indies' Ltd.,66 which Guillgn published in 19 34. His firm belief that one of the gravest problems of Cuba was "el dominio imperialista ejercido principalmente a trav^s de la industria azucarera"^ is obvious throughout West Indies Ltd. These grim and tragic scenes, full of suffering, carry with them a definite note of revolt against all that compels the Cuban people to this kind of life: United States imperialism, unscrupulous Cuban officials, dictatorship, and the sugar industry. The social content of the poems of West Indies Ltd. is in keeping with Guillen's personal philosophy of poetry: La poesia no es un hecho aislado del medio ambiente en que se produce, sino que refleja todas las contradic- ciones, todas las relaciones sociales, economicas y pollticas de una £poca ... Los grandes nombres que la historia literaria ha recogido y conserva, son los de aquellos artistas que han sido fundalmente hombres de su tiempo; hombres de carne y hueso, con una obra de carne y hueso tambien. Lo demcis es evasidn, impotencia, ona- nismo intelectual: traicidn en una p a l a b r a . ^ 8 It was precisely his adherence to this philosophy that led to the poet's imprisonment and subsequent exile. In 19 36 he was arrested, along with the other members of the editorial staff of the magazine Mediodia.^9 The Tribunal de ^NicolSs GuillSn, West Indies Ltd. Poemas (La Habana, 1934). ^Augier, pp. cit. , p. 186. 6^Luis AlemSn, "Charla con Nicolcis Guillen," Reper- torio Americano (December 10, 1949), p. 376. 69when juan Marinello gave up the editorship of the magazine, in 1936, Guillen took the post. 71 Urgencia found him guilty of espousing anti-Batista polit ical ideas and placed him in Havana Prison. Early the next year he fled the country and escaped to Mexico, where he published Cantos para soldados y sones para turistas.^1 In this collection, Guillen's Marxist ideas are prevalent, and the attitude of rebellion is strong. He forgives the soldiers, whom he considers to be the victims of their superior officers, just as the cane workers are the victims of the capitalist. The people whom he does not forgive, whom he attacks, are the tourists, especially the wealthy and thoughtless "ugly American." After participating in the "Congreso de Escritores y Artistas Mexicanos" in 1937, GuillSn was invited to attend the "Segundo Congreso en Defensa de la Cultura" which invited writers from all over the world to Spain in an effort by the Republicans to gain support for their side in the Spanish Civil War. After initial meetings in Paris, the delegates went to Spain to see for themselves what the Republicans were trying to do. Guillen visited Valencia, Barcelona, and Madrid with Pablo Neruda, Cesar Vallejo, Ernest Hemingway, Langston Hughes, and Jacques Roumain, with whom he formed lasting friendships. From his experiences and his sympathies for the ^ Guillen Scrapbook, loc. cit. ^^NicolSs Guillen, Cantos para soldados y sones para turistas (Mexico, 1937). Republican cause,7^ Guillen collected material for another book of verses: Espana: Poema en cuatro angustias y una esperanza,73 which Florence E. White classifies as "'white' in form and 'red' in content with only a few touches of 'black'".74. He titled the fourth angustia "Federico" in memory of his friend Lorca. Collaborating with Juan Marinello in 1938, Guillen edited' Hombres de la Espaha leal,75 a collection of sixteen interviews and articles with or about leaders and heroes of the Spanish Civil War. Guillen was given a farewell testimonial dinner by the government of the Republic of Spain in Barcelona. Later the same year, on a train trip from Canada to Mexico, he was "forced" to travel through the southern part of the United States, where he saw the "Negro problem." He said that he had only the most repugnant memories of that experience, and that he wished never to return to that country "mientras 7^ See: Martha E. Allen, "NicolSs Guillen, poeta del pueblo," Revista Iberoamericana (July, 1949), p. 29; and Max Henriquez Ureha, Panorama historico de la literatura cubana -(New York, 1963), p. 382. 73Nicolas Guilldn, Espaha; poema en cuatro angus tias y una esperanza (Mdxico, 1937). 7^White, op. cit., p. 377. At this time Guillen was a socialist with definite Russian sympathies ("red"). The only Negro ("black") part is a description of himself as "hijo de ti y de Africa" in the esperanza. 75Nicolas Guillen y Juan Marinello, Hombres de la Espaha leal (La Habana, 1938). 73 estd ausente Lincoln."^® By 19 4 0 Guillen was permitted to return to Cuba: Lino Nov&s Calvo talks of the popularity he had achieved in the Capital: Usted cruza un dia, a cualquier hora, La Habana con Guilldn, y tendrcl que detenerse en cada cuadra. Todo el mundo lo conoce, todos lo saludan y lo quieren. Pero §1 tiene pocos amigos verdaderamente intimos, con los cuales pueda ser €1 mismo. Aqui entre tanta gente extraha, y con la dama escoltada en el frente, no se sentia bien.77 Guillen frequented tertulias at "El Lucero," always accom- 7 8 panied by Rosita, who had been introduced to him by Calvo. Guillen was known to be a very even-tempered man, and the only person who could upset his equilibrium was Rosita. His popularity and public appeal most probably were among the factors that influenced political leaders to nom inate Guilldn as a candidate for Mayor of Camagtiey. He had been articulate on the political scene for many years, but he had no intentions at this time to seek office. Novels Calvo recalls: El dia primero de mayo ... Guillen no sabia aftn nada de su postulacidn. En la pena no sabiamos nada. Quien primero nos di6 la noticia fue un periddico. De pronto, ^"Discurso de Nicolds Guilldn en el Pen Club," Cuba y la USSR (April, 1948), p. 25. 7 7 Lino Novas Calvo, "Dos Poetas para alcaldes," Romance (May, 1940), p. 8. 7 8 From this point in Guilldn's life there are infre quent and vague references to Rosita, but no, documentation has been found pertaining to marital status. Claude Couffon speaks of "sa femme Rosita." 74 Guillen se encuentra con que segtan ese peri6dico, §1 era candidato a alcalde de Camagtiey y corrio a su partido a verificarlo. Era v e r d a d . 7 9 "Su partido" was the Uni6n Revolucionaria Comunista.88 He accepted the nomination reluctantly, and was defeated by twelve thousand votes. 8^ In the years immediately following the election Guillen continued in his literary and cultural pursuits: he edited the Archivos de Folklore Cubano in 1942. The culmi nation of a trip to Haiti in the same year as Honorary Cul tural Delegate from Cuba was the conferral upon him by President Lescot of the title of Commander of the National Order of Honor and Merit. He also published his first anthology, Sdngoro Cosongo y otros poemas,^ that year. In 1943 Guillen published his first dramatic piece, Poema con nihos, "un acto de finalidad docente contra la discriminacion r a c i a l . "^3 He also remained a very active journalist, contributing to Hoy, El Nacional, El Pals, Van- guardia cubana and Trabajo. Most of the period of 1945-1948 was spent touring ^Novas Calvo, loc. cit. ^Augier, Guill§n-notas, op. cit., p. 129. 8l-Alfonso Fuenmayor, "La poesia se harS mas social," Cromos (April 27, 1946), p. 29. 82Nicolas Guillen, s6ngoro Cosongo y otros poemas (con una carta de don Miguel de Unamuno) (La Habana, 1 9 4 2 ) . 88Henriquez Ureha, op. cit., p. 396. 75 South America where he gave recitals of his poetry and lec tures. By this time he was known to be a militant Commun ist. ^ Guillen was in Chile for almost six months. Shortly after his arrival he underwent an emergency appendectomy in Santiago de Chile. While in this country he cemented his friendship with Pablo Neruda, who later remarked that Guillen liked Chile so much he was reluctant to leave, but that he was homesick for C u b a . Qn January 9, 1947, he was the guest of honor at a farewell dinner given by the Alianza de Intelectuales de Chile. Later that year, while a guest of Cclndido Portinari in Rio de Janeiro, Guillen composed Elegla a Jacques Rou- O £ main. The Haitian friend of seven years and a co-sympa thizer in the Negro cause had died three years earlier.^7 In Buenos Aires that same year, Guillen published El O A Cintio Vitier, Cincuenta anos de poesla cubana (1902-1952) (La Habana, 1952), p. 229. ^Pablo Neruda, "Homenaje a Guillen en Chile," Revista Cubana (January-December, 1948), p. 344. See also: Bellini, op. cit., p. 9. ®6NicolSs Guillen, Elegla a Jacques Roumain en el cielo de Haiti (La Habana, 1948). On the title page is: "Este poema fu£ escrito en Rio de Janeiro en casa de Candido Portinari, en diciembre de 19 4 7." ^For more on Roumain see: Guillen, "Sobre Jacques Roumain" in Prosa de prisa, op. cit., pp. 324-328; Sanz y Diaz, op. cit., p^ 238; Couffon, op. cit., pp. 70-72. 76 son entero,^ a collection of his poetry written between 1929 and 1946. On his way back to Cuba in 1948, the poet visited Uruguay: he met Juana de Ibarbourou in Montevideo and stayed at the summer home of Enrique Amorim in Salta. The World Peace Conference and the Writers' Con gress, both held in Paris in 1949, brought Guillen to Europe again. From Paris he made his first trip to the Soviet Union, accompanied by Juan Marinello, and later that year he participated in the Conferencia Cultural y Cientifica por la Paz at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York City. Guillen's journalistic work in the latter part of the 1940's was dedicated to reporting Latin American polit ical affairs and elections, historical articles on unknown heroes of Cuban Independence, and eulogies honoring promi nent Cuban citizens. By 19 50 GuillSn had returned to Cuba and was the recognized leader of the bohemian literary group of Havana. He wrote for newspapers, worked in the Congressional Library, held tertulias in waterfront cafes, and was articu late in politics, giving promise to the anguish and the hope of the underdog. In 1951 Guillen wrote a play--a dialogue for a puppet show— Floripondito o Los titeres son personas ^Guill^n, El son entero, op. cit. This collection, originally intended for Guillen's unpublished works written between 19 37-1946, was expanded to include all works from 1929-1946. The last section, entitled El son entero, is dedicated to the years 1937-1946. 77 and another elegla. With the return of Batista to power in 1952, Guillen was caught in the dictator's attempt to purge Cuba or Com munism. The files of the Servicio de Inteligencia Militar had registered the poet "NICOLAS GUILLEN BATISTA— Commu- nista. "90 Guillen had denounced Batista's illegal coup d'etat, and, after visiting Chile in 1953, was not permitted to return to Cuba. In exile once again he traveled exten sively, visiting several Latin American countries, Bulgaria, and Peking in 1954, the year he won the Stalin Peace Prize. He took up residence in Paris from 1955 to 1958, from which he made visits to Checkoslovochia, Moscow (where he met Mikoyan), and Budapest.91 During these years in Paris, Guillen's residence, or base for travels, was the HStel Saint Michel on the Rue Cujas in the Latin Quarter. It was in this small hotel room that he worked on the poems of La paloma de vuelo popular,9 2 ®^Nicolas Guillen, Elegla a Jestls Men^ndez (La Habana, 19 51). The text of the play Floripondito ... is in Tengo (La Habana, 1964), pp. 168-180. 90a photostat of this label and of Guillen's "mug shot" and file number can be seen in Augier, Guillen-notas, op. cit., p. 224. 91-These trips precipitated the articles "Visita Checoslovaca," "Mikoyan," and "Budapest"— all reprinted in Prosa de prisa, op. cit. 92N-LCQ3_gs Guillen, La paloma de vuelo popular (Buenos Aires, 1959). 78 which he later published in Buenos Aires. Here Guillen became a very close friend of Claude Couffon, who accompanied him on many of his trips and who translated and published some of his poems in Chansons Q O cubaines» J Couffon relates that during those Paris years it was not at all unusual for Guillen to announce abruptly "Je pars demain"— I'm leaving tomorrow!94 Meanwhile the world was beginning to take notice of the rebel exploits of Fidel Castro in the Sierra Maestra. In July of 1958 Nicolcis Guillen left France for Buenos Aires, where he published La paloma de vuelo popular. It was in the Argentine capital, on December 31st, that Guillen learned of the victory of the Revolution and of the flight of Batista. His exile had ended! Guillen and Castro's Revolution, 1959- Upon returning to Cuba from exile, Guill§n took his old position on the daily Hoy, which he had helped found in 1938, and he became a visiting lecturer in the Universidad de Oriente in Santiago de Cuba. While visiting Peking in 1959 as a member of an official Cuban delegation, he wrote an article called "Diez anos despu£s," commemorating the tenth anniversary of the "Liberation" of China by Mao Tse-tung. He wrote: ^Couffon, op. cit. , p. 76. 94Ibid., p. 77. 79 Mientras tanto,.el Departamento de Estado yanqui ha dicho una vez mSs, cerrando los ojos y apretanto la boca, que este pais de seiscientos millones de seres humanos no existe. Solo existe Taiwan, la pequeha corte putrefacta de Formosa, donde un punado de traidores vela el cadaver de Chang Kai Chek.9 5 He also wrote an article "Mao," in which he stated that Latin America and Communist China should establish closer bonds of friendship.96 Fidel Castro's revolution filled Cuba with new hope. Jos£ A. Portuondo believes that this movement, based on agrarian reform and anti-imperialism, signified for many Cubans a reaffirmation of the national dignity and the national consciousness.97 it is not surprising, then, that the Revolution inspired Cuba's writers: Guillen is one of the authors who sings Fidel's praises loudest. By early 1961, Cuba was well within the Communist camp. At this point it is essential to ascertain, as much as it is possible to do so, Guillen's position vis-^-vis Communism. As far back as the early 1920's Guillen was inti mately associated with University Reform groups who based their philosophies on Communism. Through the late '20's and '30's literature in general developed social consciousness 95Guill6n, "Diez afios despuis, " in Prosa de prisa, op. cit., p. 250. 9 6 Guillen, Prosa de prisa, op. cit., p. 258. ®^Jos§ Antonio Portuondo, Bosquejo histdrico de las letras cubanas (La Habana, 1960), p. 70. 80 to one degree or another. Those countries where the Negro population predominates developed Literatura negra: the Negro is the exploited segment of society and thus becomes the protagonist of the literature that attacks the various problems of the masses. Guillen follows this trend in his poetry of that period, especially in S6ngoro cosdhgo and in West Indies Ltd. Juan Bosch reminds us that during his formative years Guillen saw Cuba exploited unscrupulously— the victim of much selfishness and a m b i t i o n . ^8 The poet— very sensi tive— felt these things deeply. It is not completely beyond comprehension, then, that he should turn to a political phi losophy which he believed to be the only answer to these ills. In 1947 Pablo Neruda identified his friend Guillen as "a friend of the anti-fascists and anti-imperialists of Chile,"99 and by 19 4 8 Guillen was named a distinguished mem ber of the Cuban-Soviet Cultural Institute.100 His travels in the Soviet countries in the 1950’s and the atrocities perpetrated by Batista in the name of anti-Communism, along with his sincere belief in the equal ity of the masses, prepared Guillen well to be receptive of 9 9 Bosch, op. cit., p. 163. 9 9 Neruda, op. cit., p. 346. ^®Guill£n, "Discurso en el Pen Club," op. cit. , p. 25. 81 Communism1s doctrine, as subsequent articles and writings have proven. In 1961 Guillen was made president of the Uni6n de Escritores y Artistas, an organization created by Castro. The following year Samuel Feijoo edited Prosa de prisa, a collection of selected periodical articles Guillgn wrote between 1938 and 19 61. The week of October 20th, 1962, was officially designated "La.semana de homenaje a Nicol&s Guillen" by various cultural and intellectual institutions of the Castro regime. In 1964 GuillSn published Tengo-*-^^ and Antologia mayor,his most extensive anthology to date, containing poems from Motivos de son up to and including Tengo. Anto- logla mayor is, currently at least, the definitive Guillean anthology. In 1964 and 1965 Guillen held a post in Castro's Ministerio de Educacion, and has not published any poetry in the last three years. Cuban poetry in general has changed since Castro: A partir de 19 59, la poesla cubana ha sufrido una trans- formaciSn total, tanto en sus intenciones como en su forma expresiva. Los jovenes poetas han roto violenta- mente todas las ataduras del artificio ... Aman la vida, ■^■^Nicolcis Guillen, Prosa de prisa, op. cit. 10 2 Nicolcis Guillen, Tengo. Pr6logo de Josl Antonio Portuondo (La Habana, 19 64). ^Nicolcis Guillen, Antologia mayor (La Habana, 1964) . 82 y la vida es la vida de los gue le rodean, su pueblo Guilldn feels that a marked change in his work has also come about: My poetry, before the triumph of the Castro Revolution, sang of hope. Now it sings of a reality, which is the Revolution. For the time being it [my work] must defend the Revolution from its enemies on the outside, and con solidate it on the inside. The poems I write strengthen it . . . 105 Tengo is a perfect illustration of this philosophy. Since 1965 Guilldn has been spending much of his time traveling, giving lectures and recitals, and has not published poetry. Is he a Communist first, or a poet first? 1 n c "La poesla y el Comunismo— o al revds-~llenan su vida." GuillSn admits that at the present time he must sacrifice poetic and literary artistry in his work,107 for the role of the artist in Cuba now, according to Guillen, is to create a socialist culture: Una de las batallas mSs duras, pero tambidn de las mcis hermosas, serd la que vamos a ganar unidos desde hoy nosotros, escritores y artistas cubanos, por la creacidn de una cultura socialista, humana, que entregue al hom- bre simple de la calle todo lo que le neg6 la Colonia en el siglo XIX y atesord una capa exclusiva.de la clase dominante en aquella sociedad. Cultura que nos de carcicter y esplritu propios, y, nos ensehe a encontrar lO^Josd Triana, "La poesla actual," Casa de las Ame ricas (January-April, 1965), p. 48. 10 5 Couffon, op. cit., p. 85 (translation mine). 1 0 f * Humberto Ldpez Morales, Poesia cubana contempo- rdnea (Cddiz, 1963), p. 21. ^O^couffon, op. cit. , p. 85. 83 en las raices que se hunden el vigor y ternura de las altas raraas que se elevan hacia las nubes, y nos rehaga el perfil roto por el impacto de una fuerza ciega, la fuerza imperialista, basada en el odio entre los hom- bres. Una cultura, en fin, que nos libre y exalta, y distribuya el pan y la rosa juntos, sin vergtlenza ni temor.108 lO^Nicolas Guillen, "Informe al I Congreso de Escri- tores y Artistas Cubanos," IDEA (July-September, 1962), p. 11. CHAPTER IV NEGRO LITERATURE AND THE AFRO-CUBAN MOVEMENT Beginnings Negro literature, as such, did not develop until the first years of the twentieth century. It is clear, however, that the Negro theme is as old as the African race itself, and that it has been treated by writers since the Phoene- cians invented the alphabet. The Negro appeared in the literature of the Iberian Peninsula at an early date. In a play by Gil Vicente, Cle- rigo da Beyra,^ he has the role -of a comic character. The Negro is also treated in some works by Lope de Vega. Lope presented his Negroes as noble gentlemen and good Chris tians. In El santo negro Rosambuco^ Lope tells of the con version of the Negro Rosambuco by San Benito de Palermo. In El negro del mejor amo^ the hero is Antiobo, a Negro prince 1Gil Vicente, Clgrigo da Beyra in Obras Completas, VI (Lisboa, 1944), pp. 1-45. 2 Lope de Vega Carpio, Obras de Lope de Vega, publi- cadas por la Real academia espanola, V (Madrid, 1890-1913) , pp. 361-392. 3Ibid., vol. XI, pp. 66-98. 84 who saves Sardinia from the Moors. The Negro is also a character in two other works by Lope: El capellcin de la Virgen^ and La limpieza no man- chada.5 Juan Bautista Diamante, a seventeenth-century dramatic poet, Luis Quinones de Benavente, a friend of Lope de Vega, and Luis de Gongora also used the Negro at one time or another in their works. The Negro appeared as the stepfather in the pica resque novel Lazarillo de Tormes.6 In the colonial literature of Latin America there was little mention of the Negro. A notable exception is Sor Juana Ines de la Cruz, who wrote "Villancico dedicado a San Pedro Nolasco.11^ In the nineteenth century Rub^n Dario used the theme, as did Federico Garcia Lorca in the twentieth. It is certainly not surprising that RubSn Dario was enchanted by "lo negro"; he was a poet thoroughly fascinated by exotic themes. His point of view is that of a spectator witnessing the primitive and savage rhythms and dances inherited from those African "kings of ebony."8 4Ibid., vol. IV, pp. 468-502. ^Ibid., vol. V, pp. 399-424. ^Julio Cejador y Frauca, ed., La vida de Lazarillo de Tormes (Madrid, 1914) . ^For the text of this poem see: Emilio Ballagas, Mapa de la poesia neqra americana (Buenos Aires, 1943), pp. 12-13. ^Ruben Dario, "Psicologlas carnavalescas," Tribuna Libre (Buenos Aires), February 26, 189 6. Not paged. 86 In the works of most of these authors, with the exception of Sor Juana and Lazarillo, the emphasis is on comparison of the deformed speech of the Negro with the lan guage of the upper class, his love of song and dance, and his primitive manners. The Negro was usually used as a *% comic device. These works were all written by Caucasians about Negroes or Negro themes. But poesla negra, as we know it today— poetry on Negro themes written by authors of Negro blood— is rela tively new. Nicolas Guillen says: La poesla negroide ya era cultivada por los grandes poetas espanoles del Siglo de Oro, y aun antes, Lope de Rueda hace intervenir negros en sus 'Pasos,1 y Gongora y Lope de Vega compusieron muchos poemas con personas de ese color, a los que hacen hablar con la tlpida prosodia de los africanos que se expresan en espahol. El negrismo literario y artistico, como movimiento amplio, nace en los dlas posteriores a la primera guerra mundial, merced a los estudios cientificos realizados en Africa. De la ciencia, la inquietud negrista pas6 al terreno del arte— mGsica, pintura, escultura y poesla.9 Proximate European Antecedents The negrista movement did not originate in Cuba: "No nacid en Cuba ... sino que nacio en Europa y fue expor- tado y desterrado, deportado a Cuba."19 The Negro theme was used in a purely ornamental way until the first decade of the twentieth century. The two most important names in the ^Luis Aleman, "Charla con Nicolds Guilldn," Reper- torio Americano, 45 (December 10, 1949), 376. lOjosd Luis Varela, Ensayos de poesla indlgena en Cuba (Madrid, 1951), p. 77. 87 development of the movement are Leo Frobenius and Pablo Picasso. Frobenius, a German anthropologist who spent most of his life in Africa, was the first European to make an organ ized study of African culture. In 1905 he made his first voyage to Africa, and the results of his investigations on this and on subsequent trips was the scholarly work Per Schwarze Dekameron, published in 1910. Between 1920 and 1924 Frobenius toured Europe, giving lectures on Africa, its civilization, and its art.H Frobenius1 investigations and lectures stimulated much interest, especially in France, the United States and, later, in C u b a . 1 ^ Picasso, the Father of Cubism, influenced by African masks, painted and sculpted African gods and fetiches, which culminated in his famous Negro Head in 1908. Picasso's interest in the theme was contagious, and many of his contemporaries found inspiration in the examples of African art discovered by the scientists such as Frobenius. It is not surprising that this phenomenon was reflected in literature: the time was right. Many young writers, like Apollinaire and Cocteau, future leaders of the Cubist and Surrealist schools, felt it was necessary to llpor more on Frobenius see: Arthur Ramos, Las cul- turas negras en el nuevo mundo, translated by Ernestina Champourcin {Mixico, 1943), pp. 39-44. ^Translations of his lectures and works appeared in the Cuban Revista de Occidente in 1924 and 1925. 88 return to a pre-intellectual period in order to recover their equilibrium. Africa and its artistic expression offered what they were looking for: A direct suggestion of the most primitive instincts ly ing dormant at the bottom of our nature. The candid expression of genuine, though brutal, sensations and sentiments stirred man in a way that was beyond the power of a clever, sophisticated technique.13 This enthusiasm for Negro art was evident in France's literary production. Blaise Cendrars wrote Antho- logie negre (1927) and Petits contes des negres pour les enfants blancs (1928), and Andre Gide wrote Voyage au Congo (1927). Paul Morand, author of various works based on dif ferent ethnic groups, published Magie noire in 1929. Proximate United States Antecedents The United States' contribution to the negrista movement, unlike that of Europe, was primarily in the field of music— music inspired by the rhythms and syncopation of African songs and melodies. In 1915, Schiller's Caf£ in Chicago featured a Negro musician called Jasbo Brown. His type of music became fan tastically popular almost overnight. Jos£ Varela tells of the origin of the term "jazz." One night when Brown was playing to a full house, "le gritaron.los clienteles, 1-Georges Lemaitre, From Cubism to Surrealism in Literature (Cambridge, 1941), p..76. 89 poseidos del mismo frenesi que el negro, 1Jasbo, Jas, Jas!'"14 Within a few months "jazz" was popular throughout the United States and had spread to Europe. Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington began their careers in this atmosphere. And while the mulatto Josephine Baker was overwhelming audi ences in Paris, Al Jolson painted his light skin black and popularized Negro music in New Y o r k . 15 »l0 negro" was defi nitely in vogue. The literature of the United States reflected the Negro theme. Vachel Lindsay published The Congo in 1915, and Eugene O'Neill's Emperor Jones (1920) and All God's Children Got Wings (1923) were successful. Langston Hughes published The Weary Blues in 19 29. Walt Whitman, influenced by the Negro spirituals and plantation songs of the South, wrote Songs of Myself, Salut au Monde, Our Old Feuillage, and Ethopia Saluting the Colours, all on Negro themes. Negrismo in Cuba In the 1920's, when negrismo had permeated Western culture and become so popular, "lo que en otras tierras l^varela, op. cit., p. 88. 15For more about negrismo and "jazz" see: Rex Harris, Jazz, a Revised Edition (Middlesex, 1954), pp. 60- 64, 233-235. l^Ramon Guirao, Orbita de la poesia afrocubana, 192 8-37 (La Habana, 1938), p. XV of the Introduction. 90 podia ser moda, artificio, snobismo, en Cuba encontraba raices naturales, autenticidad, color propio."17 The man most responsible for the awakening of inter est in_the Negro theme among Cubans is Fernando Ortiz, who accomplished in Cuba what Frobenius did in Europe. Jos£ Portuondo has called him "el verdadero descubridor de los . aportes del negro al proceso cubano de integracidn cultu ral . " 18 Ortiz, born in 1871, became very interested in Negro culture and way of life. His publications on Cuban society and ethnic formation are extensive. After publishing his doctoral dissertation in 1906,19 he continued carrying on scholarly investigations in sociology, ethnology, and an thropology. In order that this important work be continued, Ortiz trained a group of younger people, among them Romulo Lachatahere,20 Israel Castellanos,21 and Lydia Cabrera,^2 l^Angel Augier, Nicolas Guillen: notas para un es- tudio biografico-crltico^ Tomo I (La Habana, 19 62) , p"! 9"6. l^JosS Antonio Portuondo, Bosquejo historico de las letras cubanas (La Habana, 1960), p^ 61'. l^Fernando Ortiz, Hampa afrocubano— los brujos negros (Madrid, 1906). ^Romulo Lachatahere, Manual de santerla (La Habana, 1942). ^llsrael Castellanos, La brujerla y el naniguismo en Cuba (La Habana, 1916). 22Lydia Cabrera, "Eggtie o Vichichi Finda," Revista bimestre cubana, 60 (1947), 47-120. 91 all of whprn became prominent in the field. Such data and interest inspired the literature of Cuba. Under the influence of Ortiz, Cuban authors such as Carpentier, Ballagas, Guirao, and Portuondo did research in Afrocuban culture. The material they gathered served as bases both for scientific papers and for their novels and poetry. Nicolds GuillSn was in close contact with this group: he attended their meetings, listened to their lec tures, and read their papers and literary efforts. Guillen was well aware of Ortiz1 contribution to the culture of Cuba and to the Afro-Cuban movement: Solo a comienzos del siglo XX es cuando un hombre como don Fernando Ortiz, rompiendo murallas de prejui- cios y recelos, estudia la presencia del negro en la formacidn de la cultura nacional ... Eso hubiera sido imposible bajo la esclavitud, pues muy pocos podrian comprender entonces el papel desempenado por el esclavo africano como celula viva de la integraciSn cubana, tan cSlula y tan viva como el bianco espanol.23 The poetic manifestation of this awakened interest in and awareness of negrismo in Cuba is generally called Afro-Cuban poetry. It is not surprising that it should develop as it did in Cuba, because the island offered the necessary elements: the combination of a total lack of an Indian tradition plus an extremely large percentage of ^Nicolas Guillen, "Informe al I Congreso de Escri- tores y Artistas Cubanos," IDEA/ XIII (Julio-septiembre, 1962),2. Negroes from earliest times‘ d resulted in a culture that was African-orientated to a great extent. And it was the work of Ortiz, NicolSs Guillen, and others that uncovered this tradition, made it known, made it popular— resulting in a more solid national consciousness. Afro-Cuban poetry became very popular in the island in the early years of the twentieth century. One respected critic says that this occurred as a reaction against the 2 C asocial attitude of the modernista movement, which is true to a certain extent. But Ram6n Guirao adds to this reason the fact that Afro-Cuban poetry "ha dado sus mSs cuajados frutos en Cuba porque contamos con el documento humano vivo, presente, racial y economicamente ... "^6 Speaking for him self as well as for other Cubans, he offers the insight that the Afro-Cuban movement "establece entre nosotros una corriente de simpatia, un ligamento, que nos lleva a una introspeccidn amplia y profunda del alma negra."^ In order to have a basic understanding of the poetry which authors like Guill§n have used to interpret the Cuban people, it is necessary to be familiar with the African ^This combination is discussed in Chapter VI, Part I, of this dissertation. 2 5 Salvador Bueno, Medio siglo de literatura cubana (1902-1952) (La Habana, 1953), p. 155. 2 6 Guirao, op. cit., p. XVIII of the Introduction. 93 music, language, traditions, and folklore which lie at the base of this poetry. Cuban music is a faithful reflection of cubanidad. It is, just as the Cuban nationality, a product of the com bination of ethnic types, especially African, and the conse quent intermingling of their rhythms and oral traditions— their folklore. Rhythm is so important in Cuban music that most instruments, even the guitar, are used for percussion rather than for melody. Traditionally, only the tr^s carried the melody, while all the other instruments provided rhythmic background.2 8 Tambores (drums), the universal primitive instru ment, were introduced into Cuba by Negro slaves of the Yoruba tribe. Of the more than ten different kinds of drums they brought, the most popular were, and still are, the bongo and the tumba.29 Other important instruments, often simulated by onomatoepeia in Afro-Cuban poetry, are: the cajSn, which is like a tamborin; the marimbula or marimba, of either Bantu or Zambeze origin; and the claves, two sticks hit together for percussion. The music of the island was used mainly to accompany dances, which had their origins in Africa. As early as 1798 2^Alejo Carpentier, La mtasica~en Cuba (Mexico, 1946), p. 41. ^Ramos, op. cit. , p. 126. 94 the chronicler-historian Buenaventura Ferrer reported that there were at least fifty dance halls with daily public ■ dances in Havana alone. It was not unusual for the people to stay and dance all night long, and mulatto girls competed with Negro girls at these affairs for the attentions of mulatto, Negro, and white men,30 Music and dancing are genuine expressions of the Afro-Cuban essence, and dances often turned into sex orgies. Sons of many aristocratic criollo families sought satisfac tion of their sexual appetites at these affairs. Anyone who has paged through Cirilio Villaverde's novel Cecilia Val des ,31 has an accurate insight into such goings-on. The logic of the Cuban Negro was, rather than "Cogito ergo sum," "Siento, danzo, luego existo."32 One of the most common manifestations of this phe nomenon was the habanera, which Guillen uses as the basis for some of his poems. The habanera, indubitably originated by Negro slaves in Cuba, dominates all the Latin American 3^Carpentier, op. cit., pp. 110-111. 33-cirilio Villaverde, Cecilia Valdes o la Loma del Angel (La Habana, 1894). 3^Agustl Bartra, "AdUn negro," Cuadernos Americanos, CXXXIV (mayo-junio, 1964), p. 200. 95 3 3 dance melodies. And, much to the dismay and disbelief of many Argentines, a respected musicologist and historian has proven that the tango is nothing but a refined form of the habanera. Although the tango became popular in Argentina, it was actually developed in Cuba.^ The conga and the mambo are other Afro-Cuban dances that have attained world-wide popularity, but perhaps the most famous— and the most Cuban--is the rumba. This dance of sexual connotations and sensual undulations became so popular that it was known throughout Europe and America by twenty different names.^ African-orientated language is another important and necessary element to be considered in a discussion of Afro- Cuban poetry. It has been proven that African languages have a strong influence on the popular language of Cuba, on the religious-witchcraft chants, and in general on the jargon of everyday life. The Afro-Cuban language is mainly a "disfigured" form of Spanish, without concordance in num ber, conjugation, or agreement. Some of the more noticeable changes are: the eclipse of the final or d, a change of 3 3 Henry Edward Krehbiel, Afro-American Folksongs (4th ed.; New York, 1914), p. 68. Dr. Krehbiel, a music historian-researcher and critic, is one of the most respected figures in American musicology. ■^Ibid., p. 93. See also: Carpentier, op. cit., p. 51. 3 c Carpentier, op, cit., p. 57. 96 the 11^ to n, e to i, and £ 'to v. Investigations by Fer nando Ortiz and other scientists have shown the influence of the following African dialects, in order of their preva lence, on the Cuban vernacular: Yoruba, Lucumi, Bantu, and Carabali. The African words used in Afro-Cuban poetry often carry no meaning, but are employed for the sound effect— the musicality— they produce. In many cases their meaning has been lost. Sound is very important. This phenomenon is not at all peculiar to the Afro- Cubans; Plato found the Egyptian priests using in their prayers, instead of words, the sacred vowels of their lan guage, which they said had been taught to their ancestors by their dieties. Buddhist monks in China still recite prayers in Sanskrit, though they -do-not understand a single word. In research done by Dr. Henry Krehbiel, musicologist at Yale University, it is shown that a greater sanctity and meaning in worship was attached to sounds than to words, and that the first prayers were exclamations which came straight from the emotions— not words, but musical cries.^ The folklore and traditions brought by the slaves from Africa to Cuba comprise another element employed by the Afro-Cuban poets. Without at least a cursory consideration ■^Ramos, op. cit. , p. 13 7. ^^Krehbiel, op. cit., p. 36. 97 of this aspect it is impossible to understand many of the poems. "El canto folkl6rico africano ... viviendo una vida de obscuridad durante los siglos 18 y 19, ha venido a brotar redimida en lo mas puro de la mtisica y el verso afrocubanos de hoy." The poetry of Nicolds Guillen and of other Afro- Cuban poets abounds with references to folklore. The rites and traditions, upon which many of the poems are based, are still very much a part of the lives of many Cubans. There are countless secret societies of Cuban Negroes and mulat- toes who still practice the various rites and cults. The members of these societies are usually called hcLnigos.^ Poesia afrocubana reflects the combination of Catholicism and African beliefs, superstitions, and cults that has become the religion of the Afro-Cubans and is prac ticed to this day in many parts of the island. The Catholic San LSzaro has become the Afro-Cuban god BabalQ-aye, and La Virgen de Regia is equated to YemanyS. Chango, the African god of thunder in the Yoruba rite, and Santa Barbara, the Catholic saint who protects one from thunder and lightning, have become confused to such an extent that the Afro-Cubans 3^Juan Jos£ Arrom, "La poesia afrocubana," Revista Iberoamericana, IV (februario, 1942), pp. 388-389. ^Dudley Fitts, ed., Antologia de la poesia amefi- cana contempor^nea (Norfolk, 1942), p. 191. 98 call Chang6 "Santa Barbara macho."40 Many poems are based directly on the ceremonial chants and dances of the witch doctors and hShigos. Arthur Ramos describes one of the most typical rites: El baile de los brujos cubanos suele acompaharse de tam- bores. Hay tres tipos de tambores: uno, que se toca con las manos, tiene unos dos metros de largo por uno de circunferencia; otro, que se sostiene entre las piernas, de metro y medio de largo, denominado tumba; otro, por fin, denominado llamador, que senala las vueltas de los danzantes. El baile comienza melancdlicamente: los negros corean, monotonos, el estribiilo del brujo. Luego irrumpen los tambores con su ventral alusidn afri- cana. Los cuerpos, excitados por el ritmo creciente, ,las vueltas que impone el llamador, y la lascivia agre- siva de las formas, se entregan a la dictadura de un solo senor despotico, que asciende de los pies a la cabeza, empapando concienzudamente todas las arterias, los milsculos, los huesos mismos: -e-1 tambor. Sobre la tempestad de los tambores, una voz afilada grita "ilebbal, iiebba!" Es un negro, que pide que el llama dor suene para dar el golpe de frente. Otras veces ocurre la posesion fetichista, el gran honor de la visita divina; entonces se dice que el bailarln ha efec- tuado la "calda en el santo" o que "se le subio el santo." Para que el ataque cese, los tambores tocan sucesivamente, empezando por el menor. A1 poseldo— turn- bado, est£tico--se acerca otro negro, que le grita al oido: "senseribo, senseribo-epe, mancooco." En oca- siones es preciso golpearlo fuertemente para que vuelva en si.41 Poesia Afrocubana in the Island's Literature In Cuba's scant literary production during the years of Spain's Siglo de Oro, there was already a decided 40Ramos, op. cit., p. 115. ^Ramos, op. cit., pp. 111-112. Guirao (op. cit., p. 195) identifies "senseribd" as the "cap6n adornado con plumas, que simboliza en los altares de los nSfiigos la potencia de Erib6, entidad maxima del culto." 99 influence of the Afro-Spanish environment of the colony. The historical poem "Espejo de paciencia," composed in 1608 by Silvestre de Balboa, reaches its high point with the valiant action of a Cuban Negro. It is this Negro who, while joining neighbors in the rescue of the abducted Bishop Juan de las Cabezas, daringly and heroicly kills Gilberto Gir6n, the French pirate-kidnapper. The Negro, always a part of Cuba's musical tradi tion, was a part of the earliest literature of the island. The "Son de la Ma1 Teodora," an anonymous sixteenth-century work, tells of Teodora Gines, a Negro woman who played the bandolin in the churches of Santiago de Cuba around 1580. A combination of African jargon and the form of the Spanish romance--the octosllaba, this piece is still heard in Cuba, especially around San Juan and Santiago.^2 Later, around the time of the Ten Years War, there was a renewed interest in the Negro in Cuba's literature. In the Western Hemisphere, with abolition, the Negro came into focus as a literary figure. Poets like Longfellow and Whitman in the United States, Marti and Serafin Pichardo of Cuba, and Castro Alves of Brazil, wrote verses in praise of the Negro and against slavery. But these authors often treated the Negro as a symbol— the object of their propa gandists poetry— rather than as a human being per se. 42por the text of the poem, along with the musical score, see: Carpentier, op♦ cit., p. 37. 100 Juan Francisco Manzana was born a slave and freed by his white friends, many of whom were literary people. He and his compatriot Placido, pseudonym of Gabriel de la Con- cepcidn Valdes, a mulatto, are considered two of the great names in Cuban literature of the period of the Cuban revolt and abolition. Both wrote about the Negro slave, but in the same way that Longfellow and Pichardo did, so that one would never know that they had Negro blood in their veins. One historian of Cuban literature maintains that "La caracterls- tica de esta primera' etapa de la lirica afrocubana en Cuba es la de negros y mulatos que, negandose a si mismos, escriben a lo bianco. However, the second phase, the one of Guillen and his contemporaries, is the one in which blancos y mulatos, sintidndose africanos, escriben a lo negro ... La segunda etapa se enriquece con caracteris- ticas que la individualizan, y gana variedades temSticas para el caudal portico de America al enfocar la vida desde el punto de vista del negro.44 It has been emphasized that sound is a very impor tant consideration in Afro-Cuban poetry; however, its impor tance is often exaggerated. This type of poetry is not limited to the definitions of which the following is typi cal : ... busca sempre efeitos musicals baseados no ritmo, relagados pelo empr@go da aliteraqSo, do paralelismo, da onomatopdia, de repetiqao de sons vocSlicos do jQgo de vocablos sem outra significagao a nSo ser a do seu valor 43Arrom, pp. cit. , p. 379 . ^Ibid. , p. 380. 101 ritmico.4^ Afro-Cuban poetry is based on African folkloric ele ments, and has assimilated many forms of Spanish poetry. On the other hand, it is not merely popular Castillian poetry with Antillian or Negro inspiration, based on sounds. "La balada del Gilije" of Nicolas Guillen and the "Elegia de Maria Bel§n Chacdn" of Emilio Ballagas, written in correct Spanish, are, nevertheless, "muy negras." "Consiste esta poesia— escrita dialectamente o no— en ver las cosas desde el punto de vista del negro, estar profundamente ligada a la mtasica, los conceptos, y los sentimientos del afro- cubano."46 The important thing is the interpretation of the Afro-Cuban spirit, and this aspect was prevalent in prose as well as in poetry. During this time in Cuba there appeared several works in prose which were effective in popularizing the Negro theme. Besides Carpentier's novel Ecu§-Yamba-o, there was Lino Novas Calvo's biographical novel about the life of a slave trader, El negrero, and Lydia Cabrera’s Cuentos negros de Cuba. An important work, unjustly for gotten according to critics, was jOh, mio Yemayci1 . , a volume 4^Eduardo Frieiro, "Poesia afro-antilhana," Krite- rion, VIII (julio-dicembre, 1955), p. 346. 46jos£ Juan Arrom, Estudios de literatura hispano- americana (La Habana, 1950), p. 128. of Negro stories and songs.^ Also inherent in Afro-Cuban poetry are the general characteristics of humor, sorrow, melancholy, and sensual- 4 8 ity. The general themes are: African religion, folklore, the mulata, scenes from daily life, economic and social problems, and race. These themes can be divided into two groups: artistic and social. Artistic themes are drawn from religion and folklore; they may describe the mulata or the negra. On the other hand, the social themes are drawn from scenes from the Negro's daily life, his social and economic problems, or they are concerned with various aspects of the race problem. Love of country is also found in varying degrees.49 Nicolas Guillen employs all these themes. Nicolas Guillen and Afro-Cuban Poetry Although he is considered the best poet of the Afro- Cuban school, Guillen was not the founder. His first poem, "Pequeha oda a un negro boxeador cubano," appeared in 1929, but this was preceded by "Bailadora de rumba" by RamSn ^Rafael Estenger, Cien de las mejores poesias cub anas (3rd ed. ; La Habana~ 1950) , p"I 51". ~ 4®Jos§ Sanz y Diaz, Lira negra (selecciones espano- les y afroamericanas (Madrid^ 1945), p^ II. ~ ^Florence E. White, 'Poesia Negra in the Works of Jorge de Lima, Nicolas Guillen and Jacques Roumain, 19 27- 1947" (unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, University of Wiscon sin, 1952) , p. 54. 103 Guirao (April, 1928), and by "La rumba" by Josd Zacarias Tallet (August, 1928).^0 Tallet1s poem is a very superficial one, based on onomatoepeia and not much else, while Guirao1s work is "una fotografia statica della ballerina negra ... "51 One critic has captured the general consensus: "Sin duda, las rumbas iniciales de Tallet y Guirao, de 1928, no son sino emisiones de simpatia afrocubana, folklorismo epiddrmico."^ He goes on to classify them as "exhibicidn pintoresca de lo afrocu- bano," and to note that the "ritmo no es negro." Besides Guilldn, Guirao, and Tallet, the principal exponents of Afro-Cuban poetry are: Emilio Ballagas, Rafael Estenger, Regino Pedroso, Jose Antonio Portuondo, Marcelino Arozarena, Vicente Gdmez Kemp, and Alfonso Hernandez Catci. Alejo Carpentier also wrote poetry, but his main contribu tion to the Afro-Cuban school is considered to be his novel Ecue-Yamba-o, rather than his verses. Nicolas Guillen takes issue with all those who classify his school as poesia negra or poesia afrocubana. ^Outside of Cuba, the Puerto Rican Luis Pales Matos published "Pueblo negro" in .1926, but this does not fall within the scope of Afro-Cuban poetry. For the texts of "Bailadora de rumba" and "La rumba" see: Cintio Vitier, Cincuenta ahos de poesia cubana (1902-1952) (La Habana, 1952), pp. 221, 223-225, respectively. ^Giuseppe Bellini, Poeti Antillani (Milan, 1957), p. 12. ^Varela, op. cit. , pp. 93-94. 104 He believes both terms are misnomers for the same thing: poesia mulata. Poesia negra, he maintains, is an incorrect classification, and could not exist in Cuba. The term would better connote "poesia hecha por negros; y solo entendida, gustada, y apreciada por negros. S61o seria posible en Africa. "-*3 The poet himself constantly re-affirms the inade quacy of the term poesia negra: Dudo que exista una poesia "negra" en nuestro continen- te. Puede haber una poesia "con" negros o "de" negros ... Desde luego, un hecho es cierto: el esclavo afri- cano y sus descendientes han influido de manera profunda en la sensibilidad europea en la America, especialmente la espanola. Pero eso ha ocasionado una poesia "mes- tiza" en que se funde el amo y el esclavo en la inte- gracion de un perfll nacional con dimenciones univer- sales, alii donde la convivencia negri-blanca a trav^s de 400 ahos ha originado un fendmeno ya perfectamente conocido de la Sociologia: la transculturacion.54 As for the classification Poesia afrocubana, Guillen says it is ridiculous: Resulta muy curioso que la gente me llame poeta negro o poeta afro-cubano. Entendclmosnos [sic]. Afro-cubano es una palabra que si no es absurda es, por lo menos, redundante. Cuba es esto: Espaha mas Africa ... Cuando se dice Cuba debe entenderse que se trata de un grupo Stnico y psicoldgico que fue producido tmicaitiente por la conjuncion de Espaha con el elemento negro traido del Africa, de manera que decir afro-cubano equivaldria a decir: Africa, mcis Africa y Espaha ... Cuba es mestizo.55 ^Nicolas Guillen, "Cuba: pueblo y poesia," Ultra, II (febrero, 1937), p. 177. ^^AlemSn, op. cit., p. 3 76. ^Alfonso Fuenmayor, "La poesia se harS mlis social," Cromos (27 de abril, 1946), p. 69. 105 Although Guirao and Tallet preceded him chronolog ically, NicolHs Guillen is the real creator and initiator of the artistic form of the genre, be it called poesia afro cubana or poesia mulata. For his is the "expresidn mSs com- pleta y valiosa"5 6 Qf the interpretation of Cuba's mulatto culture. The noted Cuban scholar and critic Jos§ Antonio Portuondo distinguishes two groups of important Afro-Cuban poets. In the first he places Ram6n Guirao, Jose Zacarias Tallet, Alejo Carpentier, Emilio Ballagas, Marcelino Aroza- rena, and others. The second category is monopolized by one poet— Nicolas GuillSn. GuillSn is the "figura mcis eminente" of the school, while for the others "el negrismo es mero cultivo de lo pintoresco que se apoya en los dos elementos predominantes del arte negro popular: el ritmo y el color."57 To summarize, Cuba's indigenous culture is the result of the confluence of Spanish civilization with a number of African cultures. Cuban poets, working only with in European literary traditions had, until the 1920's, ignored the literary possibilities of the common indigenous folk culture. In the '20's a few poets, like Tallet and ^Julio A. Leguizamdn, Historia de la literatura hispanoamericana, vol. II (Buenos Aires, 1945), p^ 453. 57p0rtuondo, op. cit. , p. 58. 106 Guirao, under the influence of European and United States innovations, found a poetic subject in the Cuban Negro. Reaching beyond the artificial mixture of cultures that underlies the work of these so-called Afro-Cuban poets, Nicolcis duill^n undertakes the poetic interpretation of the mulatto, deriving his inspiration from the authentic and original national culture. GuillSn's work, erroneously designated as Negro poetry, only in a few isolated instances deals with the fossilized African cultural traits preserved in Cuba. On the whole, he is interested in awakening the Cuban people to the contribution of the Negro to their mulatto culture. In this way he affirms cubanidad. CHAPTER V GUILLEN'S POETIC STYLE In order to understand the manifestations of cubani- dad in the poetry of Nicolcis Guillen it is necessary to trace the poet's evolution through various stages and "schools," noting the most outstanding aspects of his evolu tion as a poet. This chapter does not pretend to be a detailed sty listic analysis. That aspect of Guillen's work has been thoroughly studied by Mary Castan Pontrelli,! Florence E. P 3 4 White, Wilfrid Cartey, Francis de Gaetani, and Manuel 1 Mary Castan Pontrelli, "The Criollo Poetry of Nico lc i s Guillen" {unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, Yale Univer sity, 1958) . 2 Florence E. White, "Poesia Negra in the Works of Jorge de Lima, Nicolas Guillen and Jacques Roumain 1927- 1947" (unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, University of Wiscon sin, 1952) . Wilfrid Cartey, "Como surge Nicolas GuillSn en las Antillas," Universidad de Antioquia, 34 (April-June, 1958), 257-274. 4 Francis M. de Gaetani, "Nicolas Guillen; a Study of the Phonology and Metrics of His Poetry" (unpublished Mas ter's thesis, Columbia University, 1940). 107 108 Ferrand.^ For this study, five arbitrary stages have been dis tinguished: Modernist, Vanguardist, Mulatto-social, Social, and Propagandistic. ^ Modernist Early in the twentieth century, Cuban poetry seemed to have channeled itself into two currents: one was the "purist" retreat into ivory towers, and the other was "la que busca en la circunstancia inmediata, cotidiana, motivos irdnicos."® Nicolcis GuillSn, choosing to follow the first current, began writing in a Modernist manner, which retained the Parnassian qualities of perfection of form and the emphasis on visual appeal, while at the same time infusing into his poetry a more lyric note than is seen in the origi nal French Parnassianism. This is not surprising, since in the first and sec ond decades of the century the Modernists were very widely read and studied. Their popularity was intense, and young Cuban literatos were reading Lugones, Jaimes Freyre, and Herrera y Reissig. During these years influential Cuban poets like Regino Boti, Jos& Manuel Poveda, and Federico ^Manuel Ferrand, "Raiz espanola en la poesia de Nicolas Guillen," Estudios Americanos {Sevilla}, 8 (Novem- ber-December, 1954), 461-487. 6jos£ Antonio Portuondo, Bosguejo historico de las letras cubanas (La Habana, 1960), p. 52. 109 Uhrbach were publishing Modernist works. And, of course, the poems of Julian del Casal did not fail to leave their mark on the young writers. But in this "§poca de plenitud modernista"^ in Cuba the most popular and widely read poets were Jose Santos Chocano and Rub^n Dario. At the age of seventeen Guillen was thoroughly devoted to Dario. He confesses that "un amor imposible— tan imposible que no exitid nunca— me hizo caer de bruces en ... Dario."8 Dario was his idol— Dario— "El de las calcomanias y esmaltes con cisnes, fuentes, abates, pajes, condes, marquesas."9 Guilldn recalls his adolescent poetic world in this way: — ■ Metido en Camagfiey, ingenuo mulato que aspiraba a Bachiller, dime tambidn a imaginar mujeres de alta al- curnia para mi sed de amar, envenando como estaba por el genial chorotega con manos de marquds. Ya pueden ima ginar ustedes como luciria yo, declamando el final de uno de mis poemas de aquellos dias: i Princesa! Mi ejercito vino: ime amas?10 Angel Augier, a close friend of the poet, says of those days : Ya por entonces, Guilldn llevaba al verso unos suenos y las ideas de su adolescencia melanadlica, pero como una ^Rafael Estenger, Cien de las mejores poesias cuba- nas (La Habana, 1950), p. 45. 8Angel Augier, Nicolcis Guilldn: notas para un estu- dio biogrdfico-crltico (La Habana, 19 62), p^ 24. 9Ibid. 10Ibid. 110 forma de evadirse de la realidad que le circundaba. Esa poesia primigenia le permitia crear una realidad imagi- naria, valga la paradoja, por la que desfilaban musas rubias con titulos de nobleza, fdnebres cipreses y deco- rativos cisnes modernistas. Eran cosas de la Ipoca. Cuando en 1921 lleg6 a La Habana para ingresar en la Escuela de Derecho de esta Universidad, ya habla dado a conocer sus versos en revistas y diarios y proyectaba la publicacidn de un libro.H The enthusiastic reception of many of his early poems, which appeared in the magazine Orto, encouraged Guill§n to continue submitting works for publication. The editor of the magazine recalls: "Es el mes de diciembre de 1920. Los poemas de Guillen siguen llegando a la revista: romances, sonetos, alejandrinos ... en fin, todos los metros y toda la gama ritmica del modernismo ... In 1922 Guillen Gathered what he considered to be the best poems he had written up to that time into a collec tion which he entitled Cerebro y Coraz6n. The poet abso lutely refuses, even to this day, to publish the collection — "este pequeno asesinato perpetrado en Camagtiey"--as he calls it. 1^-Angel Augier, "Presencia cubana en la vida y la obra de Nicolcis Guillen," Universidad de La Habana, 159 (January-February, 1963), 16. 12 Augier, Guill€n: notas, op. cit., p. 25. 1 * 3 x Ibid., p. 36. In 1931 GuillSn gave these poems to his friend Gustavo E. Urrutia, who had them made into a looseleaf book. A few years before he died, in 1958, Urrutia showed the notebook to Angel Augier, who copied the contents by hand. Augier has included eighteen of the forty-six poems in his edition of Nicolcis Guillen: Anto- logia Mayor (La Habana, 1964), pp. 11-24. But Cerebro y Corazon has never been published, in accordance with I l l Cerebro y Corazon contains forty-six compositions: nineteen poems of love, three religious poems, nine philo sophical poems, and fifteen miscellaneous works. In the form of these poems Guillen displays variety, but there is a definite preference for the endecasllabo. There are thir teen compositions in endecasllabo, eleven of which are formally perfect sonnets. There are three poems in alejan- drino, and also poems with combinations of- different meters and rhyme schemes.-*-4 The poems "Dolorosa" and "Nctcar"-^ show great simi larities with the work of Julian del Casal. They demon strate a great sadness and boredom which take refuge in a world of sheer imagination, polished expressions, and a facility for finding just the right word. In "Dolorosa" the author portrays suffering over the disillusionments of life. In "Nacar" the reader is presented with a landscape of nostalgic dreams. A swan, confusing his reflection with that of a star, "pica el agua, por cazar el astro." In keeping with the Modernist vocabulary there are "pajarillos azules," "el hada Dolor," "lirios entreabiertos," "fuentes," "cisnes de alabastro," and "una ola silenciosa que baha de Guillen's wishes. Augier's anthology seems to represent the first and last time that Guillen gave permission to publish even a few of these poems of his adolescence. 1^Information taken from Augier, Guillgn: notas, op. cit., pp. 37-39.. -*-^White, pp. cit. , pp. 251, 252 , respectively. 112 ensuenos." Cerebro y Coraz6n is permeated with the sadness and anguish experienced by the adolescent poet who was searching for his identity and for an explanation of the complex world that surrounded him. Even as a child, Guillen had unusual gifts of sensitivity and the ability to express— to communi- cate--his emotions. It is not surprising to find the themes of death and abandonment throughout his early works. Guillen was quite young when he was introduced to these realities. In 1 1 Can- cion Filial" he says: Envuelveme en ti mismo, ya que no puedo verte, y esp^rame en la hora confusa de la muerte para que me acomparles ... "La Balada Azul" further demonstrates Guilldn's preoccupa tion with death: Y en el cementerio, triste como un enfermo pensil, estrechandola le dije: --Mi bien, yo siempre pedi ser blanca cruz en la tumba donde dormircis por fin, para estar, aun en la muerte, cerca, muy cerca de ti.l"? The same theme is also seen in "Nocturno"and "Soneta cre puscular. By 1922 the poet became so bored and ^Augier, Guillen: Antologia, op. cit. , p. 17. ^ Ibid. f p. 12. - * - 8Ibid. , pp. 273-275. . -^The text of this poem is in Augier, Guillen: notas, op. cit., p. 44. 113 disillusioned that he ceased writing. Vanquardist In 1927, rejuvenated by the Vanguardist Movement, GuillSn broke his five-year retirement from the field of poetic production. He had undoubtedly been influenced by the times that Eugenio Florit calls "momento de efervescen- cia ... de letras; de prosa y poesia; ... de teatro experi mental y de audacias en mtlsica sinfdnica y de camara. He initiated his Vanguardist phase— a phase of transition--with four poems which were published in the August 31, 1927 edition of the Cuban literary magazine Orto. These poems— "El aeroplano," "La voz desconocida," "La nueva musa," and "Tu recuerdo"2!— are typical of the school and of the times, as their titles and themes suggest. "El aeroplano," for example, talks about a confused world of the future in which frames of old airplanes will be confused with the skeletons of unidentified monsters. In "La voz desconocida" Guillen interprets the noises of modern life, like those of the automobile, machinery, and air planes. In "La nueva musa" he writes of the changing role of the poet: 2^Eugenio Florit, "Nicolcis Guillen, poeta entero," Revista de America (February, 1948), p. 244. 2lThese poems are in Augier, Guillen: Antologia, op. cit., pp. 18, 20, 22, and 20, respectively. 114 Antes, el poeta era un mftsico que frente a la orguesta daba saltos e imantaba con su batuta los susplros de la fluta, Ahora, el poeta se mete dentro de si mismo y alia dentro, dirige su orquesta. The transition to a more lyric and personal style is obvious. The following year Guillen published more of the same type of poetry. His metaphors were new and strange: he saw airplane frames as monster skeletons; the sun was a drunkard; and in "Reloj"22 he saw the position of the hands of the clock at 2:45 as Christ crucified. In his poems of this period Guillen was typical of the poets who, in their reaction against conventional verse, approached total elimination of rhythm. They sustained the poetic effect more by unusual themes or bold images than by the traditional means of cadence and harmony. They focused their attention upon modern life of the World War I era: the automobile, the airplane, motion pictures. Theirs was a school that aspired to express poetically, in contemporary language, a civilization which technology had come to domi nate. The importance of this Vanguardist stage is that it served as a transition from Guillen's immature Modernist- inspired work to his mature poetry. The Vanguardists 22Ibid., p. 19. 115 liberated him from the rigidity of Modernism's style and themes, enabling him to embark on a more personal, a more lyric approach. It marked the beginning of his awareness of the realities surrounding him, and his communication of this awareness through verse. Guillen wrote: — £La torre de marfil? Ya dije que no hay torre de marfil que pueda resistir un cafionazo. It is understandable that Guillen does not want his first works published. It is difficult to imagine that the mili tant author of West Indies, Ltd. once wrote that "La vida hay que aceptarla como es."24 j-t is equally as difficult to imagine that the optimistic author of Tengo once wrote that the only solution to life's problems and conflicts was death. There is much speculation as to why Guillen never published Cerebro y Corazon. Possibly his meager financial conditions prohibited publication at first; but it is more probable that later he realized that these poems of his ado lescence were not at all representative of his mature work. For in those poems the poet is not a part of the life he saw, of the realities of society. Guillen seems almost ashamed of his pre-1930 verses which ignored the dilemma of ^Nicolcis Guillen, "Discurso de Nicolcis Guillen al recibir el Premio Stalin de la Paz," Repertorio Americano, 49 (March-April, 1955), 40. 24"La amarga ironia" from Cerebro y Corazdn, cited in Augier, Guillen: notas, op. cit. , p"I 43. 116 his countrymen, and he has frequently expressed his desire to leave them relegated to the "piadoso silencio del olvi- do."25 The Vanguardist phase broadened his scope, made him aware of the world, and paved the way for a poetry in which GuillSn would become the voice of his people. Mulatto-Social The Mulatto-social phase of Guillen's work begins his mature production. Freed from the bonds imposed by Modernism, and encouraged by the poetic liberty of Vanguard- ism, he focused on his countryman— the Cuban--and set about to interpret him in verse. The bases for this new poetry are the Afro-Cuban folk tradition, the son, and Spanish ballad style. Guillen derived inspiration from the Afro-Cuban folk songs, and many of his poems resemble them. Krehbiel has defined the folksong as a body of poetry and music which has come into existence, without the influence of conscious art, almost as a spontaneous utterance, which contains a charac teristic expression of the feelings of a people. It is marked by certain peculiarities of rhythm, form, and melody which are traceable to racial temperament, modes of life, climatic and political conditions, geographical environment, 2^Augier, Guillen: notas, op. cit., p. 36. 117 9 £ and language. Guill§n found that the folklore of the Afro-Cubans was based mainly on their religion, and that music was "la clave magica que abri6 la puerta a la espiritualidad de las religiones negras para hacer su entrada en el campo del folklore."27 The themes GuillUn employs in the poetry of this phase are similar to those of our own Negro Spirituals. Arthur Ramos' description is especially good: Del mismo modo que en los spirituals, los negros cantan aqui sus preocupaciones cotidianas, sus sentimientos, sus rebeliones, sus conceptos ... La vida de los campos y de las ciudades, las peripecias diarias, el amor y el odio, los celos y la venganza, la "llnea de color," todo desfila por los versos de sus canciones.^ It would be very dangerous today to attempt a dis tinction between themes and subjects which are intrinsically worthy of a poet's attention and those which are n o t . 29 Guillen has written seriously and movingly about "little things," ordinary people and episodes, and the simple par ticulars of everyday existence among the Afro-Cubans in each n / • Henry Edward Krehbiel, Afro-American Folksongs (4th ed.; New York, 1914), p. 2. 2 7 Rdmulo Lachatanere, "Las religiones negras y el folklore cubano," Revista HispSnica moderna, IX (1943), 140. 2 8 Arthur Ramos, Las culturas negras en el nuevo mundo, tr. by Ernestina Champourcin (Mexico, 1943), p. 98. ^Edward Yjm Rosenheim, What Happens in Literature. A Guide to Poetry, Drama and Fiction (Chicago, 1960) , p . 132. 118 of the eight Motivos de son.^ He has not necessarily lost his sense of what is sublime or profound, for he has the capacity to discover these qualities in the ordinary make-up of the world which surrounds him. The note of comedy is present in many of Guillen's works. "TG no sabe ingle" is one of many examples of the poet's humorous aspect: Con tanto inglG que tG sabia, Vito Manue, con tanto inglG, no sabe ahora decir: ye. La mericana te buca, y tu le tiene que huir: tu inglG era detrGi guan, detrai guan y guan tu tri ... Vito ManuG, tG no sabe inglG, tG no sabe ingle, tG no sabe ingle. No te namore mG nunca, Vito Manue, si no sabe inglG, isi no sabe inglGJ^l The son, the central motif of the poems of Guillen's Mulatto-social phase, is comprised of modified African rhythmic elements as well as the conventional structure of the rondo.^2 jt is neither African nor European; it is a form unique to Cuba. ■^Nicolcis Guillen, Motivos de son (La Habana, 1930). -^Nicolas Guillen, "TG no sabe ingle," in GuillGn: Antologia, op. cit., p. 32. ^For more information on the structure of the son see: Castan Pontrelli, op. cit., pp. 396-98; Regino E. 119 As far back as the sixteenth century the Cubans were singing sones. Around 19 20 the son replaced the danzdn as Cuba's most popular music and dance form, making Afro-Cuban instruments and rhythms popular throughout the w o r l d . In a son all the melody is carried by the human voice (in the form of words or lyrics), while the instru ments provide only percussion and rhythm. Essentially a spontaneous form, conducive to experimentation, it offers much flexibility and liberty. Guillen, however, distinguishes between the son as a song and dance, and as a verse form: No es que exista una combinacidn estrdfica denominada son, como hay el serventesio o la octavilla: es un problema de hallazgo ritmico, el cual se resuelve mediante la combinacidn de palabras repetidas de manera que den a la estrofa el movimiento- de aquella danza He has adopted the son as his favorite poetic vehicle, changing and adapting it until, from a form which seems com pletely popular and spontaneous, it becomes so polished that the "Son nftmero 6" of El son entero seems to have very Boti, "La poesia cubana de Nicolas Guillen," Revista bimes- tre cubana (May-June, 1932), pp. 345-48; Jose Antonio Fer- nindez de Castro, "Ha surgido el poeta del son: Nicolcis Guillen," La Semana (May 6, 1930), p. 4. 33 Alejo Carpentier, La mdsica en Cuba (Mexico, 1946), p p . 9, 190. ■^Quoted in Florence E. White, op. cit., p. 261. See also: "Nicolas Guillen y el ritmo de son," in Ildefon- so Pereda Valdds, Linea de color, ensayos afroamericanos (Santiago de Chile, 1936), pp. 143-151. 120 little in common with "Negro bemb6n," one of the original Motivos de son. The Castillian romance is the basis for the actual form of many of Guillen's sones. His works of this period are, in form, a "transaccidn entre el octosllabo castellano del romance y el ritmo de nuestro son."35 This phenomenon is not peculiar to Guillen's poetry, but rather is a reflec tion of the popularity of the romance on the island. The romance was brought to the New World by the con- quistadores, and Cuba "es uno de los palses de America que mejor ha conservado la tradicidn del romance."3 5 this day Cuban children still sing romances that have survived from the Middle Ages, and "No hay mujer cubana que no conoz- ca el romance La muerte de Alfonso XII."37 The following octosyllabic stanza from Guillen's "La Cancion del Bongd," a form of romance with assonance in o, is a typical example of his use of the form: — Compadre, ya me pedirHs perddn, ya comeras de mi ajiaco, ya me daras la razon, ya me golper^s el cuero, 33Alfonso Fuenmayor, "La poesia se hara mSs social," Cromos (April 27, 1946), p. 70. Carpentier, op. cit., p. 29. 37jj-)i( j>/ p# 30, in the early 1940's the popular song La Guantanamera, based directly on the old Spanish romance Gerineldo, was introduced by a Havana disk-jockey. Within weeks it was number one on the Havana "hit parade." (p. 31). 121 ya bailarcls a mi voz, ya pasearemos del brazo, ya estar&s donde yo estoy: ya vendr&s de abajo arriba, Ique aqul el mSs alto soy yo!^ "Balada del Gtiije" ^9 is an example in which we see the alternation of the same assonant rhyme in each stanza: e o in the first; e a . in the second; and a o in the last. Another Spanish form to which Guillen adheres very rigidly at times is the glosa. For example: GLOSA No se si me olvidarcis, ni si es amor este miedo: yo sSlo se que te vas, yo sSlo s§ que me quedo. Andres Eloy Blanco. 1 Como la espuma sutil en que el mar muere deshecho, cuando roto el verde pecho se desangra en el cantil, no servido, si servil, sirvo a tu orgullo no m^s, y aunque la muerte me das, ya me ganes o me pierdas, sin saber si me recuerdas no s§ si me olvidarcis. •^Guill^n: antologla, op. cit., p. 37. 39lbid.f pp. 81-82. 122 2 Flor gue s6lo una mahana duraste en mi huerto amado, del sol herido y quemado tu cuello de porcelena: quiso en vano mi ansia vana taparte el sol con un dedo; hoy asi a la angustia cedo y al miedo, la frente mustia... No se si es odio esta angustia, ni si es amor este miedo. 3 iQu£ largo camino anduve para llegar hasta ti, y qu£ remota te vi cuando junto a mi te tuve! Estrella, celaje, nube, ave de pluma fugaz, ahora que estoy donde estls, te deshaces, sombra helada: ya no quiero saber nada; yo solo se que te vas. 4 iAdios! En la noche inmensa y en alas del viento blando, ver£ tu barca bogando, la vela impoluta y tensa. Herida el alma y suspensa te seguiri, si es que puedo; y aunque iluso me concedo la esperanza de alcanzarte, ante esa vela que parte, yo solo se que me quedo. 4 0 Here the basic form is the decima--the d^cima espinela,41 to be more specific--of which there are four. Each decima is composed of ten octosyllabic lines with the rhyme scheme ^Guill^n: Antologia, op. cit., pp. 1 4 1 - 1 4 2 . 41so called because this particular type of decima, with its rhythm and rhyme scheme, was cultivated extensively by Vicente Espinel, peninsular poet of the Golden Age. 123 abbaaccddc. The decimas are preceded by a four-line poem which is to be glossed. Of special interest is the tech nique of ending each d£cima (stanza) with a line of the quartet which begins the glosa: the first line of the quartet ends the first stanza; the second line of the quartet ends the second stanza; the third and fourth end the third and fourth respectively. In this particular case the initial quartet is from the works of the Venezuelan poet Andres Eloy Blanco. In direct contrast to Guillen's strict adherence to set forms in some poems, he also employs forms which are so varied and subjective that they are difficult, if not impossible, to categorize. "SensemayS" is a typical example: IMayombe-bombe-mayomb£1 i Mayombe-bombe-mayombd! i Mayombe-bombe-mayomb£! La culebra tiene los ojos de vidrio; La culebra viene y se enreda en un palo; con sus ojos de vidrio, en un palo, con sus ojos de vidrio. La culebra camina sin patas; la culebra se esconde en la yerba; caminando se esconde en la yerba, caminando sin patas. ;Mayombe-bombe-mayombgI lMayombe-bombe=mayomb£I IMayombe-bombe-mayombgI 42p>or more information on Guillen's use of Spanish forms see: Perrand, "Ralz espahola en la poesia de Nicolds Guilldn," op. cit., pp. 461-487. 124 Tta le das con el hacha, y se muere: idale ya! iNo le des con el pie, que te muerde, no le des con el pie, que se va! Sensemayci, la culebra, sensemayci. Sensemayd, con sus ojos, sensemayci. Sensemaya, con su lengua, sensemayci. Sensemayci, con su boca, sensemaya. La culebra muerta no puede comere; la culebra muerta no puede silbar; no puede caminar, no puede correr. La culebra muerta no puede mirar; la culebra muerta no puede beber; no puede respirar, no puede morder. i Mayombe-bombe-mayombd! Sensemaya, la culebra... IMayombe-bombe-mayombe! Sensemayci, no se mueve. . . iMayombe-bombe-mayomb^! Sensemayci, la culebra. . . IMayombe-bombe-mayombd! i Sensemayci, se muriS!^ Following the initial phoneme (iMayombe-bombe-mayom- b§!) is a stanza that combines lines of seven, ten, and twelve syllables. After the repetition of the phoneme there is a stanza in which the predominant line is of ten sylla bles. Then comes a series of alternating eight syllable lines, each using the word sensemaya as a base, followed by a stanza comprised of two quartets, each of whose first and second lines are of eleven syllables, third lines of six, ‘ ^ Guillgn: antologia, op. cit., pp. 68-69. 125 and fourth of five. The result, then, is a varied versifi cation— very personal and very arbitrary. This aspect of Guillen's style, along with those which follow— musicality, repetition, onomatopoeia, lan guage, and dialect, and brevity— are not peculiar to his Mulatto-social phase, but are characteristic of most of his poetic production. Krehbiel found that the basic musical elements of folk-poem-songs such as sones are the rhythmical propulsion which comes from the initial syncopation common to the bulk of them (the "snap" or "catch" which, in an exaggerated form, lies at the base of "ragtime") and the frequent use of the pentatonic scale.^4 These particular elements are. immediately discernible in the musical scores^ of Guillen's poems. While still a teen-ager, Guillen already felt that musicality was one of the most important vehicles the poet has at his disposal for communicating emotion and thought. By the time he published the Motivos de son, in 1930, he had attained unequaled mastery in capturing and transmitting the vibrant rhythms of the son and the message of the bong6, the 44 Krehbiel, op. cit., p. VI. 45por more musical scores see: Nicolas Guillen, El son entero, suma po^tica 1929-1946, con una carta de D. Miguel de Unamuno, textos musicales de Eliseo y Emilio Grenet, Alejandro Garcia Caturla y Silvestre Revueltas (Buenos Aires, 1947), appendix. 126 the claves, and the marimbula. The turbulent and agitated pulse of the music of Cuba seems to palpitate in many of his poems. Alejo Carpentier,^^ Jorge Carrera Andrade,^ and Regino Boti^S are convinced that Guillen’s musicality is one of the most important aspects of his technique. Guillen himself admits: "Tengo el alma hecha ritmo y armonla; todo mi ser es mftsica y es canto. In view of their inherent musicality, it is not sur prising that some of Guillen's poems were put to music by Cuba's top composers. Alejandro Garcia Caturla put "Tti no sabe ingl£" to music in 1931, and was thrown into the "lime light" when the song "Sabds" (Guillen's poem, Caturla's musical score) climbed to number one on Havana's "Hit Parade." In the same year Amadeo RoldSn musicalized the rest of the Motivos. Later, Eliseo Grenet did "Negro Bembdn" and "SSngoro Cosongo," and his brother Emilio did another version of the already successful "Tta no sabe ^6Alejo Carpentier, Nicolas Guillen: sus mejores poemas (La Habana, n.d.), "Prdlogo." ^Jorge Carrera Andrade, "Nicolas Guillen, mensajero del trdpico," Letras del Ecuador (April 23, 1951), p. 11. ^Boti, pp. cit., p. 347. ^Augier, Guillen: notas, op. cit., p. 46. 127 ingl€." Silvestre Revueltas musicalized "Yambambd." Since the qualities of sound and rhythm contribute indispensably to the poetic effect, a very important dimen sion of Guillen's work can be fully appreciated only when the poems are read aloud. The majority of Guillen's verses, especially those of his pre-propagandistic phase, are very carefully fabricated amalgams of sound and meaning. His frequent use of repetition is linked directly to Guillen's propensity toward musicality: the repetitions are "recursos de claro linaje musical, destinados a destacar una emocidn o una idea entre los elementos circundantes, varia- dos y melodicos."^ The use of onomatopoeia is another technique em ployed extensively by Guillen. One of the most effective ways in which the poet can convey the quality of sound is by sound itself. Guillen is adept at selection and arrangement of words whose sounds aid the imagination in its recovery of sensory experience--words which discernibly approximate the sounds to which they refer. In the previously cited "Canci6n del Bongo" the assonance in o gives the stanza a peculiar rhythm— an onoma topoeic device which, read aloud, gives the impression of ^For more information about the musicalization of Guillen's poems see: Carpentier, La mfisica en Cuba, op. cit., pp. 242-249; and Augier, Guillen: notas, opT cit., pp. 132-136. ^Carrera Andrade, op. cit. , p. 11. 128 the beating of the bongo drums. A similar effect is created in "Sdngoro cosongo": S6ngoro cosongo, songo b£; sdngoro, cosongo de mamey; ..........52 and in "Canto negro": lYambamb6, yambamb£! Repica el congo solongo, repica el negro bien negro; congo solongo del Songo baila yambo sobre un p i e . 53 One critic of Cuban poetry characterizes much of Guillen's work as "poesia riquisima en onomatopeyas que atrevidamente imitan cualquier sonido musical desde el cos- quilleo rumboso de las maracas hasta la carcajada estri- dente del c o r n e t l n . " 5 4 These lines from "Secuestro de la mujer de Antonio" create a mood: repique, pique, repique, repique, repique, pique pique, repique, repique i p o !5 5 Closely associated with onomatopoeia is the aspect of Guillen's poetry known as jitanjcifora. The term, first used by Alfonso Reyes, refers to any 5^Guill€n: antologia, op. cit., p. 29. 53ibid., p. 41. ^Jos£ Juan Arrom, Estudios de literatura hispano- americana (La Habana, 1950), p. 129. 5- *Guill£n: antologia, op. cit. , p. 47. 129 poema de minimo sentido y maxima sonoridad en que las esdrtijulas se desarrollan como serpientas, y caen las agudas como bolillos sobre el cuero restirado del tambor; poesia de aliteraciones, de afortunados grupos fon^ticos que se suceden y se sustituyen, bailan y brincan, corren y vuelan al compds de instrumentos de p e r c u s i o n . 5 6 In employing j itanjUfora the poet strips words of their meanings, if they had meanings to begin with, and leaves only the sound to produce an effect. "Lo esencial es el ritmo, la cadencia musical, aunque no representan esas palabras idea alguna."5? Fernando Ortiz points out the similarity between Guillen's j itanj aforas and the magical chants and mysteri ous incantations of the voo-doo-like Afro-Cuban religious rites of witchcraft which are still practiced today. Referring once again to "Sdngoro cosongo," these two words have no precise meaning in the poem, but-are important only for the rhythmic sonority they impart.^ to the Afro-Cubans the words are just so much "mumbo-jumbo." C C “^Agustin Basave, "Poesia Afro-Antillana," La nueva democracia, XXXIV {October, 1954), 60-61. ^Arrom, op. cit. , p. 131. 58Fernando Ortiz, "Los tjltimos versos mulatos," Revista bimestre cubana, XXXV { 1 9 4 0 ), 326. ^ Songo is the name of a district in Africa and also of a village in eastern Cuba. Among the Congolese the word means copper. Songa may mean a joke, coming from the combi nation of sorna and the Congolese word songa, and it also refers to the Mandinga district in Africa. See: Fernando Ortiz, Glosario de afronegrismos (La Habana, 1924), p. 437. 130 The poem "Sensemayci"^0 is one Qf many examples of the perfect merger of rhythm and rite which characterizes many of Guillen's verses of the Mulatto-social phase. Based directly on the African religious rite for killing a snake, this work is dominated by the rhythm of phonemes based on the consonants m and b, which suggest the sounds of the tam- bores and the chants which accompany the rite. Attention is transferred to the snake by means of a staccato build-up in rhythm, which introduces an element of terror and augments the already tense feeling in the atmosphere: Sensemaya, la culebra, sensemaya. Sensemayli, con sus ojos, sensemayci. Sensemaya, con su lengua, sensemaya. Sensemayci, con su boca, sensemaya. In the following stanza there is a noted difference in rhythm and tone. The snake is dead— the high point of the ceremony has been reached— and now the tension is released and the atmosphere becomes ostensibly more calm: La culebra muerta no puede comer; la culebra muerta no puede silbar; no puede caminar, no puede correr. La culebra muerta no puede mirar; la culebra muerta no puede beber; no puede respirar, no puede morder. 60See pp. 123-124. -Hv- 131 By means of Guillen's skillful weaving of words and rhythm, the reader feels the slithering of the snake, the terror of the Negro spectators, and the incessant beating of the drums, until the mounting crescendo of sounds and emo tions is released by the final "se muri6." A major portion of the appeal of many of Guillen’s poems lies in the language itself. This particular aspect of his work has been studied in detail by Francis de Gaetani^1 of Columbia University. To appreciate Guillen's poetry more fully the reader must bear in mind that the Spanish spoken in Camagtiey is different from that of the rest of the island. The rhythm is distinct: words are enunciated slowly--almost as if they are being chanted— and the tone seems to rise and fall from phrase to phrase. Dialect, used in the Mulatto-social phase and to a lesser degree in the Social phase, does not present phonetic difficulties to the reader familiar with the popular forms of Spanish spoken by the lower classes of the hispanic world. Of the morphological changes encountered, relatively few are peculiar to the Afro-Cubans. Some of the more predominant changes in Guillen's poetry are: 1JL becomes ^ (ella-eya) ; v becomes b (voz— boz) ; omission of the final £ and (Ines— Ine, nariz — nari); omission of the intervocalic d (Machado— Machao, colorada— colorS) ; loss of the final 1_, r, and d (total— 61de Gaetani, op. cit. 132 tatci, Victor Manuel— Bito Manud, usted— ustg); assimilation and duplication of certain consonants (culpa— cuppa, cuerpo --cueppo, corbata— cobbata, porque— poqque); apocopation (esta— tci, para nada— pa na) . A more serious problem arises when the uninitiated reader encounters the countless "Africanisms" Guillen uses. Some of these words can be found in Ortiz1 Glosario de afro- negrismos, while others are fabrications of the poet's mind. In addition, it is also quite helpful to have some knowledge of Afro-Cuban slang. For example: santo— charming, pega— work, pasa--tight, kinky hair of the Negro, bembSn— thick- lipped, bachata--drunken orgy, flu— a man's suit. The Motivos de son, considered by many to be the expression of the Afro-Cuban himself, are written in dia lect. But in the majority of the remainder of Guillen's poems he is able to capture and transmit the harmonies and rhythms of the son in "normal" language. Perhaps the best example of this ability is "Velorio de PapS Montero,"62 which is strikingly similar to Garcia Lorca's "Llanto por Ignacio Sanchez Mejias."63 Guillen ^ Guill^n: antologla, op. cit., pp. 44-45. ^ F e d e r i c o Garcia Lorca, Obras Completas, Recopila- cion y notas de Arturo del Hoyo (Madrid, 1962) , pp. 465-473. Guillen's poem "Cana" (Guillen: antologia, op. cit. p. 46) is like "Alto pinar" (Lorca, op. cit., p. 29 31 in formal structure. Lorca, on the other hand, was so fascinated by Guillen's verbal experiments and linguistic technique that he wrote "Son de negros en Cuba" (Ibid., pp. 458-459). For more on Guillen and Lorca see: Angel del Rio, "Federico 133 seems to be more Andalucian than Cuban when he uses the moon which has fallen to earth as a pillow for Papd Montero's head. There is sudden and tragic death and the sharpness of steel, and both Montero and Mejias are primitive types for whom passion and drama go hand in hand with daily living. Another important aspect of Guilldn’s poetry is its conciseness. He has the gift of being able to employ lan guage in such a way as to make details unusually expressive, and the relatively few words he uses are chosen and arranged so as to become singularly eloquent. In a discussion on literary effects, Dr. Carlos Loprete^ stated that a very important characteristic of a truly great writer is his ability to "decir mas con menos palabras." One glance at "Cana" must certainly convince even the most skeptical critic that Nicolas Guilldn possesses that particular abil ity to the "nth" degree: El negro junto al Canaveral. El yanqui sobre el Canaveral. La tierra bajo el Canaveral. Garcia Lorca," Revista Hispanica Moderna (July-October, 1940), pp. 206-207. ^Visiting Professor of Latin-American Literature at the University of Southern California, 1963-64. ISangre que se nos vaj65 The impact of this type poem is tremendous: Guillen's art allows the reader to feel and respond to so much more than actually appears on the printed page. Social In the Motivos de son of 1930 Guillen is very charm ing, and he has not incorporated social protest into his works to any notable extent. The Motivos were actually like popular songs, based mainly on rhythm and a picaresque tone. At first glance the Motivos seem humorous; but the humor is very superficial. Underneath one finds the plight of the hard-working Negress and the uneducated and unem ployed man who lives off what she earns, finding it more pleasant not to work. We see miserable souls who seek relief in getting drunk to escape reality and who find, escape in dance. These poems are, in a way, sad. Several of the poems of Songoro cosongo (1931) are very similar to the motivos in that they continue the son based on Afro-Cuban rhythm and folklore, and Spanish forms. But while other Afro-Antillian -poets remained in the pinto- resque stage, Guillen deepened and expanded the bitter denunciation of social injustices which were only subtle ^ Guill^n: antologia, op. cit., p. 46. Many liter ary critics maintain that artistic brevity is an indication of greatness. See: Rosenheim, op. cit., p. 10. 135 inferences in the first Motivos. Therefore, some of the poems of the second volume retain none of the Afro-Cuban characteristics of those of the first. "Cana" is a good example. After the publication of Sdngoro cosongo, Guillen's work shows an increasingly marked tendency to avoid the use of "la deformacidn pintoresca del lenguaje y de la sola per- secucidn de efectos rltmicos con el uso reiterado de la jitanj&fora, although he does not abandon it completely. The poet now begins to present the problems of Cubans as such: the misery and suffering resultant from exploitation in what he considers an unjust socioeconomic order. By the time Guillen published West Indies Ltd., in 19 34, the themes he treats imply an increasingly bitter attitude. The Afro-Cuban folkloric theme is still very vividly present in "Sensemayci" and "Balada del Gtlije," for example. But the collection must be classified as social; the overwhelming majority of the poems it contains are primarily social protest. "Adivinanzas" is typical: En los dientes, la manana, y la noche en el pellejo. cQuiSn sera, qui£n no sera? — El negro. Con ser hembra y no ser bella, haras lo que ella te mande. cQui£n serS, qui§n no serci? — El hambre. 66p0rtuondo, op. cit., p. 60. 136 Esclava de los esclavos, y con los duenos, tirana. £Qui£n serct, quiSn no ser&? — La caha. EsccLndalo de una mano que nunca ignora la otra. iQui^n serci, qui£n no serl? — La limosna. Un hombre que estci llorando con la risa que aprendi6. £Qui§n serl, qui£n no ser£? — Yo.67 The social protest in West Indies Ltd. is actually a bitter indictment that has not developed into militant dog matism. In some of the poems Guillen takes delight in mak ing Cuban politicians the object of ironic and joking char acterizations . In Cantos para soldados y sones para turistas (1937) Guillen has completed the transition from his Mulatto-social stage to the Social. The collection contains no examples of the Afro-Cuban themes typified by the rhythmic son, and it bears little resemblance to previous collections. This poetry is intensely social; yet it is not social at the expense of sacrificing esthetic values. GuillSn himself explains the reasons for the increasingly social tone of his work: Estan muy lejos ya los ahos en que el poeta podia ter- nerse a si mismo como un ser aparte, por encima del mundo, encerrado en su torre ideal y orgullosa de sus harapos ... Porque si quedan todavia poetas asi, son cinicos fuera de nuestra £poca, ruinas morales intere- ^7Guill§n: antologia, op. cit., pp. 66-67. 137 santes apenas para arque6logos especialistas en la excavaci6n h u m a n a .6 8 This attitude is reflected in the themes of the works of the Social phase. Death, for example, is a theme very prevalent in this stage. During the time of Machado, little value was placed upon human life in Cuba, and there was death with no good reason: Cuando muere un soldado, es s6lo uno entre muchos.69 but, on the other hand, to die fighting for liberty is better than living under oppression and injustice: Nada importa morir al cabo, pues morir no es tan gran suceso; malo es ser libre y estar preso, malo, estar libre y ser e s c l a v o . 7 0 Guill§n always felt deeply the misery of the poor, and he has expressed this feeling often. In "Balada de Sim6n Caraballo"71 Sim6n tells of losing his wife and his house, and in "Visita a un s o l a r " 7 2 Guillen describes the pitiful Juana, who is dying of tuberculosis. She contracted ^^Guill^n, "Discurso al recibir el Premio Stalin," op. cit., p. 4 0 . 69"Soldado MuertO"' in Cantos para soldados y sones para turistas (Buenos Aires, 1952) , pT 28". ^"La voz esperanzada" in Guillen: antologla, op. cit., p. 93. 71NiCO]_gs Guillen, West Indies Ltd. Poemas (La Habana, 1934), pp. 58-59. 72Guill§n, Cantos para soldados y sones para turis- tas' op. cit., p. 54. 138 the disease because she could not afford medicine to take care of a cold and because she didn't have enough to eat. Even the images employed in this phase are atuned to social realities which are frustrating the poet. In West Indies Ltd., for example, the maracas become the symbol of frustrated desires for economic independence, and the kettle drums represent racial equality. In Cantos para soldados y sones para turistas, although Guillen's function is primarily social, much of the poetry retains many of the outstanding stylistic qualities of previous works, especially in reference to Guillen's ability to manipulate the traditional forms of the romance, the silva, and the redondilla, adapting them to his inten tions. This collection closes the Social stage, and from this point on Nicolas Guillen becomes a combatant. Propagandistic Even though there are some lyric pieces in El son entero,^ this collection initiates the propagandistic phase — that phase in which Guillen's social message takes prece dence over the esthetic values of his poems. In "Mi patria es dulce por fuera"74 the author laments the fact that, while Cuba seems tranquil and happy to others, the island is bitterly dying from its socioeco- ^Guilldn, El son entero, op. cit. ^^Guill^n: -antologla, op. cit., pp. 124-126. 139 nomic ills. "Sudor y I c i t i g o " 7 ^ is depressing in its trite attack upon the capitalist land owners, while "Son venezo- lano"7^ is an unimpressive comparison of the United States and British exploitation of Venezuela’s oil to that of Cuba's sugar, complete with a summons for the oppressed to rise up and take action. "Una cancidn a Stalin"77 is pre cisely what the title suggests. In La paloma de vuelo popular78 Guillen intensifies the propagandistic phase. In the poems of this collection he dedicates himself to defending the Castro revolution from its enemies, and more often than not "el ernpeho de tesis y n q propaganda opaca ... sus virtudes poeticas naturales." The poems are barely recognizable as having been written by Guillen: most of the stylistic qualities that characterized the previous verses are either absent or obscured by the incessant dwelling upon political themes. The collection concentrates mainly upon the United States and the Communist countries, both of which were vying for Cuba's allegiance at the time these poems were written. They can be construed as pro-Communist propaganda. 75Ibid., p . 127. 76Ibid., p p . 137-138. 77Included in the original El son entero (op. cit., pp. 78-79), but omitted from the Antologla. 78Nicolcis Guillen, La paloma de vuelo popular. Ele- gias (Buenos Aires, 1959). 79Cintio Vitier, Cincuenta afios de poesia cubana (1902-1952) (La Habana, 1952), p^ 229. 140 In poems referring to the United States, Guillen emphasizes only the negative aspects of that country and of its policies. No attempt is made to mention the good side. It is interesting to note that several of the poems are dedicated to informing Cuba's mulatto-based population of the horrible plight of the Negro in the United States' capitalistic democracy. Furthermore, the themes the author chooses to poetize— Little Rock, Arkansas, the Ku Klux Klan, Governor Orville Faubus, a Negro youth murdered for flirting with a white girl, for example— are unfortunate facts of United States history, but they can hardly be considered as exclu sively representative of that country. Insofar as its foreign policy is concerned, the United States is interpreted by Guillen's metaphors as the country with the "lcitigo en mano,"^ which forced poor Puerto Ricans to fight in Korea,^ chained Guatemalans to the banana fields,32 an(j prevented the communist regime of Jacobo Arbenz from maintaining power in Guatemala. On the other hand, in the poems referring to Russia and her satellites, GuillSn mentions only positive aspects, 3 0 "El Banderon," p. 23. 81"canci6n puertorriquena," pp. 31-32. "a Guatemala," p. 57. ^"Balada Guatemalteca," pp. 59-60. 141 and fails to mention even one negative point. In a style that must be capable of being easily understood by the masses toward whom these verses are aimed, he praises the Chinese revolution,8^ ana states that all is happiness in the land of rice and bamboo because there "no hay ni un yan- qui."85 In poems devoid of that charm which characterized so many of his earlier works, Guillen depicts the happiness and tranquility of Bulgaria since the Communist take-over. It is interesting to note that while there is absolutely no mention of any United States technological advances, a seven-page poem— a length extremely out of character for Guillen's once concise style— called "Sputnik 57" (pp. 95- 101) applauds Russia's contribution. La paloma de vuelo popular was written immediately after Castro took power, and Guillen attempts, in these poems, to persuade Cubans to reject the United States and to embrace the Communist countries. He admits that the artis tic aspects of his work have suffered in the years of his political poetry.86 The following stanza from the collec tion attests to that admission: 8^"La canci6n de Wang-Tse-Yu," pp. 42-43. 86"La cancidn del regreso," pp. 43-44. 8^Claude Couffon, Nicolas Guillen (Paris, 1964), p. 85. 142 Y bien, ahora, senoras y senores, senoritas, ahora nihos, ahora viejos peludos y pelados, ahora indios, mulatos, negros, [zambos, ahora pensad lo que serla el mundo todo sur, el mundo todo sangre y todo lStigo, el mundo todo escuela de blancos [para blancos, el mundo todo Rock y todo Little, el mundo todo yanqui, todo Faubus. Pensad por un momento, imaginadlo un solo instante.87 f t f t However, it is in Tengo, ° his most recent collec tion, that Guillen's propagandistic poetry reaches its epi tome. The purpose of the book is to praise the victorious Castro revolution. In tone, it is reminiscent of dull lec tures, repeating over and over again the good fortune of the Cuban people in having a communist-backed regime. Guillen deviates from this theme only to attack the United States, in a manner even more haranguing than before. Conspicuous by their absence are any traces of the charming Guillen style of the 1930's and 40's. In Tengo we are exposed to pure propaganda. In his prologue to the collection, Jos£ Portuondo, an old friend of Guillen, states that the tone of Tengo is one of "acentuada exaltacidn por la victoria sobre el impe- 87,,Little Rock," p. 34. 88Nicoleis Guillen, Tengo (La Habana, 1964) . 143 rialismo y sus lacayos."8^ jje goes on to say that the poems are concerned with "la lucha contra el yanqui, ...los palses socialistas. ... con la revoluciSn cubana, la pugna redentora de todos los explotados por las potencias colo- niales y neo-coloniales ... "9° Guillen has noted that the language of his poetry is now much more direct and mass-orientated, that he uses free verse much less now, and that he spends time writing "offi cial" hymns— in praise of Castro's agrarian reform, for example. 9-*- Portuondo has captured the essence of the new Guillin style: Este arte y esta cultura no pueden ser ni la repeticiSn servil de formas tradicionales, porque la mayorla las entienda, ni la pura experimentaci6n formal, incompren- sible a los mSs. La nueva expresi6n tiene que negar, por esteril, el vacxo formalismo burguSs y ser eminente- mente comunicativa porque se dirige a las masas y aspira a expresar la conciencia de las masas.92 "Tengo" is the title of the second poem of the col lection as well as the name of the book. In its themes this poem is typical of the entire collection; however, it is not entirely representative insomuch as it seems to have a more lyric quality than the majority of the other works. 89ibid. , p. 8. 9 0 / p. ]_ q. 91couffon, op. cit., pp. 85-86. 9^Guill^n, Tengo, op. cit., p. 15. TENGO Cuando me veo y toco, yo, Juan sin Nada no mas ayer, y hoy Juan con Todo, y hoy con todo, vuelvo los ojos, miro, y me pregunto como ha podido ser. Tengo, vamos a ver, tengo el gusto de andar por mi pais, dueho de cuanto hay en 61, mirando bien de cerca lo que antes no tuve ni podia tener. Tengo, vamos a ver, tengo el gusto de ir yo, campesino, obrero, gente simple, tengo el gusto de ir (es un ejemplo) a un banco y hablar con el administrador, no en ingl6s, no en senor, sino decirle compahero como se dice en espanol. Tengo, vamos a ver, que siendo un negro nadie me puede detener a la puerta de un dancing o de un bar. no country, no high-life, no tennis y no yacht, Tengo que ya tengo donde trabajar y ganar lo que me tengo que comer. Tengo, vamos a ver, tengo lo que tenia que tener. ^^Guill6n, Tengo, op. cit., pp. 21-23. 145 "Unidn Sovietica" {pp. 39-42) and "Marines U.S.A." (pp. 43- 44) are far less lyric and restrained in their respective exaltation and condemnation. The following stanza from "Canta el sinsonte en el turquino" (pp. 50-53) is typical of another group of poems in Tengo: Mr. Wood, Mr. Taft, adi6s. Mr. Magoon, adi6s. Mr. Lynch, adids. Mr. Crowder, adids. Mr. Nixon, adids. Mr. Night, Mr. Shadow, adids1 Poddis marcharos, animal muchedumbre, que nunca os vuelva a ver. Es temprano; por eso coraienza a amanecer. Va entre piedras el rio ... — Buenos dias, Fidel. Guilldn feels strongly that he must, for the time being, compromise his art and concentrate on solidifying the revolution. Only when he is convinced that the Castro revolution is secure from all danger will he again allow himself the luxury of creating artistic poetry. CHAPTER VI THE SEARCH FOR CUBANIDAD: THE POSITIVE ASPECT Part I The Mulatto Character of Cubanidad In his attempt to evoke a sense of cubanidad, NicolSs Guillen, through his poetry, strives to make Cubans aware of the strong common heritage they share as a nation. This positive aspect of Guillen's search characterizes almost all of the poetry of his Mulatto-social stage and much of his Social stage. This chapter examines the poet's use of Negro themes, words, rites, and customs— in short, Guillen's mani festations of pride in the rich African heritage of the Cuban people. He often elicits these manifestations from the daily life of the people, hoping to inspire in these same people a pride and a sense of identification. Guillen demands a certain sophistication in the reader. He presents a paradoxical difficulty; his poems seem comprehensible to the average reader without any par ticular trouble. One may read Guillen with great fruition 146 147 and yet be quite unaware of what the poet is actually com municating. The reader must possess a clear idea of race and culture before he can begin to appreciate Guillen’s art. The Ciboney element Guillen realized that Cuban culture is mulatto, not mestizo. He felt the necessity to reaffirm, in his poetry, the fact that the island's cultural heritage is the result of the mingling of African, rather than Indian, blood with European (mainly Spanish) blood. Emphasizing the Negro ele ments, the poet refutes the tenets of Ciboneyism, which he recognizes as an impediment to achieving cubanidad. Siboneyismo, the preoccupation with and reaffirma tion of the culture of the Indians who inhabited Cuba at the time of the Spanish discovery, has had supporters and defenders from early colonial times to the present. The movement experienced a rebirth when it was incorporated into a poetic tendency which grew out of Roman ticism. A strong desire to create a "national poetry" led to presenting the Indian and the criollo as "seres nacidos en el mismo medio y sometidos al destino comtan de la opre— si6n espahola."-*- The Ciboney Movement was popular; "... sin embargo, lotto Olivera, Cuba en su poesia (Mexico, 1965), p. 138. 147 and yet be quite unaware of what the poet is actually com municating. The reader must possess a clear idea of race and culture before he can begin to appreciate Guillen's art. The Ciboney element Guillen realized that Cuban culture is mulatto, not mestizo. He felt the necessity to reaffirm, in his poetry, the fact that the island's cultural heritage is the result of the mingling of African, rather than Indian, blood with European (mainly Spanish) blood. Emphasizing the Negro ele ments, the poet refutes the tenets of Ciboneyism, which he recognizes as an impediment to achieving cubanidad. Siboneyisrao, the preoccupation with and reaffirma tion of the culture of the Indians who inhabited Cuba at the time of the Spanish discovery, has had supporters and defenders from early colonial times to the present. The movement experienced a rebirth when it was incorporated into a poetic tendency which grew out of Roman ticism. A strong desire to create a "national poetry" led to presenting the Indian and the criollo as "seres nacidos en el mismo medio y sometidos al destino comfin de la opre- sion espa.nola. The Ciboney Movement was popular; "... sin embargo, ^Otto Olivera, Cuba en su poesia (Mexico, 19 65) , p. 138. 148 carecla del fondo histdrico necesario.One of the many Cuban Intellectuals who refute this movement, Josd Varela, maintains that "Cuba nacid sin huella alguna de estilizacidn indigena. El siboneyismo fue una deliciosa supercheria rom£ntica."2 Furthermore, research undertaken by several renowned Cuban scholars has resulted in the destruction of many of the arguments employed by the proponents of Ciboneyism. Scientifically acquired evidence indicates that the influ ence of the Ciboney^ culture upon cubanidad is negligible if not nonexistent. Alejo Carpentier found that "Los siboneyes, muy escasos, estaban ya al borde de la desaparicidn en los dias del descubrimiento."® Then the conquista quickly wiped out the remaining aborigines. By the time Santiago was founded, in 1514, Diego de VelSsquez was in charge of distributing Indians among the Spaniards in Cuba.® It is not necessary to enumerate here 2Ibid. Josd Luis Varela, Ensayos de Poesia indigena en Cuba (Madrid, 1951), p. 105. ^The term refers to all of the several different pre-Columbian Indian cultures on Cuba, especially the ara- huacos, or Arawaks. 5Alejo Carpentier, La mfisica en Cuba (Mexico, 1946), p. 25. ®Velclsquez was "repartidor de indios." Ibid., p. 19. 149 the abuses suffered, by the Indians under the en'comienda and repartimiento systems. Of those who were not literally worked to death, many died of diseases, and the miserable and precarious life under the conquistadores caused many Indian suicides. By 1550 there were probably less than a few thousand Indians left on the i s l a n d . ^ Although rapid and complete extermination of the natives is an impressive argument in favor of the opponents of Ciboneyism, it is not the principal one. Modern research indicates that Cuba's native Indian cultures were not very developed, and that they failed to influence cubanidad to any appreciable extent. Carpentier found that "Su cultura O no habia pasado del periodo paleolitico. Furthermore, most of the indianists1 arguments, such as citing the music and lyrics of the anonymous areltos as direct indigenous contributions to modern Cuban culture, are being disproved, one by one, in the light of scholarly investigation.® ^Salvador Bueno, Historia de la literatura cubana (La Habana, 1954), p. 18. For more on the extinction of the Indians see: Ramdn Guirao, Orbita de la poesia afrocubana, 1928-37 (La Habana, 1938), p. XXVII; Fernando Ortiz, Cuban Counterpoint: Tobacco and Sugar (New York, 19 47), pp^ 97- 103, 111-183; Olivera, op. cit., pp. 4-9; Carpentier, op. cit., pp. 17-28. ^Carpentier, op. cit., p. 25. ^The indianists maintained, for example, that the contemporary popular song whose verse is "Aya bamba ya bam- bai, la mussana Anacoana" was based directly on an areito indio that Antionio Bachiller y Morales cites in his book 150 From Motolinia we know that In Mexico the Spanish » . > » . . padres were teaching Christian music to the Indians soon after the first conquistadores arrived. The natives absorbed this music and combined it with their own, retain ing elements of both. But this was not the case in Cuba; here the rapid extermination of the Indians prevented any such process. Bearing this in mind, it is not surprising that Carpentier was able to find absolutely no evidence of an Indian musical or folkloric heritage on the island.-1 -0 A few place names, a handful of isolated words in the vernacular, and some argueological curiosities consti tute the legacy of the Ciboneys to Cuba. The small mestizo element completely disappeared early in the colonial period, leaving no indigenous spiritual or cultural remains.H The mulatto element— Negro and Spanish--filled the vacuum. The African element The culture which persisted and mixed with that of the Spanish was African. As Nicolas Guillen studied his Cuba Primitiva (Bueno, op. cit., p. 25.) This myth per sisted until the scholarly sociologist-historian Fernando Ortiz discovered that the supposed areito was actually a mulatto version of a couplet used originally as a war chant by the African slaves of Haiti. Fernando Ortiz, "De la mtisica afrocubana," Universidad de La Habana (mayo-junio, 1934), p. 10. 10Carpentier, op. cit., pp. 3-25. 11NicolSs Guillen, "Cuba: pueblo y poesia," Ultra, II (February, 19 37), 175. See also: Juan J. Remos, Histo- ria de la Nacion Cubana (Madrid, 1952), pp. 12-27. 151 country's history he became increasingly aware of the impor tance of Negro contributions to the island's civilization. Because a clear picture of both the extent to which the Negro replaced the Indian and the extent to which he has influenced (numerically) Cuba's demographic reality is essentially prerequisite to any attempt to analyze Guillen's positive approach to the formation of cubanidad, it is necessary at this point to expand some of the data presented in Chapter II of this dissertation. We do not know exactly when the first black man came to Cuba; however, it is the general consensus of Cuban his torians that the first Negro slaves were brought to the island somewhere between 1512 and 1514. One respected researcher maintains that there were some Negro slaves brought in with the expedition of Diego Velasquez, which left Spain in 1511 for the conquest of Cuba.I2 At any rate, it is known that there were already many' Africans in Cuba when Carlos I of Spain officially authorized the introduction of Negro slaves into the Antil les in 1517.12 Records starting from this date furnish an abundance of data. Only when all this information is con sidered can a reasonably accurate account of the development l2Josd Antonio Saco, Historia de la esclavitud de la raza africana en el nuevo mundo y en especial de los palses hispanoamericanos (La Habana, 1938) , p"I 114. 13Arthur Ramos, Las culturas negras en el Nuevo Mundo (Mexico, 1943) , p. 111. 152 of the island's Negro population be gleaned. Such a detailed consideration is outside the scope of this study. A random chronological sampling will suf fice to suggest a reasonably comprehensive idea as to what occurred. In 1526 two Italian merchants bought a. shipment of 145 slaves.^ Soon after a 1531 decree from Spain authorized extended loans to Cuban planters for purchas ing Negro slaves, -*-6 increased numbers of individual colonists began receiving slaves. In 1532 don Gonzalo de Guzman petitioned the Spanish Crown for permission to import fifty slaves free of duty. He was granted that permission.^ Two years later, Hernando de Castillo, a private citizen, made a similar petition, with similar results.^® By 1534 there were over one thousand Negro slaves on the island.-*-9 ■^Each of the following isolated statistics is merely one example of many like it. -^Carpentier, op. cit. , p. 32. ■^Heinreich e . Priedlander, Historia econ6mica de Cuba (La Habana, 1944), p. 28. 1 7 Irene A. Wright, "The History of Sugar," Louisiana Planter and Sugar Manufacturer, LIV (1915), 366. Miss Wright did extensive research in the archives at Seville, and recorded briefs of many valuable documents pertaining to the slave trade. 18Ibid. -^ortiz, Counterpoint, op. cit., p. 280; Carpentier, op. cit., p. 32. 153 In 157 6 three new sugar plantations, each of which required about one hundred slaves, were built near Havana.^ In 1587 the Alarcdn brothers received permis sion to import one hundred slaves, duty free, and in 1595 there were several instances of the Crown's allow ing large numbers of slaves to enter Cuba duty free.^ Around 1607, Antonio de Matos had a prosperous slave importing business, and in 1616 Antonio Rodriguez de 7 7 Elvas, a slave trader, imported hundreds of slaves on the western end of Cuba. (The eastern end of the island 7 7 received its share of new slaves also.) In the early 1700's British slavers introduced over four thousand new slaves,24 and the Real Compania de la Habana, which received its franchise in 1739, brought in more than five thousand. 2 In 17 60 , Miguel Ugarte 2^Saco, op. cit., p. 128. 7 1 William R. Lux, "The Development of the Sugar Industry in Colonial Cuba, 1511-1895" (unpublished Master's Thesis, The University of Southern California, 1963), pp. 21-22, 22 For an interesting insight into the slave trade and the slave traders see: Lino Novcis Calvo, El negrero (Mexico, 1933). 23 Lux, op. cit., pp. 41, 44. 24Jacobo de la Pezuela y Lobo, Diccionario geogr£- fico, estadlstico, histdrico de la isla de Cuba (Madrid, 1831), p. 56. 2^Pezuela, op. cit., p. 33. 154 received a thousand slaves.In the five-year period beginning in 1773, at least 14,132 new Negro slaves were imported into Cuba.27 In addition to these domestic developments, world affairs of the last quarter of the 18th century figured prominently in shaping the island's racial composition. While on one hand the United States, after independence in 1776, became an important and large sugar market, on the other hand the slave revolts in Haiti resulted in the de struction of that island's rich sugar and coffee economy. These events caused Cuba's sugar industry to boom and to develop to such an extent that the island's popula tion was quickly increased by thousands upon thousands of slaves newly imported from Africa to meet the rising labor 9 R demand. ° Between 1774 and 1792 Cuba's population almost 9 Q doubled, and it had more than tripled by 1817. Negro slaves were largely responsible for this growth. It is significant that the whites clearly outnum bered the Negroes in 1774, that they were almost equal (numerically) in 1792, and that the Negroes greatly out- 2^Friedlander, op. cit., p. 60. 27pezuela, op. cit., p. 56. 2®Ramiro Guerra y Sanchez, Azficar y poblaci6n en las Antillas (2nd ed.; La Habana, 1935) , pp. 69-70. 2^Cuba's population: 171,620 (in 1774); 271,044 (in 1792); 553,670 (in 1817). Friedlander, op. cit., pp. 84, 177. 155 numbered the whites by 1817. Also significant is the large number of freed Negroes in the society at any given time. Work on the sugar plantations was the hardest imaginable, and when a slave's working capacity was completely exhausted, generally after about ten years, he was o.ften given his liberty.3- * - Others bought their freedom. The tremendous numbers of slaves brought to Cuba account for the presence of influences from so many differ ent African tribes, sects, and cults. Ortiz traced the ori gins of the Negroes in Cuba back to. about one hundred Afri can tribes or nations.32 Of all of these, the predominant culture represented in Cuba was the Yoruba, followed by the *3 O Congo, Mandinga, Carabali, Sudanese, and Bantu. In striking contrast to the retarded stage of devel opment of Cuba's indigenous Ciboneys, the Yoruba culture was 3®In 1774 there were 96,440 whites and 75,180 Negroes (30,847 freed and 44,333 slaves). In 1792 there were 133,559 whites and 137,685 Negroes (54,152 freed and 83 , 333 slaves). In 1817 tjiere were 239 ,840 whites and 313,915 Negroes (114,085 freed and 199,830 slaves). Fried- lander, loc. cit. 21For more details see: Willis Fletcher Johnson, The History of Cuba, vol. II (New York, 1920), p. 226. 32Ramos, op. cit., p. 112. 33For more information on the African cultures in Cuba see: Rdmulo Lachatanere, "Las religiones negras y el folklore cubano," Revista Hispctnica moderna, IX (1943), 139; Juan JSrez Villarreal, "El secuestro de NicolcLs Guillen," America (September, 1941), p. 11; Ramos, loc. cit. 156 one of the most advanced in Africa, and by far the most advanced of all the African groups in Cuba.34 The culture of these Yorubas and, to a lesser extent, that of the other African tribes, took root in the plantations. Later, when the Afro-Cubans came to the cities,'they brought their cus toms and traditions with them. For this reason hallamos en el afrocubano de nuestros dias toda una herencia de misticismo religioso y profunda emotividad, que conserva como una de las cosas que heredd de sus abuelos y las pone en juego en el marco de las activi- dades donde desplaza su vida ... 35 To understand how these African elements were able to survive, intact, to the present day, it is necessary to examine another facet of the slave trade. At first slaves were brought to a large general market on one of the Antilles and were sold to planters who came to the market from their own islands. This practice was continued by the English, but the Spanish colonies later began importing their slaves directly from Africa. Thus groups of the same or neighboring tribes were kept together in the Spanish colonies to a much greater extent than in the English possessions. 34Frobenius reported that the Yorubas, from the area of the Niger River, had a fantastic culture, complete with bards or cantors with functions similar to those of the Spanish jugladores. Josd Sanz y Diaz, Lira negra (selec- ciones espanolas y afroamericanas {Madrid, 1945), p^ 13. See also: Fernando Ortiz, "Factores humanos de la cubani dad ," Revista Bimestre Cubana (March, 19 40), p. 8; Ramos, loc. cit.; Lachatanere, loc. cit. 33;Lachatahere, op. cit. , p. 138. 157 By banding together, these groups kept elements of their original tribal cultures free from acculturation with the whites for a much longer time.^ This accounts for the more readily recognizable elements of African culture in their contemporary society. For example, there is a marked Congo influence in the eastern portion of Cuba, and the Yoruba influence is very prevalent in and around Havana.-^7 Part II Mulatto Manifestations in Nicolds Guillen's Poetry: The Positive Approach Motivos de son The first collection of Guillen's Mulatto stage and the one which launched him into the "limelight," Motivos de son^S presents ample material for a study of the poet's reaffirmation of lo negro as a means of inspiring cubanidad in his people. Each motivo is a tableau--a vibrant picture of everyday life of the Afro-Cubans of Havana, and each one •^See Florence E. White, "Poesla Negra in the Works of Jorge de Lima, Nicolas Guillen and Jacques Roumain, 1927- 1947" (unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, The University of Wisconsin, 1952), pp. 27-30. •^Nicolcis Guillen, Prosa de prisa: Cronicas (La Habana, 1962), p. 172. •^^Nicolds Guillen, Motivos de son (La Habana, 1930) . 158 demonstrates that lo negro is a very integral part of lo cubano. The fact that the Motivos are written in dialogue only augments their authenticity. Early in the colonial period slaves were forced to speak Spanish. But because in their traditional languages the Africans make use of differ ent parts of the vocal apparatus, they found it impossible or extremely difficult to imitate some Spanish sounds. The result, therefore, was that a softening, slurring, and apocopation took place. This phenomenon was not confined to slaves and mulattoes. Many of these peculiarities of speech were assimilated by the white owners1 children whose formative early years were often spent in the care of their parents' slaves. Although later schooling sometimes corrected this to a certain extent, it seldom eradicated it completely.^ African influence permeated not only the manner of speaking, but also the words themselves. Ortiz found that "Hoy podemos afirmar que el l^xico cubano cuenta con varios centenares de voces ya demostradamente africanos ... 39.The slurring of certain letters and the intona tion and speed of Cuban Spanish today are largely attributed to African influence. See: White, op. cit., pp. 65-67. ^Ortiz, "De la mtisica afrocubana," op. cit. , p. 10. Foods and dishes made from them, for example, show marked African influence. Slaves did the cooking, and their mas ters found it expedient to employ the names the slaves used to designate many foods and dishes. 159 The base of many jitanjciforas used today by Cubans, espe cially children, is African. "Negro bemb6n,"41 the first poem of the motivos, presents a very typical scene: a man making his living by "sponging off" of his girl, whom he attracts sexually. In the initial stanza Guillen admonishes the man not to become offended when people call him "thick-lipped cullud boy" (negro bembdn) because those large lips are good for loving: iPor qu£ te pone tan bravo cuando te disen negro bembdn, si tiene la boca santa,42 negro bembdn? The subject of the poem is a chulo--a flashy, street corner type— who gets everything he wants from his girlfriend, Charity: Bemb6n asi como ere tiene de to; CaridS te mantiene, te lo da to. Among the Africans large lips are equated with sexual prowess in males, and beauty in females. Guillen asks the chulo why he becomes so upset at being called "big lipped," when he knows well that with those big lips he has 4^-Nicolcis Guillen, Antologfa mayor (La Habana, 1964), p. 27. All subsequent page numbers, in parentheses, will refer to the Antologia unless otherwise indicated. "La boca santa" carries the connotation of "el su- ficiente atractivo sexual para mantener a la negra bajo su embrujo." 160 it made: no work (pega) yet plenty of money (harina), a snappy white linen suit, and two-toned shoes. Caridad is paying his keep: Te queja todabia, negro bembdn; sin pega, y con harina, negro bembdn; majagua de dril bianco, negro bembdn; sapato de do tono, negro bembdn. BembSn as! como ere tiene de to; iCarid& te mantiene, te lo da tol Many prominent Cubans, such as Salvador Bueno,^ have long maintained that modern Cuba is not plagued with serious problems of racial prejudice. In spite of the prog ress noted by Bueno, Fernando Ortiz observes that " ... la nacidn no estd hecha, ni su masa estd integrada,"^ and Jose Varela concurs: " ... antes el negro era esclavo del inge- nio azucarero; hoy, el exotico 'groom' del gran hotel. Nicolias Guillen experienced racial prejudice very A well-known intellectual, author, lecturer, and former holder of the Chair of Cuban and Latin American Lit erature at the Universidad de La Habana, Bueno maintains that "Durante la repGblica la amplia educacidn de sentido democrdtico, ejercida sin prejuicios ... ha ido ilegan- do a todos los estratos sociales y Stnicos, gan^ndolos en buena medida para una efectiva labor de progreso." Salvador Bueno, Medio siglo de literatura cubana (1902- 1952) (La Habana"^ 1953) , p. 19. 44 Ortiz, "Factores humanos," op. cit., p. 186. ^Varela, op. cit. , p. 101. 161 early in life, and he considered it a major problem in.Cuba. In mid-twentieth century he wrote: Todavia--y este es uno de mis grandes dolores como negro y como cubano— hay muchas localidades de la Isla donde ... los blancos y los negros transitan en los paseos pdblicos los dias de retreta por zonas perfecta- mente delimitadas, cuya violacion por cualquiera de ellos y, m^s que nadie por los negros, da origen a ver- daderos conflictos.46 White prejudice against Negroes is only one facet of the problem; equally as distressing for Guillen is the Negro who is ashamed of being Negro. In the 1930's he wrote: ... mientras el son, por ejemplo, triunfa en Paris ... y en nuestra propia patria es el baile predilecto de los blancos, adn en aquellas sociedades mds exclusivas, existe, en cambio, gran cantidad de negros que lo repug- nan exteriormente, porque le atribuyen un origen plebe- yo, incompatible con su "delicadeza espiritual’ 1 y con su "grado de cultura" ... 47 Another type of prejudice exists among light mulattoes who feel superior to darker mulattoes. The lighter the skin of a mulatto in Cuba, the more he could approach the advantages enjoyed by white men. The lighter he was, the more adelan- tado. The second poem of the Motivos, "Mulata" (p. 28), is concerned with this aspect of the problem. In the first stanza Guilldn speaks to a haughty, light-skinned mulatto girl who has ridiculed the Negro's platyrrhine nose: ^Guillen, Prosa de prisa, op. cit., p. 180. ^Quoted in Angel Augier, Nicolds Guilldn: notas para un estudio biogrdfico-crlticoT tomol (La Habana, 1962), p. 116". 162 Ya yo me entere, mulata, mulata, ya sti que dice que yo tengo la narice como nudo de cobbata. 'But the person being ridiculed has the last laugh. For although the girl tries to act very "white," her own fea tures give her away: her lips are thick and her kinky hair has been bleached: Y fijate bien que tti no ere tan adelantti, poqque tu boca e bien [grande, y tu pasa, colord. The final stanza demonstrates the poet's disdain for the pompous mulata who tries to deny her African heritage. It is also a reaffirmation of pride in the negritude of his black girl: Si tti supiera, mulata, la verda: Ique yo con mi negra tengo, y no te quiero pa nal negra is similarly praised in "Mi chiquita" (p. 31) . This poem lists several of the good qualities possessed by her, and the note of racial pride is readily discernible: La chiquita que yo tengo, tan negra como e, no la cambio por ninguna, por ninguna otra mujti.48 "Sdngoro cosongo" (pp* 28-29) , the third poem of the 4 For an interesting insight into the mulata vs negra theme, see: Olivera, op. cit. , pp. 147-150; White, op. cit., pp. 59-62. 163 Motivos de son, is an example of the reaffirmation of Cuba's African heritage by means of using jitanj&fora to evoke a mood. The verse derives its significance from the sounds of the words rather than from their meaning. The purpose of the poem is to create a mood suggestive of the rhythmic background for the dance of a negra: Songoro cosongo, songo bd; s6ngoro, cosongo de mamey; sdngoro, la negra baila bien; songoro de uno, sdngoro de trd. Ad, vengan a ver; ae, vamo pa ver; ivengan, songoro [cosongo, sdngoro cosongo de mameyI __ The effect is based primarily upon the word songo, a Yoruba term referring to a region in the Congo,^9 but used here only for its sonorous quality. The words sdngoro and cosongo are merely meaningless phonemes built around songo and employed to heighten the effect. Mamey~is a red pulpy fruit, but this word also is probably used for its sound. Repetition of the deep vowel o along with the -nq combina tion and the resonant b and m sounds all combine to produce an onomatoepoeic effect reminiscent of African bongd drums ^ F e r n a n d o Ortiz, Glosario de afronegrismos (La Habana, 1924), p. 437. See also: Guirao, op. cit., p. 195. 164 and tambores— the only proper accompaniment to the negra's sensual dance. "Hay que tene voluntS" (p. 30), on the other hand, is much more specific in its invocation of the African heri tage. Among Cubans, especially the illiterate masses, it is very common to blame one's own laziness and shortcomings on the effects of an evil spell or charm. In the third stanza of the poem, GuillSn incorporates this aspect of Cuban cul ture : iHay que teni volunta, que la salasiSn no e pa toa la vida! There is direct reference to the widespread belief in African witchcraft in the use of salasi6n. This term refers to the bad luck caused a person by someone who has a brujo concoct an emb6 which he leaves in or near the house of the victim. The evil charm will bring varying degrees of misfortune to the recipient, whose only recourse is to con- C A suit a brujo for the counter, and stronger, charm. The final poem of the Motivos, "Tti no sabe ingl§" (p. 32), presents a humorous approach to the problem of cubanidad.Victor Manuel, a Negro or dark-skinned mulatto, apparently preferred the more sophisticated white girls to Negro or mulatto girls, and had previously boasted his 5^See: Fernando Ortiz, Hampa afrocubano— los brujos negros (Madrid, 1906), pp. 215-235; Romulo Lachatanere, Manual de santerla (La Habana, 1942), pp. 76-77; Ramos, op. cit., p. 123. 165 knowledge of and experience with Yankee women. However, when he presumptuously tries to flirt with a white American tourist, he ends up making a complete fool of himself (he can't even speak her language), and he becomes the object of his companions' scorn and jest: Con tanto ingl£ que tti sabia, Vito Manug, con tanto ingl£, no sabe ahora decir: ye. La mericana te buca, y tG le tiene que huir: tu ingli era detr&i guan, detrSi guan y guan tti tri. 51- No te namore ma nunca, Vito Manug, si no sabe ingl§, I si no sabe ingl§! This is one of the ways in which Guillen ridicules prejudice among Negroes and mulattoes themselves. S6ngoro cosongo The reaffirmation of lo negro is considerably more explicit in Guillen's second volume than it was in the 51-An approximate English equivalent of this stanza: "'merican gal comes lookin' fo' you, an1 you jus' runs 'way from her; 'cause de only English you knows is 'strike one,' 'strike one' an' 'one-two three!" (translation mine) See also: Langston Hughes and Ben Frederic Carruthers, Cuba Libre. Poems by Nicolas Guillen (Los Angeles, 1948), p. 3. 166 Motivos. In his introduction to Sdngoro cosongo-^ the poet sets the tone for the collection. He says that "el espiritu de Cuba es mestizo. Y del espiritu hacia la piel nos vendrH el color definitivo. Algftn dia se dirci: . color cubano." Cubans must be made aware of their dual heritage— " t r the Spanish and the African. Guilldn says: "Aqui la mezcla es muy profunda, mds atan que en otros sitios. Durante cuatro siglos y medio los blancos y los negros han dado ori gen a un pueblo en que se funden las caracterlsticas de entrainbos. If cubanidad is to be achieved, the African element, which was ignored for so long, must be reaffirmed. "La cancion del bongd" {pp. 36-37), is the song of the bongo drum as it "talks" to its listeners.^ The drums sing of the union of whites and blacks in the mulatto country which is Cuba: pero mi profunda voz, convoca al negro y al bianco, que bailan el mismo son. Expanding the theme in the second stanza, Guillen introduces a very significant element: En esta tierra, mulata de africano y espanol (Santa Barbara de un lado, ^Nicolcis Guillen, Songoro cosongo, poemas mulatos (La Habana, 1931), prologo. ~^GuillSn, "El dia de la qu£?" in Prosa de prisa, op. cit., p. 3 08. 5^In African services, drums are said to "talk" both to the people and to the gods. del otro lado Changd), siempre falta algtln 'abuelo, cuando no sobra algtin don, y hay titulos de Castilla con parientes en Bondo. Cuba is "mulata/de africano y espahol." The verse "Santa Barbara de un lado,/del otro lado Changd" also carries very profound implications. To this day the prestige of the witch doctors is phenomenal, and their influence penetrates all phases of Cuban life. The religion of the Afro-Cubans is a strange amalgam of African rites and Catholic beliefs, both distorted somewhat by mutual assimilation. This important aspect of Cuba's culture is easily understandable. When the early slaves were brought over they were baptized, but little was actually done to indoc trinate them in the Catholic religion. They learned very little about the Church, 5 and they kept their African rituals to which they merely added various exterior prac tices of Catholicism. As a result, we find many examples of syncretizing of an African orisha and a Catholic saint with similar attributes or powers. In his discussion of the Catholic religion in early colonial Cuba, Ortiz gives the following reasons for the lack of religious fervor both among the "converted" slaves and those who converted them: (1) Planters feared the effect of the Christian ideals of fraternity and equal ity on the slave; (2) The Church itself had slaves; (3) the lack of sincere religious fervor among many of the colon ists; (4) there were almost no Africans among the clergy; (5) masses were said during the day, when the slaves could not attend. See: Fernando Ortiz, "La religidn en la poesia mulata," Estudios afrocubanos, I (1937), 26-32. 168 Guillen's example in "La cancidn del bong6" is par ticularly meaningful: Santa Barbara, the Catholic patroness against storms, was assimilated with Chang6, the Yoruba orisha of thunder and lightning, to such an extent that many Cubans still refer to Chang6 as "Santa Barbara macho.In this poem the author is really stating the impossibility of the Cuban to deny the Negro blood in his veins. Pride in the Negro heritage is manifested in "Pequena oda a un negro boxeador cubano" (pp. 38-39).^7 The Cuban Eligio Sardiiias, better known as "Kid Chocolate," was very prominent in boxing circles around New York City in the 1920's. Guilldn admonishes him to beware of allowing his new-found fame to inflate his ego, lest he lose sight of his proud African heritage: Y ahora que Europa se desnuda para tostar su carne al sol, y busca en Harlem y en la Habana jazz y son, c r / r On the other hand, the Afro-Cubans excluded any Catholic saint or belief for which they had no African coun terpart. Santa Barbara became a very important part of their religion, while the crucifixion of Christ is not im portant because they had nothing with which to identify it. See: Lachatanere, "Las religiones negras," op. cit., pp. 138-141; Ortiz, "La religi6n," op. cit., pp. 18-24, and Hampa afrocubano, op. cit., pp. 145-148; Ramos, op. cit., pp. 122-125; Varela, op. cit., pp. 106-109; Carpentier, op. cit., pp. 30-34. Guillen adopted this title for Sdngoro Cosongo. In a letter (March 15, 1951) to Florence Ih White (op. cit., p. 259) he explained: "Los Motivos de son (1930) no fueron mis poemas negros iniciales pues el ano anterior yo habia publicado la 'Oda a Kid Chocolate1, a la que cambid el titulo, como verd, en el 'Sdngoro cosongo'." 169 lucirse negro mientras aplaude el bulevar, y frente a la envidia de los blancos hablar en negro de verdad. The poet is reflecting his pride in the reawakening of interest in African themes throughout the world at that time. Another aspect of pride in the Negro heritage is very much present in Sdngoro cosongo. Five poems highly praise the Cuban woman, who incorporates the whiteness and the blackness of her race: "Mujer nueva" (pp- 39-40), two short "Madrigales" (p. 40), "Rumba" (pp. 41-42), and "Se- cuestro de la mujer de Antonio" (pp. 47-49). "Mujer nueva" does not refer to any particular Cuban woman, but rather to the epitome of all of them. Guilldn praises her general characteristics and implies the sensual aspect, inherited from Africa: Con el circulo ecuatorial ceri-ida a la cintura como a un pequeho mundo, la negra, mujer nueva, avanza en su ligera bota de serpiente. He goes on to say that she is fresh and new, and, like the dawn of a new day, full of promise. All five poems sing the praises of the negra, and they become bases for racial pride. The second "Madrigal," for example, lauds "la fuerte gracia de tu cuerpo desnudo" and refers to "el Zambeze de tus ojos." The emphasis in "Rumba" is on the sensual aspect; the poem portrays the rumbera— the rumba dancer. Guilldn 170 believes that "El negro es, no hay que negarlo, ardiente y sensual. Sus bailes participan, pues, de ese carlicter. "58 He also speaks of " ... nuestra rumba, ardiente, sudorosa, interpretacion ritmica de la ritmica peripecia sexual ...”59 Lachatahere, commenting on the importance of the rumba in Cuban culture, refers to the dance as "la traduccidn al len- guaje vulgar de las sagradas danzas yorubas y las otras manifestaciones del panteon religioso afrocubano."59 The popularity of this dance in Cuba is a testament to the island's African heritage. Guilldn's rumbera in "Rumba" is typical. She is transported into spiritual and physical ecstasy: Trenza tu pie con la mdsica el nudo que mds me aprieta: resaca de tela blanca sobre tu carne trigueha. Locura del bajo vientre, aliento de boca seca, When the rumba is taken out of its ceremonial context and presented as mere entertainment, the mystic quality is lost, and it actually becomes pornographic and obscene. The poem "Quirino" {p. 46) portrays a typical Cuban type who can be found on any street corner. He is not 58Nicolas Guillen, "Negra, mueva la cintura," in Prosa de prisa, op. cit., p. 22. 59ibid., p. 21. 60i,achatahere, "Las religiones negras," op. cit., p. 141. 171 black, but his thick lips and nappy hair seem to complement his carefree way of life: La bemba grande, la pasa dura, sueltos los pies, y una mulata que se derrite de sabrosura, "Ch^vere" (p. 4 3), on the other hand, depicts another characteristic type in Cuban society: the handsome, arrogant, quarrelsome, knife-toting Negro. The very word Chevere has specific African overtones. Ortiz found that the word is from the hcihigo cult, having traced it back to a Calabar word sebede, meaning finely dressed or profusely adorned. In the Cuban vernacular the word has come to mean a very "sharp" and "snazzily dressed" killer.^ This reference is also present in "Velorio de Papa Montero" (pp. 44-45). Montero himself was a rumbero and a chevere, and he died the violent death of a killer. West Indies Ltd. Themes of race and anti-imperialism are the most dominant characteristics of West Indies Ltd. In this col lection Guillen describes the lands of the Antilles. And, more important for the purposes of this study, he attacks racial discrimination on the basis of the fundamental make up of the inhabitants of the Caribbean islands— that is— a 61ortiz, Glosario de afronegrismos, op. cit., p. 16 8. ^Nicollis GuillSn, West Indies Ltd. Poemas (La Habana, 1934). 172 profound mixture of Negro and white bloods. The collection is abundant in examples of the reaf firmation of the African element of cubanidad. In the first poem, "Palabras en el trdpico" (pp. 53-55) , Guillen says: Dice Jamaica que ella esta contenta de ser negra, y Cuba ya sabe que es mulata. The culture of the Antillean tropics is mulatto, and from these tropics the Antillean derives his essence: Te debo el cuerpo oscuro, las piernas Sgiles y la cabeza crespa, mi amor hacia las hembras elementales y esta sangre imborrable. The second poem, titled "West Indies Ltd." (pp. 55- 66) , is a long (unusually long for Guill‘ §n) exultation of . the Antilles. The poet speaks of the Antilleans as "un oscuro pueblo sonriente" and "gente sencilla y tierna, descendiente de esclavos." Guillen sees these tropics as a real melting pot in which several races have blended to become one: Aqui hay blancos y negros y chinos y mulatos. Desde luego se trata de colores baratos, pues a—trav£s de tratos y contra. to-£ se han corrido los tintes y no hay tono estable. Once again, as he did in the Motivos and in Songoro cosongo, the poet takes issue with those who would deny their Negro heritage. He says to them: Me rio de ti ... que te avergttenzes de mirarte el pellejo oscuro. "Adivinanzas" (pp. 66-67) consists of five riddles. 173 The first one is a manifestation of the African element in Cuba's composition: En los dientes, la mahana, y la noche en el pellejo. c,Qui£n serci, qui§n no serS? "El abuelo," "Balada de los dos abuelos," and "Dos ninos" continue the mulatto theme. "El abuelo" (pp. 69-70) is an ironic poem in which Guillen depicts a beautiful fair haired and fair-skinned girl who does not admit that she has some Negro blood. The poet knew her Negro grandfather, and he muses that if she would look a little beyond her blond hair and blue eyes she would discover la dulce sombra oscura del abuelo que huye, el que riz6 por siempre tu cabeza amarilla. "Balada de los dos abuelos" (pp. 77-78) is a cry for racial equality and, at the same time, an artistic consider ation of the process of racial intermingling. The poem is a very moving interpretation of the spiritual complexity of the mulatto. The central motif is an invocation of the white grandfather, don Federico, and the Negro grandfather, Taita Facundo: Sombras que s6lo yo veo, me escoltan mis dos abuelos. Don Federico me grita y Taita Facundo calla; los dos en la noche suenan y andan, andan. Yo los junto. 174 {Federico I IFacundo! Los dos se abrazan. Los dos suspiran. Los dos las fuertes cabezas alzan; los dos del mismo tamano, ansia negra y ansia blanca, los dos del mismo tamano, gritan, suenan, lloran, cantan. Bellini believes that in this poem Guillen inter prets the presence of the two racial currents in the Cuban, not "come fonte di una lotta pslchica interiore, ma, come origione di una superiore sintesi spirituale." In the Cuban people the two grandfathers— the two races, Negro and white— are united. Guillen joins them emo tionally in the poem: "Yo los junto," and, significantly, "los dos se abrazan." Poetically, in the grandson— the Cuban— the two grandfathers are equal ("los dos del mismo tamano"), just as they should be in the social reality. "Dos ninos" (pp. 72-73) is also a cry for racial equality, but the tone is much more social. Guillen poses the problem of lack of cubanidad in this way: two children, one white, one black, feel a strong bond in the poverty and misery they share. This bond completely obscures their racial differences: ^Giuseppe Bellini, Poeti Antillani (Milan, 1957) , p. 26 . 175 Dos nifios, ramas de un mismo Srbol [de miseria, juntos en un portal bajo la noche [calurosa, dos nifios pordioseros . . . comen de un mismo plato como perros [hambrientos ... Dos nifios: " uno negro, otro bianco. lQu£ uni6n sincera y fuerte! Estcin sujetos por los estSmagos . . . Est&n unidos como buenos perros. But children grow into men. When the time comes for them to go their separate ways, these same two children, no longer sharing that strong bond, will probably become very much aware of their racial differences. Guillen continues: Juntos as! como dos buenos perros, uno negro, otro bianco, cuando llegue la hora de la marcha iquerrin marchar como dos buenos hombres, uno negro, otro bianco? The implications are obvious: Cubans lack cubani- dad. If cubanidad had been the bond that united the two children, there would be no breakdown in understanding when the bonds of poverty and misery no longer existed between them. Racial prejudice prohibits cubanidad, and the basis for much of that prejudice is underestimation and undervalu ation of the African heritage of the Cubans. In "Dos nihos" Guillen is especially eloquent; it is both a plea for cuba nidad and an indictment against a society that inflicts upon two children the tragic note of their racial conflict. Two more poems from West Indies Ltd. must be consid- 176 ered in this study: both of them deal with the African folkloric element which Guillen uses as a vehicle in reaf firming Cuba's Negro heritage. The first of these poems, "SensemayS" (PP- 68-69), is based directly on a popular Afro-Cuban ritual. In very early days the Negroes of Cuba observed Epiphany with many African rites, among which was the baile de la cobra or dance of the snake.^ Based on the voodoo custom of killing a snake in an annual rite, the baile de la cobra became a tradition carried over to El dia de los Reyes every year in Cuba. On that particular day the baile was danced through the streets of Havana. The participants carried a replica of a large serpent, and they wound about in a sinuous way that represented the twisting of the snake. When the procession ended, usually in the patio of the palacio de gobierno, the people danced around the snake and chanted African-based songs. It is this part of the ceremony upon which Guillen based "SensemayS." The poem portrays all the emotion^ inherent in this rite which is so much a part of Cuba's heritage. Even ^4Originally a Calabar nghigo rite, it was assimi lated by Dahomey culture and, in turn, passed on to the Yoruba-Congo-Bantu based culture that prevailed in Cuba. {Ramos, op. cit., pp. 118-119.) ^^The poetic techniques by which Guillen conveys the drama and emotion are described in Chapter V, pp. 15-18. 177 in contemporary times the participants in the rite become so "caught-up" emotionally that there are "...swoonings and ravings, nervous tremblings beyond control, incessant writhings and turnings, tearing of garments, even biting of the flesh— every imaginable invention of the devil."^6 The central motif of the poem is the verse iMayombe-bombe-mayombS! SensemayS, la culebra. Although the words have definite African meanings, they are used by Guillen purely for their tonal quality, which serves to create a mood and to sustain the mysterious effect. Mayombe is the name of a religious sect in the Yoruba cult, and a mayombero (also called a Babalu) is a Yoruba and Congo priest-witch doctor. Mayombe also refers to a native of a certain region of the French Congo and to the type of witchcraft practiced there. Bombe probably refers to a Mandinga or Yoruba .sexual dance.^7 These distinctions are insignificant for the pur poses Guillen has in "Sensemaya." It is not important to know exactly what the words mean; it is necessary only to be aware of the fact that they are African and that they fi f i This interesting description was written by a 19th-century eyewitness to the rite: George Washington Cable, "Creole Slave Songs," The Century Magazine (April, 1866), not paged. A contemporary observer would experience the same phenomenon. 7 Ortiz, Glosario de afronegrismos, op. cit. , pp. 87, 94* Ramos, op. cit., pp. 117, 351-352, 376; Guirao, op. cit., pp. 189, 193. ■ 178 pertain to the supernatural. Ortiz explains that purely African languages are indeed found today in certain magical incantations and A . ritualistic services in Cuba. But even then these languages are usually no longer understood by those using them. For this reason they have a far more mysterious power than more readily comprehensible current speech.®8 What is important in "Sensemaya" is that Guilldn has poetized and popularized this facet of the African impact upon cubanidad. The second poem to be considered is "Balada del Gfiije" {pp. 81-82) , the final selection in West Indies Ltd. Although they lack a written literary history, the Africans have a popular oral literature that is very rich and quite varied. Its bases are superstitions and stories of love, war, religion, and animals. They brought these traditions to Cuba.®^ Nicol&s Guilldn knows well the role of these super stitions and traditions in the daily lives of the Cubans, especially Cubans of the lower class. In his efforts to express the spirit of his people, he transmits the lament of a mother whose baby was drowned. The woman and her friends are convinced that the Water Demon took the child’s life. She cries: ®8Fernando Ortiz, "Los taltimos versos mulatos," Revista bimestre cubana, 35 (1940), 322. ®^See Sanz y Diaz, op. cit., pp. 15-18. 179 iNeque, que se vaya el heque! iGflije, que se vaya el gtiije! ifegue is bad luck or an evil spell. Gtlije is an evil god of the Afro-Cuban deity, who has the head of a Negro and the body of a fish. According to the legend, the gtii je inhabits the rivers of Cuba and, because of his con tact with the devil, is capable of taking on various other exterior forms. His presence is always an indication of some impending calamity and, therefore, he is one of the most dreaded of all the evil gods.^O The lament continues: Las. turbias aguas del rio son hondas y tienen muertos; carapachos de tortuga, cabezas de nifios negros. The mother re-creates the child's death (as she imagined it) with all the horror her superstition-clad mentality can command. She had warned the child to stay away from the river and had placed a neck-charm on him as an added precaution. But all to no avail. The water demon killed the child: Sali6 del agua una mano para arrastrarlo. . .Era un gtiije. Le abri6 en dos tapas el crSneo, le apag6 los grandes ojos, le arrancS los dientes blancos, iAh, chiquitln, chiquit6n, pas6 lo que yo te dije! To this day many Cuban mothers caution their children to be very careful when they are near the water, lest a gtiije *^°Guirao, op. cit. , pp. 192 , 194. 180 seize them. Espaha Although Espaha,^ by its very nature, does not lend itself to this study, it does contain at least one passage that illustrates Guillen's mulatto affirmation theme. In "La voz esperanzada" (pp. 90-94) the poet speaks to Spain of his racial composition: Yo, hijo de America, hijo de ti y de Africa. El son entero Not as abundant in examples of mulatto reaffirmation as West Indies Ltd., El son entero^ nevertheless contains several poems which state the theme in a dramatic way. "Son numero 6" (pp. 129-131) is specific in its assertation of the African heritage. The first stanza affirms the Yoruba ancestry of the island: Yoruba soy, lloro en yoruba lucumi. Como soy un yoruba de Cuba, quiero que hasta Cuba suba mi llanto yoruba; que suba el alegre llanto yoruba que sale'de mi. The Yoruba, however, is not the only African who contributed to Cuba's mulatto culture. In the second ^Nicolcis Guillen, Espaha, poema en cuatro angustias y una esperanza (Mexico, 1937). Nicolas Guillen, El son entero, suma po^tica 1929- 1946 (Buenos Aires, 1947). 181 stanza, Guillen takes this fact into account: y cuando no soy yoruba soy congo, mandinga, carabali.^3 The theme is reiterated in the sixth stanza. Cuba is one great melting pot where all peoples are mixed: Estamos juntos desde muy lejos, jovenes, viejos, negros y blancos, todo mezclado. Guillen's positive approach to the problem of cuba nidad is presented more subtly in "Un son para nifios anti- llanos" (p. 145). An extended metaphor in juvenile dialect, this poem depicts Cuba as a little toy boat without a captain: Por el mar de las Antillas anda un barco de papel: anda y anda el barco barco, sin timonel. The boat, with a Negro girl in the stern and a Spaniard in the prow, represents the mulatto essence of Cuba. But without a strong uniting force to give it direc tion— without a captain— the boat floats aimlessly around in the sea: Una negra va en la popa, va en la proa un espanol: anda y anda el barco barco, con ellos dos. The absence of a captain represents the lack of cubanidad. 73 It is interesting to note that Ortiz found that the dominant African cultures in Cuba are, in order of their importance: Yoruba, Congo, Mandinga, and Carabali. 182 The union of the two cultures has been achieved, in the Cubans, for a long time; but that union has no direction--no captain. Therefore it will continue to wander about, like the captainless boat, until that direction-— cubanidad— is finally achieved: iAy, mi barco marinero, con su casco de papel! iAy, mi barco negro y bianco, sin timonel! Allci. va la negra negra, junto junto al espahol; anda y anda el barco barco con ellos dos. "Poema con nihos" (pp. 153-159) is also written in the language of children, and is presented in the form of a three-act play. In the first act four little Cuban boys are playing in the living room of one of them. In each child a different ethnic background predominates: one is white, one Negro, one Chinese, and one Jewish. While the mother of one of them is present the children play together harmoniously. In act two the mother leaves for a few minutes— enough time for the boys to begin fighting over the toys. One thing leads to another, and the scene ends in this manner: El negro. (Dirigiendose al chino) . Tti ... tienes los ojos prendidos como los chinos ... El chino. iPorque mi padre era chino, animal! El negro. iPues entonces tfi no eres cubano! iY no tienes que decirme animal! jVete para Cant6n! 183 El chino. ;Y td vete para Africa, negro I El hijo. No griten, que viene mamci, y luego nos va a pelear! El judio. cPero td. no ves que este negro te dijo chino? El negro. Collate, td judio, perro, que tu padre es zapatero y tu familia ... El judlo. Pero td no ves que este negro le y tu ... (Todos se enredan a golpes, con gran esccindalo. Aparece la madre, corriendo). In the third act the mother calms the children and, embracing them as they gather around her, tries to teach them a lesson in cubanidad. She says: Al negro de negra piel la sangre el cuerpo le bana; la misma sangre, corriendo, hierve bajo carne blanca. dQui^n vi6 la carne amarilla, cuando las venas estallan, sangrar sino con sangre roja, sangre con que todos sangran? The children must realize that the battle against discrimi nation must be" won before cubanidad can be achieved. Continuing this theme in "Una canciSn a Stalin, Guilldn praises Stalin, whose Communism calls for racial harmony: A tu lado los hombres libres van: el negro, de ojos blancos y barbas de bettan, el bianco, de ojos.verdes y barbas de azafrSn. Guilldn, El son entero, op. cit., p. 157. Curi ously, this is the only poem of the original El son entero omitted from the Antologia. 184 It is significant that Afro-Cuban gods are called upon to protect him: Stalin, Capitcin, a quien Changd proteja y a quien resguarde Ochdn. La paloma de vuelo popular Although La paloma de vuelo popular, Elegias^5 is primarily concerned with Guillen's negative manifestations of cubanidad, it contains at least two examples of the positive. "La muralla"76 refers to the mulatto essence of lo cubano. By achieving a homogeneous spirit among the white and black elements, Cuba will be able to build a wall to keep away all her enemies. This wall is really cubanidad, and, therefore, necessarily mulatto. Guillen says: Alcemos una muralla juntando todas las manos; los negros, sus manos negras, los blancos, sus blancas manos. "Epistola" (pp. 91-94) is a long and elegantly writ ten poem to two very sophisticated lady friends of Guill§n who were spending the winter in Palma de Mallorca. The poet asks them if they miss Cuba as much as he does (he was in "^Nicolas Guillen, La paloma de vuelo popular, Ele- glas (Buenos Aires, 1959). This volume contains the orig inal La paloma de vuelo popular and some previously written elegias. ^ Ibid., pp. 21-22. Subsequent page citations, in parentheses, refer to this work. 185 exile at the time). Among the things he believes they miss are the typical Cuban foods, such as "el quimbombo afri- cano. " Quimbomb6, an Afro-Cuban corruption of quingombd, which is a crude food similar to okra or gumbo, is an African contribution to Cuban culture. ^7 La paloma de vuelo popular itself, then, contains only a few isolated examples of the positive manifestations of Guillen's search for cubanidad. However, the appended Eleqias offer two more. In "Elegla cubana" (pp. 109-114) the poet refers to Cuba's mulatto essence. The pueblo is both Negro and white. He says: Esta Juan Negro, hermano de Juan Blanco, los dos la misma mano. Esta, quiero decir, Juan Pueblo, sangre nuestra diseminada y numerosa. "El apellido" (pp. 115-119), subtitled "elegia familial," is, on one hand a very overt manifestation of pride in Cuba's African heritage. On the other hand, it is an indictment against those who would deny or obscure this heritage. Guillen begins "El apellido" by stating that when he ^It is surprising to find this word in the poem. Quimbombd is an unsophisticated term which seems out of place among the elegant and flowery words that surround it. Perhaps the effect is intentional; even the most elegant sectors of Cuban society cannot deny the African part of their heritage. 186 was born he was given a name: esto que veis escrito en mi tarjeta, esto que pongo al pie de mis poemas; catorce letras que siempre van conmigo a todas partes. but this name sounds Spanish— completely Spanish. He asks: <lEs mi nombre, est&is ciertos? dTen^is todas mis sehas? Is it possible that dToda mi piel, toda mi piel viene de aquella estatua de m&rmol espahol? dVienen de allci todos mis huesos? He knows well that many of his features are negroid— his lips, hair, nose. Even his eyes are not totally Spanish: dNo veis estos tambores en mis ojos? ;No tengo acaso un abuelo nocturno un abuelo mandinga, congo, dahomeyano? Of course! It's obvious: he is part African. But where is the "African" in his name? He asks: IE1 apellido, entonces! dSab^is mi otro apellido, el que me viene de aquella tierra enorme, el apellido sangriento y capturado, que pas6 sobre el mar entre cadenas, que pas6 entre cadenas sobre el mar? GuillSn is proud of his African heritage and would be proud to use the name of his African ancestor along with that of the Spaniard. He states this pride: Lo escondisteis, creyendo que iba a bajar los ojos yo de vergtlenza. IGracias! Pero no ... dPodeis creerlo? No. Yo estoy limpio. Brilla mi voz como un metal reci^n pulido. 187 Tengo 7 8 In Tengo ° Guillen has reached the epitome of his propagandistic phase. It is not surprising, therefore, that the few positive manifestations of his search for cubanidad in this collection are all but obscured by the negative ones, which overwhelm them. However, when these positive elements are isolated and excised from their environment, they become meaningful. In "Crecen altas las flores,for example, Guillen reaf firms his country's mulatto culture when he refers to him self as ... un negro de universal memoria y un bianco que conoce su pecado y su gloria. In "Canta el sinsonte en el Turquino" (pp. 50-53) the poet refers to the ignorance of the African heritage on the part of some Cubans: iBaila la rumba usted? No, senor; yo no la se bailar. Toward the end of the poem he restates the mulatto theme: Una cabeza negra y una cabeza rubia juntas van por el mismo camino, coronadas por un mismo fraterno laurel. This camino is the road to cubanidad. "Nadie" (p. 54) contains a couplet that speaks of ^Nicolcis Guillen, Tengo (La Habana, 1964) . ^9Ibid., pp. 24-29. Subsequent page citations, in parentheses, refer to this work. 188 the blending of the two races: Nuestros suehos se juntan en una misma ola. Se mezclan nuestras sangres en una vena sola. Finally, "Vine en un barco negro" (pp. 58-60) refers to the African heritage, but certainly not to the extent suggested by the title. The references are in the first and last lines: Vine en un barco negrero. Soy un negro. however, the forty lines between them are not related to the theme, especially not as it applies to this study. Nicolas Guillen, who is himself an example of the confluence of Spanish and African bloods, has penetrated the depths of the end product of that confluence. It is Guillen, more than any other person, who has succeeded in communicating this phenomenon in an artistic way. Literary critics acclaim him as the poet of Cuba--the poet who con veys cubanidad "con toda la voz que tiene."^ Cuba is mulatto. Investigation of Guillen's poetic production reveals that he has often used his verses as vehicles for communicating this fact. More specifically, ^Juan Marinello, Po^tica: ensayos en entusiasmo (Madrid, 1933), p. 139. See also: Max Henriquez Urena, Panorama historico de la literatura cubana (1492-1952) (New York^ 1963) , p. 37 8; Gaston Figueira, "Dos poetas iberoamer- icanos de nuestro tiempo," Revista Iberoamericana, X (Novem ber, 1945), 110; Nestor Ortiz Oderigo, "Nicolas Guillen, poeta social," Saber vivir, VI (1947), 38. the study of his poems indicates that he has especially emphasized the African or Negro aspect of Cuba's mulatto essence— that aspect which he believes had previously been underestimated, underesteemed, or ignored. CHAPTER VII * THE SEARCH FOR CUBANIDAD: THE NEGATIVE ASPECT Part I Cuba and the United States Just as lo mulato is an important facet of the "Cuban reality," so. are the feelings held by many Cubans that United States imperialism kept their country in a semi colonial state. Guillen saw these feelings all around him. Since independence, Cuba has always maintained of ficially that she is an independent and sovereign country. However, in so far as sovereignty may be deemed to be the absence of external, legal limitations upon independent national action, it would seem that— until 1934 at least— some of Cuba's treaty relations with the United States operated partially to destroy that sovereignty.^ It must be repeated, on the other hand, that United States "meddling" in Cuban matters was usually considered a genuine necessity by the northern republic. Less than one hundred miles separate Cuba from the Florida Keys. Also, ^Russell H. Fitzgibbon, Cuba and the United States 1900-1935 (Manasha, Wisconsin, 1935), p. 4. 190 191 the island has a number of large and easily defensible har bors which, obviously, in the hands of a hostile power would be a very distinct menace to the national security of the U.S.2 Commercial reasons were not lacking either: Cuba is at the crossroads of the rich Caribbean and Gulf trade. The agricultural products of the two countries supplement each other to a certain extent, and their exchange is facil itated by their proximity. 1 For whatever reasons, for over thirty years, from 1902 to 1933, Cuba's sovereignty was curtailed by the Platt Amendment, which allowed the United States a strong hand in Cuban affairs. From 1898 to 1902, and again from 1906 to 1909, Cuba was ruled directly by the U.S., and from 1909 to 1933, dominated in a more indirect way. On the other hand, the circumstances were far more complex than many Cubans supposed. The 1906 intervention, for example, was urged by Cuban President Estrada Palma against the better judgment of a reluctant President Theo dore Roosevelt.2 NicolSs Guillen's generation was brought up in the shadow of the hated Platt Amendment, and grew to political 2 - See: James M„ Callahan, Cuba and International Relations (Baltimore, 1899), pp. 20-24; Fitzgibbon, op. cit., pp. 2-5. ^Theodore Draper, Castroism: Theory and Practice (New York, 1965), p. 115. 192 maturity waging a constant struggle against it. It is not surprising, then, that one of the men who most influenced Guillen's formation was Juan Gualberto, a Cuban journalist who was especially adament in his condemnation of the Platt Amendment.^ Besides these political considerations, it must also be kept in mind that during this period many major long-term United States investments were made in Cuba's economy. The result was that many Cubans came to share Guillen's opinion that their country had become a vast slave camp ruled over by Yankee imperialism.~ By the turn of the century direct U.S. investments in the Cuban sugar industry had already become astronomical; in 1894 these investments were estimated at over fifty billion dollars.^ Not only did the United States capital develop the Cuban sugar industry, but the U.S. market also absorbed ^Nicolcis Guillen, "Don Juan," in Prosa de prisa; cronicas (La Habana, 1962), pp. 118-120. ^Nicolas Guillen, "Discurso de Nicolas Guill§n al recibir el Premio Stalin de la Paz," Repertorio Americano, 49 (March-April, 1955), 41. See also! Ernesto Ardura, "Itinerario de la Repfiblica," Revista mensual de la cultura, 24 (1954), 62; Wilfrid Cartey, "Como surge NicSlas Guillen en las Antillas," Universidad de Antioquia, 34 (April-June, 1958), 260. ^Leland H. Jenks, Our Cuban Colony (New York, 1928), p. 162. 193 almost all of the sugar. This situation continued until, by the 1920's, the term "the Cuban sugar industry" was a misnomer; it should have been called, Lux maintains, "the Q United States sugar industry in Cuba." Many who had previously not realized how dependent Cuba had become on the United States were shocked into reality by the Depression. The crisis that wreaked havoc in the United States was disastrous for Cuba; in 1929 forty ingenios— large sugar plantations--folded. Every reversal in the United States, the sugar market, had direct repercus sions on the island, and almost every Cuban was affected in one way or another. By the summer of 19 32 the price of sugar had dropped to an all-time low as a result of increased difficulties on Wall Street. Consequently, the sugar cane cutters' salaries dipped to around twenty centavos a day. To add to their frustration, often the workers were not paid in cash, but in coupons redeemable at the plantation store (often owned by absentee yankees).^ ^In a typical year the United States imported 372,000 tons of Cuba's 388,000 tons of sugar exported. Ibid., p. 120. O William R. Lux, "The Development of the Sugar Industry in Colonial Cuba, 1511-1895" (unpublished Master's thesis, The University of Southern California, 1963), p. 124. ^Angel Augier, Nicolas Guillen: notas para un estu- dio biografico-critico (La Habana, 1964), p. 183. 194 As the situation worsened, increasingly large seg ments of Cuba's population became more directly effected. By 1933 government workers and welfare recipients began to be paid irregularly, when paid at all. Cubans were, to say the least, frustrated and .unhappy. These.feelings were incorporated into West Indies Ltd., which Guillin was pre paring during those crucial years. The Depression ended, however, and both the United States and Cuban economies began to recover. But those terrible years left a bitter taste in the mouth of many Cubans--a taste which has, in many cases, persisted to the present day. The Cuban economy began to prosper once again. The United States played an important role not only in this prosperity but in almost all sectors of Cuban life as well. Large capital investments resumed, and North American busi nessmen and tourists again began to flock to the Pearl of the Antilles. Nationalists became alarmed at the degree to which the island's culture was taking on yankee characteristics. They were convinced that the "Collossus of the North" was succeeding in corrupting Cuban ideals and traditions. Nicolcis Guillen, one of the most vocal of these nationalists, deplored the fact that many Cubans were coming to admire United States pragmatism. He wrote that this pragmatism was nothing more than "gangsterismo" as a system 195 of philosophy, and that "El cubano se hizo hombre de nego- cios al modo y a n q u i . 1 ' ^ He believed that Cuba's middle class was losing sight of the island's heritage because the very core of her nationality was be.ing permeated by United States influences. He maintains that belief to this day, and in 1962 he reaf firmed his position in an address to the Congress of Cuban Writers and Artists: Esa burguesla, en fin, hizo de Miami su meta turis- tica, y de Nueva York su obsesidn social. Giros y expresiones en inglSs sustituyeron en el lenguaje corriente las palabras castizas: oquei por correcto, zenquio por gracias, etc. Los nihos recibian educacidn en planteles yanquis, en Estados Unidos o en Cuba, pues apenas hubo ciudad importante en la Isla sin un colegio norteamericano. No pocos oficiales del ejercito nacio- nal se graduaron en West Point, y hasta los pasatiempos y lecturas infantiles correspondlan a textos en que los heroes habian nacido en el Norte y tenian una mentalidad basada en la fuerza bruta y en la superioidad racial: BCtfalo Bill, Nick Carter, Superman ... H Guillen also felt that one of the worst effects of United States influence in Cuba was the transferral of yankee racial prejudice to the island. He was convinced that Cuba was already on the road to Harlem, and that if these northern influences were not rejected the island would indeed" become another Harlem. He wrote: Insensiblemente, nos vamos separando en muchos sectores l^Nicol^s Guillen, "Discurso de Nicolcis Guillen en el Pen Club," Cuba y la USSR (April, 1948), p. 24. •'-■k'licolcis Guillen, "Informe al I Congreso de Escri- tores y Artistas Cubanos," IDEA, XIII (July-September, 1962),1. 196 donde debi^ramos estar unidos; y a medida que el tiempo transcurra, esa divisi6n serS ya tan profunda que no habrci campo para el abrazo final. Ese seri el dia en que cada poblacion cubana— a todo se llega— tenga su "barrio negro", como nuestros vecinos del Norte. Y ese es el camino que todos, tanto los que son del color de Marti como los que tenemos la misma piel que Maceo, debemos evitar. Ese, es el camino de Harlem. I.2 According to GuillSn, the United States has cer tainly exerted great influence not only on Cuba's economy and politics, but on her culture as well. He considers these influences to be a major impediment to the development of cubanidad. Part II Anti-Yankee Manifestations in Nicolcis Guillen's Poetry: The Negative Approach In view of his convictions, it is not surprising that many of Nicolcis Guillen's poems express anti-yankee sentiments— sentiments he considers to be a partial reflec tion of the "Cuban reality." Angel Augier explains this phenomenon in this way: La frustracidn posterior de la nacion cubana por la ingerencia del capital monopolista norteamericano en el proceso de su formacion iba a reflejarse naturalmente en el desarrollo d-e la cultura, y la poesia no dejaria de ser afectada por ese impacto a la sensibilidad l^Nicol^s Guillen, "El camino de Harlem," in Prosa deprisa, op. cit., p. 180. Jose Marti is said to have been very light, while Maceo, another hero of Cuban independence, was almost black. 197 cubana.13 " A p u n t e s " 1 4 -[_s probably the first poem in which Guillen manifests anti-yankee sentiment. He speaks of those who "nos imponen su verdad." In the second stanza he exclaims: iQuisiera ver a los americanos! Elios, que nos humillan con su fuerza. Motivos de son Although each of the eight Motivos de son^ illus trates the positive aspect of Guillen’s search for cubani- dad, the negative aspect is manifested in only one of them. "Tti no sabe inglg" (p. 32) implies the extent to which United States influence has permeated Cuban culture. Vito ManuS, who is impressed with yankee girls, has pretended a knowledge of English, which he considers a sign of affluence and sophistication. Guillen makes a fool of him: tu ingl£ era detr&i guan, detr&i guan y guan tu tri. Vito ManuS is a symbol; Guillen is actually ridicul ing all Cubans who have chosen to assimilate yankee ways. 1 ^ Augier, op. cit., p. 82. •^The poem first appeared in the October 15, 1927 edition of Qrto. Guillen later changed the title to "Futu- ro." See: Nicolas Guillen, Antologla mayor (La Habana, 1964), p. 13. All subsequent page citations, in parenthe ses, refer to the Antologla, unless otherwise indicated. ■^Nicolcis Guillen, Motivos de son (La Habana, 1930).. 198 They are traitors who, he feels, have aided the degeneration of their national culture by placing so high a value on for eign influences- • S6ngoro cosongo Like.the Motivos, S6ngoro c o s o n g o - ^ i s concerned primarily with the positive aspects of the search for cuba- nidad. In this collection there is a marked increase in the anti-yankee note. Guillen is still restrained, but much more specific. "Peguena oda a un negro boxeador cubano" (pp* 38- 39) contains multiple implications. Most obviously, Guillen is chastizing the boxer to whom the most important things in the world are his training and his fights in New York. He's a big man up North now, and he has not kept in touch with what's been going on in Cuba, or even in New York. His training comes first: De seguro que tCi no vivirds al tanto de ciertas cosas nuestras, ni de ciertas cosas de allei, porque el training es duro ... y hay que estar hecho un toro, ... para que el golpe duela mcis. Success in the United States has made the Cuban boxer insensitive. He has his career, and that's all that matters to him now: l^Nicollis Guillen, S6ngoro cosongo, poemas mulatos (La Habana, 19 31). 199 En realidad acaso no necesitas otra cosa, porque como seguramente pensar&s, ya tienes tu lugar. His English— even worse than his bad Spanish— is functional o enough for him to understand the slang of those whom he "mows down" in the ring: Tu ingl§s, un poco mas precario que tu endeble espanol, sdlo te ha de servir para entender sobre la Iona cuanto en su verde slang mascan las mandlbulas de los que derrumbas jab a jab. Guillen warns the boxer that the North is fierce and rude: El norte es ffero y rudo, boxeador, and also hypocritical. The United States, symbolized by Broadway, has made a small hero of this Cuban boxer; but at the same time it is extending its monstrous tongue to lick greedily the life blood of Cuba--the cane fields. He says: ese mismo Broadway, es el que estira su hocio con una enorme lengua hftmeda, para lamer glotonamente toda la sangre de nuestro Canaveral. Guillen’s criticism of United States exploitation of Cuba is dramatized in the "Pequeria oda"; but the drama is even more intense in "Caha" (p. 46). Perhaps the one form of foreign interference most wounding to national consciousness is foreign ownership of the land— the most elemental natural resource a country has. Furthermore, United States ownership of vast tracts of Cuban land was all the more irritating to Cuban nationalists because these were not ordinary tracts; they were sugar lands— the very sustenance of the country. The principal U.S. investments were "... situated at the sorest and most vulnerable point not only of the Cuban economy but of the Cuban national psyche.It is not surprising, then, that whatever was or had ever been wrong with the sugar industry was linked very directly and intimately with United States capital and trade. "Cana" is a masterpiece of synthesis: in these eight lines Guillen presents the tragedy resultant from Cuba's overdependence on the monoculture of sugar. He also attacks the North American companies which, at that time, owned much of these sugarlands. He holds them responsible for the constant crisis in which Cuba found herself. The poet's lament: El negro junto al Canaveral. El yanqui sobre el Canaveral. La tierra bajo el Canaveral. jSangre que se nos va! In this poem Guillen is eloquent in his simplicity. The central figure is" the Canaveral— the sugar field. The ■^Draper, op. cit., p. 108. 2 0 1 Negro is tied to the soil of the sugar lands, and the tierra — the nation— is also under the Canaveral. The very life blood of the country is being drained away, and the Cuban nation has to support a double burden: that of the Canave ral (the monoculture) and that of the yankee who exploits it. (The tierra is under the Canaveral which is under the yanqui.) The last poem of Songoro cosongo, "Preg6n" (pp. 4 8- 49), is not as specific as "Cana” in its reference to yankee exploitation of Cuba's life-blood. Guillen portrays this ironic situation: while the mamey fruit has no veins it has blood; yet the Cuban has veins, but his blood has been sucked away. In the third stanza the poet says: Sangre de mamey sin venas, y yo que sin sangre estoy. West Indies Ltd. Convinced that North American social, political, and economic influence in the Antilles is one of the fundamental resasons for Cuba's misery, the poet developed a strong aversion to those "que hablan ingles." West Indies Ltd.^ is abundant in examples of Guillen's desire to rid his cul ture of the taint of the United States. The very title of the collection— the English rather than the Spanish designa tion for the Antilles— is significant. -*-®Nicolcis Guillen, West Indies Ltd. Poemas (La Habana, 1934) . 2 0 2 Exploitation of the cane workers is a rich field for any writer with Marxist tendencies. "West Indies Ltd." (pp. 55-66), which gives its title to the collection, is a long poem, in eight parts, in which the author explores that field. By means of a series of contrasts between what seems apparent on the surface and what actually exists underneath that facade, Guillen paints a very gloomy and miserable pic ture of the Antilles of the early 1930's. In part one the poet sets the stage for what is to follow. The West Indies appear to be a place of happy and carefree people; but there are foreign elements which in reality prevent any true happiness. There are, for example, puertos que hablan un ingles que empieza en yes y acaba en yes. iWest Indies! Nueces de coco, tabaco, y aguardiente. Este es un oscuro pueblo sonriente. Parts two, five, and seven are presented as digres sions in the narrative, each introduced in this manner: "La charanga de Juan el Barbero toca un son." Each of these sones interjected by Juan describes some of the evils inflicted upon Cuba by the North Americans. The first son (part 2, p. 58) is an attack upon unscrupulous Cuban politicians who have sold their country to the yankees. These politicians, instead of worrying about Cuba, think only of the sugar cane harvest— la zafra— and its profits. Yankee imperialism has corrupted these 203 "politicos de quita y pon": El yanqui nos darS dinero para arreglar la situacidn; la Patria estci por sobre todo . . . IQue siga el son! Los viejos llderes sonrlen y hablan despues desde un balcdn, iLa zafra! jLa zafra! jLa zafra! iQue siga el son! The reliance of many of Cuba's political leaders upon the United States has always been a "sore spot" with the more vocal of the island's nationalists.^ Part four (pp. 59-60) of "West Indies Ltd." depicts the misery of the poor cane workers of the Antilles. Here the author also speaks of the corruption that has resulted from foreign (though not specifically yankee) influence: Noches pobladas de pros'titutas , bares poblados de marineros; encrucijada de cien rutas para bandidos y bucaneros. The second son (part 5, pp. 61-62) again describes the suffering of the cane worker. Abolition of slavery in Cuba has not really meant freedom, but merely the exchange of one master for another. The new master, yankee imperial ism, is, in Guillen's opinion, even worse than the former. ■^GuillSn himself, in 1959, wrote: "Durante mSs de media centuria, hemos vivido aqui con el complejo de la enmienda Platt, con el temor de que 1vinieran los americanos'. Los politicos al uso, desde Estrada Palma, que no encontrd mejor salida que llamar- los en su ayuda, hasta Batista, que recibid de ellos armas y dinero, tuvieron siempre los ojos vueltos hacia Washington." (Prosa de prisa, op. cit., p. 184). 204 Because of the new master the cane worker is so miserable that he would be better off dead: si me muriera ahora mismo, mi madre, Jqud alegre me iba a poner! In part six (pp. 62-63) the West Indies are referred to as a prison: Este es el presidio donde cada hombre tiene atados los pies, where the yankees force the helpless natives to live under the worst conditions imaginable: Esta es la grotesca sede de companies [y trusts. Este es el pueblo del all right, donde todo se encuentra muy mal; este el pueblo del very well, donde nadie estci bien. and where yankee influence has corrupted and permeated almost every aspect of life: Aqui estdn los que Chilian: hello baby, y fuman "Chesterfield" y "Lucky Strike". Aqux estan los bailadores de fox trots, los boys del jazz band y los veraneantes de Miami y de Palm Beach. In this section Guilldn uses the technique of con trast quite effectively. First he introduces the plight of the miserably ignorant workers— " ... los que reman en la- grimas." On the other hand he presents the yankee exploit ers , living in luxurious boredom and seemingly unaware of the agony and suffering which are the bases of their wealth. "Maracas" (p. 67) is an extended metaphor in which the maraca, a typically Cuban instrument, becomes the symbol 205 of two kinds of Cubans. One type are the maracas which patronize the yankee: De dos en dos, las maracas se adelantan al yanqui para decirle: — <i,C6mo estci usted, sehor? These same maracas are the ones which welcome the yankee tourist trade and sell their ideals .for the tourists' cash: Cuando hay un barco a la vista, estcin ya las maracas en el puerto, vigilando la presa excursionista con ojo vivo y ademSn despierto. iMaraca equilibrista, giiiro aduldn del d6lar del turista! The second type of maracas are the Cubans who place more value on their national heritage than on yankee dollars. In "Cancidn de los hombres perdidos" (pp. 73-75) Guillen reiterates the idea that Cuba is losing her own identity because Cubans have assimilated so many North Amer ican characteristics. He maintains that "Somos las sombras de otros hombres," and that his people have been mercilessly exploited until "Secos estamos como piedra." In "Sabas" (p. 79) Guillen, in an indirect manner, protests Cuba's eternal submission to the United States. Sablis is a Negro who, rather than assert himself and demand what is his, goes about begging--humiliating himself. Sablis represents the Cuban republic, constantly at the mercy of the United States. The poet says: Yo vi a Sablis, el negro sin veneno, pedir su pan de puerta en puerta. (LPor qu£, Sablis, la mano abierta? (Este Sablis es un negro bueno) . 206 The United States domination of the sugar industry allows Cuba to barely survive; yet some Cubans are grateful for this meager sustenance. Guillen considers this humble attitude detrimental to national pride, and he exhorts Cubans to shun it: Aungue te den el pan, el pan es poco, y menos ese pan de puerta en puerta. £.Por qud, Sabcis, la mano abierta? {Este Sabcis es un negro loco) . They must take what is theirs, by force if necessary: Coge tu pan, pero no lo pidas; coge tu luz, coge tu esperanza cierta como a un caballo por las brindas. pero no con la mano abierta. Even if they fail in their attempt to confront their ex ploiters, death is better than this submission: La muerte, a veces, es buena amiga, y el no comer, cuando es preciso para comer, el pan sumiso, tiene belleza. and the important thing is that Cubans cease being dominated by the yankees— that they not yield in docile resignation: iCaramba, Sabas, no seas tan loco! iSab&s, no seas tan bruto, ni tan bueno! Espaha ~ 7 n Although the poems of Espana are not concerned with the anti-yankee theme, the collection does contain at uNicolas Guillen, Espana, poema en cuatro angustias y una esperanza (Mexico, 1937). 207 least two passages which manifest Guillen's feelings on the subject. In "La voz esperanzada" (PP* 90-94) he speaks of the Cuban as a slave of yankee sugar barons: esclavo ayer de mayorales blancos duenos de lcitigos col^ricos; hoy esclavo de rojos yanquis azucareros y voraces; He refers again to the semi-feudal state of hopelessness to which the Cuban has been relegated by yankee imperialism: Nada importa morir al cabo, pues morir no es tan gran suceso; malo es ser libre y estar preso, malo, estar libre y ser esclavoI Cantos para soldados y sones para turistas- Guilldn compensates for Espana1s lack of anti-yankee manifestations in Cantos para soldados y sones para turis- tas.^l The first half of the book deals with soldiers— more specifically, with militaristic rule; and the poems, in gen- 2 2 eral, are not pertinent to this study. There are, howev er, a few references to the anti-yankee theme. In "Soldado as! no he de ser" (pp. 1000-102), for example, Guillen registers his disapproval of yankee “ ^Nicolcis Guillen, Cantos para soldados y sones para turistas (Mexico, 1937). ^While Guill§n was preparing this work, very little value was placed on human life in the Cuba ruled by Batista and his feared soldiers. The first half of the book is an attack upon the dictatorship. 208 absentee ownership of Cuban sugar fields and mills: Soldado asi quiero ser. El que no cuida el central^ que no es ddl. "Yanqui con soldado" (pp. 104-105) is an exception: the entire poem concentrates on the anti-yankee theme. A soldier is guarding the house of an American diplomat in Havana. This diplomat is a typical yankee; but, even worse, he represents the yankee government directly and, therefore, is responsible for destroying Cuba's dreams and hopes. Guilldn begins the poem: Grave, junto a la puerta del yanqui diplomatico, vela un soldado el sueho de quien mi ensueho ahoga; ese cangrejo hervido, de pensamiento hep&tico, dueho de mi esperanza, del palo y de la soga. When the soldier asks Guillen who he is, he replies that he is one " ... a quien el que cuidas, pan y tierra suprime." It is ironic that the soldier is guarding a yankee. Someday he will realize that it is the same yankee who is responsible for Cuba's inferiority complex and is depriving the island of its life-blood: Ya sabres algftn dia ... como el mismo brazo que ayer lo hizo mendigo, engorda hoy con la sangre que de tu pecho .exprime. The second part of the collection consists of the sones para turistas. Here Guillin is very bitter in his denunciation of the insensitive North American tourists who central is a community sugar mill that services several different plantations. 209 flocked to Cuba in the 19 3 0's. In "Josd Ram6n Cantaliso" (pp. 112-113), Cantaliso sings the miseries of the Cuban people, slowly and clearly, in the hopes of awakening his countrymen to the dangers of yankee imperialism. He also hopes to insult the yankee tourists who gather around to listen. En bares, bachas, bachatas, a los turistas a gatas y a los nativos tambi^n, a todos, el son preciso Jose Ramon Cantaliso les canta liso, muy liso, para que lo entiendan bien. But Cantaliso has no intentions of entertaining the carefree tourists? his songs are protest, and Por eso de fiesta en fieste, con su guitarra protesta. "Cantaliso en un bar" (pp. 114-115) is a violent attack upon the yankee tourists, who have plenty of money, but no heart. Cantaliso is in a bar when some tourists approach him. They want to pay him to perform some typical Cuban songs; but he becomes irate. He'll sing, he says, but not what they want to hear: No me paguen porque cante lo que no les cantard; ahora tendrdn que escucharme todo lo que antes call§. These "ugly americans" are concerned only with drinking, spending their money, and buying souvenirs. But they can't buy Cantaliso. He sings about them whether they like it or not: 2 1 0 Gasten su plata, beban su alcol, comprense un gtiiro, pero a mi no, pero a mi no, pero a mi no. Cantaliso continues his harangue: Todos estos yanquis rojos son hijos de camardn, y los pari6 una botella, una botella de ron. and finally he becomes even more adamant. He tells the tourists that they are not welcome in Cuba where they have come to gloat while Cantaliso and his countrymen suffer in abject poverty: iQui^n los llamS? Ustedes viven, me muero yo, comen y beben, pero yo no, pero yo no, pero yo no. "Visita a un solar" (pp. 115-117) intensifies the theme. The same Cantaliso offers to act as guide for the bored tourists. They want to see "something different" for a change. He takes them to a typical solar— a Havana slum tenement, where, he tells them they will find plenty of "local color." 'They are told: Mejor que en hotel de lujo, quSdense en este solar; aqui encontrarSn de sobra lo que alia no han de encontrar. He wants the tourists to meet the inhabitants of the solar. First to be introduced is Juan Cocinero. In lan- 2 1 1 guage that is a sardonic mockery of the typical tour guide, Cantaliso points out the poverty of Juan: Voy a presentar, sehores, a Juan Cocinero: tiene una mesa, tiene una silla. Juan also has an old oil stove, but neither oil to burn nor food to cook. Cantaliso continues: TVerlm qu£ alegre, que placentero, qu£ alimentado, qug complacido pasa la vida Juan Cocinero! Juan can contain himself no longer, and he inter rupts. With what one yankee tourist spends on drinks alone, he says, a person could pay his rent: I Con lo que un turista traga nada mSs que en aguardiente cualquiera un cuarto se paga! Next they encounter Luis, a candymaker, Carlos, Pedro, Norberto, and a colored girl named Petra. Poverty stricken, they all live in one cheap room and share the rent. Cantaliso says sarcastically to the tourists, "See what high-class people live here!": |QuS gente, quS gente tan consecuente! At this point the people who share the room interrupt: With what one yankee tourist spends on booze every day, a whole month's rent each one of us could pay. 4 2 d Translation mine. See also: Langston Hughes and Ben F. Carruthers, Cuha Libre, Poems of Nicolas Guillen (Los Angeles, 1948), p. 41. 2 1 2 Finally, the tour group comes upon Juana. She is dying of tuberculosis which developed from a cold from which, because of lack of proper care, she never completely recovered. Cantaliso points her out to the group: Y la que tose, senores, sobre esa cama, se llama Juana: tuberculosis en tercer grado, por un resfriado muy mal curado. Sick as she was, Juana hadn't eaten all day. How silly of her, Cantaliso interjects, when there's so much food to waste: La muy idiota pasaba el dia sin un bocado. iQuS tonterial iTanta comida que se ha botado! Again Cantaliso's son is interrupted. With what just one yankee tourist spent on liquor, Juana's illness probably could have been cured: I Con lo que un yanqui ha gastado no mils en comprar botellas se hubiera Juana curadoI The lives of these tenement dwellers, their suffer ing and illnesses, the poverty and filth in which they must live, the squalor, and the hunger are expressed with great irony. Cantaliso concludes the tour by inviting all the tourists to stay on at the solar and have a good time. He says : iTuristas, quedense aqui, que voy a hacerlos gozar; que voy a hacerlos gozar, 213 cantcLndoles sones - sones que no se pueden bailar! El son entero The anti-yankee theme is continued in El son entero.25 Cuba remains a sad captive, subjected to yankee oppression; but the tourist— the outsider— sees only the pleasant things he want's to- see. In "Mi patria es dulce por fuera" (pp. 124-126) Guillen reaffirms this idea in the first stanza: Mi patria es dulce por fuera, y muy amarga por dentro; and again in the third: Bajo tu risa ligera, yo que te cohozco tanto, miro la sangre y el llanto, bajo tu risa ligera. Conditions for the poor are as bad as ever. Independence for Cuba meant simply exchanging Spanish domination for yankee control: Hoy yanqui, ayer espahola, si, senor, la tierra que nos toed, siempre el pobre la encontro si hoy yanqui, ayer espahola, IComo no! In "Sudor y lUtigo" (p. 127) Guillen manifests his hatred for the sugar barons. He speaks of a Negro found in the field, beaten and bloody. The Negro represents Cuba, exploited by the yankee sugar barons: 2^Nicol^s Guillen, El son entero, suma poetica 1929- 1946 (Buenos Aires, 1947). 214 Lcitigo. Sudor y lcitigo. El sol despertd temprano y encontrd al negro descalzo, desnudo el cuerpo llagado, sobre el campo. Sweat and the whip!— these are the terms brought to the poet's mind when he thinks about yankee imperialism. Guilldn commiserates with Venezuela, which, he believes, shares with Cuba a common enemy: foreign impe rialism. In both countries foreign capital, British and especially North American, dominated the national economy. In "Son Venezolano" (pp. 137-13 8) the poet draws a compari son. Venezuela's oil has the same bitter taste as Cuba's sugar--the taste of foreign exploitation: iqud petrdleo tan amargo, caramba, ay, que amargo este petrdleo, caramba, que a azticar cubano sabe! Economic exploitation of both countries has led to foreign domination in other sectors of national life. The poet continues: La misma mano extranjera que estd sobre mi bandera, la estoy mirando en La Habana: ipobre bandera cubana, cubana o venezolana, con esa mano extranjera, inglesa o americana, manddndonos desde fuera! "Pero que te pueda ver" (pp. 14 6-157) is signifi cant. Guilldn believed that yankee interference was slowly 215 killing Cuba, but killing in such a way that many Cubans could not see what was happening.- - * ' The island was being lulled to sleep by the lies of the yankees, who would kill it in its sleep: Si es gue me guieres matar, no esperes a gue me duerma, pues no podr§ despertar. But Guillen exhorts the yankee to drop the facade of the good neighbor and to expose his treacherous claws so that all may see: Matame al aitianecer, o de noche, si tu guieres; pero gue te pueda ver la mano; pero gue te pueda ver las unas; pero gue te pueda ver. La paloma de vuelo popular After Castro's revolution Guillen reached new heights in his anti-yankee poetry. La paloma de vuelo popu lar^ published in 19 59, offers many examples of the nega tive approach of the poet's search for cubanidad. In "Un largo lagarto verde"27 he maintains that the exploitation of the yankee sugar barons made Cuba a slave: 2®Nicol£s Guillen, La paloma de vuelo popular, Ele- gias (Buenos Aires, 1959). 2^Ibid., pp. 11-12. All subseguent page citations, in parentheses, refer to this work. Alta corona de aztacar le tejen agudas cafias; no por coronada'libre, si de su corona esclava: and that although viewed from the outside she looks like a queen, those on the inside know that she is the saddest of sad vassals— a vassal of the imperialists: reina del manto hacia fuera, del manto adentro, vasalla, triste como la mSs tr-iste. "Canaveral" (p. 13) presents the paradox of the bitter taste of the sweet juice of the sugar cane. The bitter taste in the mouth of Cuba is the memory of yankee exploitation of her sugar industry: Dulce caha me provoca con su jugo azucarado, el cual despu^s de probado siempre es amarga en la boca. The question of North American contamination of Cuban culture is encountered again in "Deportes" (pp. 15- 18). Guillin asks if it is really so important to know the jargon of yankee sports: £Qu£ s§ yo de boxeo, yo, que confundo el jab con el upper cut? He asks: iPensHis tal vez que yo no puedo decir tanto, porque confundo el j ab con el upper cut? In "Cancion de cuna para despertar a un negrito" (pp. 19-20) the poet calls for the final destruction of the yankee exploiter. He deserves to be burned alive on red-hot \ coals: IQue muera el arao, ■ muera en la brasa! He calls on Cubans to build a wall to keep the evils of imperialism out forever. In "Muralla" (pp. 20-21) the yankee imperialist is a poison which must never be allowed to infect Cuba again. He is a dagger which must not be per mitted to rip Cuba's heart from her again, and, finally, he is a venomous snake who must never be allowed to slither through the cane fields again. The wall, built by all Cubans joining hands, will keep the enemy out: al veneno y al puhal, cierra la muralla; al diente de la serpiente, cierra la muralla. "El bander6n" (pp. 23-24) re-creates the picture of Guillen's concept of a typical yankee, whip in hand, imped ing Cuba's development. Guillen says: sd que sofoca tu cancifin un yanqui alii, lcitigo en mano. He then goes on to attack his idea of corrupt United States diplomats and other officials who invaded Cuba over the years. Mr. Smith, symbolizing them all, is presented as a baboon from Washington who drinks on the job: mister Smith, un cuadrdmano de la selva de Guasint6n. Hay coctel en la legaci6n. Un yanqui alii, lcitigo en mano. "Canci6n puertorriquena" (pp. 31-32) is a rather sarcastic piece in which Guillen chastizes Puerto Rico. She 218 has given up her heritage in order to become an associate of the yankees. The poet inquires: <iC6mo est&s, Puerto Rico, tft de socio asociado en sociedad? iqu£ suave honor andar del brazo, brazo con brazo, del Tio Sami Guillen believes that the island has assimilated North American culture to such an extent that even her Spanish language has been corrupted. He continues the barrage of .questions: c,En qu§ lengua me entiendes, en quS lengua te podr£ hablar, si en yes, si en si, si en bien, si en well, si en mal, si en bad, si en very bad? "Little Rock" (pp. 33-34) is an. attack upon racial prejudice in the United States. Guillln notes that the Negroes in the U.S. suffer just as the Cubans did under yankee domination: El sur bianco sacude su lcitigo y golpea . . . and that En aquel mundo faubus, los ninos negros pueden no ir juntos a los blancos a la escuela. He calls upon Cubans to imagine the horrors of el mundo todo Sur, el mundo todo sangre y todo lcitigo, el mundo todo yanqui, todo Faubus ... 219 that exists in the United States. Racial prejudice is not the only United States evil that Guillen attacks. He devotes an entire nonsense-type poem to the late Senator McCarthy. The "Pequeha letania grotesca en la muerte del senadpr McCarthy" (pp. 37-38) ends with these lines: He aqui el senador McCarthy, McCarthy muerto, muerto McCarthy, bien muerto y muerto, Amen. "La cancidn del regreso" (pp* 43-44) is a comment on the beauty and happiness of life in the land of bamboo. An indirect comparison is drawn between the yankee who once dominated Cuba and the Mandarin who despotically ruled _ China. Guillen says that the Chinese are a happy people now because: No hay ni un yanqui ya en Shanghai. Pekin enterro al mandarin. In "Ciudades" (pp. 47-48), one of the five cities considered is PanamoL. This city, overrun by the yankees-, has lost any hopes for independence. Those hopes are merely vague dreams— vague and unattainable. Guillen asks the Panamanian: Hermano panameho: £No suenas con Hostos y Marti? — Sueho. — Yes? — Si. 2 2 0 "A Guatemala" (p. 57) compares yankee exploitation of Cuba's sugar fields to that of Guatemala's banana lands. The two countries, according to the poet, have one common enemy— the yankee imperialist. He says: Canaveral y platanal, oscura sangre derraman de una misma herida de punal, en la misma noche oscura. But in "Balada Guatemalteca" (PP* 59.-60) Guillen predicts that, like Cuba, Guatemala will soon be rid of that vora cious yankee eagle. He says that over Guatemala iba el eiguila imperial, las duras alas tendidas sobre la tierra y el mar. Hoy vuela y vuela, mahana ya no la veras volar. In "Sputnik 57" (pp. 95-105), a long poem in praise of Russia's great achievement in space, the poet ridicules the United States reaction to the accomplishment. He speaks of Panico y ediciones extras de los periodicos. Consultas al Pentcigono. Radio-television ofrece, en vez de asesinatos y.canciones, el discurso de un sabio melanc61ico que promete la luna a fin de ano ... "Elegla Cubana" (pp. 109-114) talks of the might of the enemy only ninety miles from Cuba. This•dangerous foe has "una flota bSrbara," a "montana de oro" to back it up, and many soldiers: ... soldados ciegos, sordos, armados por el miedo y el odio. 2 2 1 Later in the poem Guillen warns Cubans of the ever-present danger of attack from the "pSjaro sangriente que desde el Norte desparrama muerte." v1 "Elegla a Emmett Till" (pp. 121-124), on the other hand, reaffirms the evils of racial prejudice in the United States. The elegy begins: En Norteam^rica, la Rosa de los Vientos tiene el petalo sur rojo de sangre. The metaphor is interesting and new, new at least for Guillen: the United States is a rose whose apparent beauty is marred by a blood-tinged petal— the bleeding South. To illustrate the hypocracy and cruelty of the yankee, Guillen tells of the fate of a young Negro boy who was foolish enough to admire a white girl, even from afar: Un nino negro asesinado y solo, que una rosa de amor arrojd al paso de una nifia blanca. The theme is continued in "Elegia a Jesfis Menendez" (pp. 139-157). After attacking United States corporations, especially the United Fruit Company, Guillen turns again to racial prejudice in the U.S. His victim is the South: y encendiendo las tres letras f atld-icas, con que se anuncian el Ku Klux Klan, lanzan al Sur un alarido unSnime; iVa por la muerte, por la muerte va! where the Negro is still under the whip of yankee bigotry: Alegre est& Jim Crow junto al sarcdfago. Lo viene Lynch a saludar. ' Entre los dos se desenreda un IStigo: iVa por la muerte, por la muerte va.! 2 2 2 It is in Tengo,2^ his most recent collection, that Guillen reaches the peak of his anti-yankee poetry. It is significant that the poem which opens the book is extremely hostile; it sets the mood and the tone for those Which 'fol low. "Bonsai, 1959"29 (pp. 19-20) refers to the yankee ambassador to Castro's Cuba as a lead-headed animal with a lethal tongue: Bonsai llego en el viento. Este Bonsai es el Embajador. Animal ojiazul, pelipltimbeo, de color rojicarne, que habla un ingles letal. In1the second stanza Guilldn says that Bonsai brought " ... el d61ar y el dolor" to Cuba. In return he wanted Que la gente medite, no que proteste o grite. about his proposals for moderation and modification of the revolution's land reform and nationalization (of foreign industries and businesses) programs. The Cubans' answer: "— No, sehor." The Ambassador is again the subject in the poem "Como del cielo llovido" (pp. 158-160), which Guillen dedi cated "Al Embajador yanqui, Bonsai, que trajo una 'nota' de su gobierno al gobierno revoluci.onario cubano. " The 2®Nicolcis GuillSn, Tengo (La Habana, 1964) . All subsequent page citations, in parentheses, refer to this work. 2 9 Philip W. Bonsai was the United States Ambassador to Cuba from 1959 to 19 61. 223 Ambassador had left Cuba when his proposals were not well received. He returned, however, to the surprise of many Cubans— especially GuillSn. This return occasioned the poem. This time, according to the poet, the Ambassador was not as talkative as before; his "muzzle" was adjusted. Como deJ. cielo llovido cuando nadie lo esperaba, regresd el Embajador desde su pais natal, bien ajustado el bozal, - - pues hablar poco es mejor. Rather, he brought a "note" from Washington, objecting to the scope of Castro's agrarian reform program. The real reason Washington was objecting, according to Guillen, was porque la reforma agraria nos pone en pie en nuestra tierra. Cuba's reply this time: iVaya con Bonsai, que tipo fatalI 3 "Tengo" (pp. 21-23) is the second poem and the one that gives its name to the collection. In a tone of high exaltation the author sings of all he has because of the Castro revolution. For example, he has the pleasure of knowing that the Cubans now own Cuba (the yankees owned it before) and all her resources: ^Bonsai appears for the third time in the collec tion in "Frente al 'Oxford'" (p. 32), and for the fourth time in "Floripondito" (p. 176). Tengo, vamos a ver, tengo el gusto de andar por [mi pais, dueno de cuanto hay en 61. and that the yankees no longer control the finances of the- island: tengo el gusto de ir a un banco y hablar con el [administrador, no en ingl6s, no en senor, sino decirle companero como se [dice en espanol. Among the other things he "has" which make him happy are: no country, no high-life, no tennis y no yacht. "Crecen altas las flores" (pp. 24-29) continues the theme. North America is depicted as a "monstruo de dos cabezas"— one republican, the other democratic— which is trying to deceive the Cuban people. The Alliance for Prog ress is, according to Guill6n, a trap: "no importa que nos hable de alianza y de progreso." It is merely another yankee plot to drain Cuba's life-blood from her: Vienen pues a ayudarnos para que progresemos, y en pago de su ayuda nuestra sangre les demos. On the other hand, he continues, there are indeed some yankee alliances which are very sincere. For example, Alianza de Rockerfeller con Mr. Ford: lo creo. 225 Alianza de Standard con la United: pues claro.^ Alianza del Chase Bank con el World Bank ... The presence of the United States Navy ship Oxford, anchored outside the entrance of Havana harbor in 19 62 as an "observer," furnished Guillen the subject for one of his most blistering denunciations of the U.S. In "Frente al 'Oxford'" (pp. 30-32) the ship becomes a symbol: it is John F. Kennedy,^2 the robber who "quiere robarme digo mi libertad"; it is Walker the "pirata" and "cobarde"; it is Truman, who "Lleno de verde pus las venas“de Hiroshima"; it is the insipid Ambassador Bonsai, with his "yes y el very good y el ok£i it is Senator McCarthy, who played with human lives and was a servant of Al Capone-type gangsters ("Alcapones servidos de macartis violentos"); and finally, it is the United'States Marines. The marines seem to fare worst in this poem. In his description of them Guillen is especially bitter: 3-*-The Standard Oil Company and the United Fruit Com pany are two of the United States companies most hated by Latin Americans. Op ?---- — Guillen attacks Kennedy in the articles "<LY ahora?" and "Si hubiera boniatos." (See: Guillen, Prosa de prisa, op. cit., pp.. .309 , 30 2.) ■^In his article "La lucha de nuestro tiempo" Guillen attacks the "politica agresora del Presidente Tru man," and in "Entre asteriscos" he refers to Truman's role in the bombing of Hiroshima as "el asesinato colectivo mds salvaje que registra la historia." (See: Prosa de prisa, op. cit. , pp. 119, 134.) 226 Son los sucios marines borrachos que caminan con zapatos de e¥ti¥rcol sobre bestiales rutas y en la sagrada frente de los hdroes orinan y ven en nuestras hijas nocturnas prostitutas.^4 "A11S lejos" (pp. 33-38) is a condemnation both of yankee influences that have impeded the development of cuba- nidad and of those Cubans who were guilty of perpetuating those influences by attaching an exaggerated importance to them. First the poet sets the stage: Para algunos, ser yanqui en aquella Spoca era como ser casi sagrado. and then proceeds to list some examples of the extent to which United States culture had permeated every sector of Cuban society. Cuban politics, for example, was subject to "la enmienda Platt," the "intervencidn armada" by the U.S. Marines, and such people as Magoon, whom GuillSn describes in this poem as a gangster obeso y gobernador, entre ladrones, el Ladron.35 Later in the collection Guillen devotes an entire poem to the Marines. In "Marines U.S.A." (pp. 43-44) he refers to them as, among other things, "yanquipiratas del Mar Caribe" who always "van con la mano de robar." 35Magoon, always a "sore spot" among Cuban national ists (see Chapter II, pp. 23-24 of this dissertation) and one of Guillen's favorite whipping boys, is also mentioned in "Canta el sinsonte en el Turquino" (pp. 50-53). In that poem he represents the yankee domination of Cuba's political development (which Castro remedied): 227 ... el American Club. Habla el Miramar Garden (con lo fcicil que es jardin en espanol) . Habia la Cuban Telephone. The implications in "All£ lejos," then, are extreme ly far-reaching. Political, military, economic, and cul tural influences all receive attention here. "Unidn Sovietica" (pp. 39-42) is, in my opinion, more anti-American than pro-Russian. In this poem Guilldn advises Cubans that they are wise to ally themselves with the Soviet Union. In presenting justification for his position, many of the reasons he offers are merely paralyp- tical attacks on the United States. For example, he points out that in Cuba Jamcis he visto un trust sovi^tico . . . Ni un banco. Ni tampoco un ten cents. Ni un central. Ni una estaci6n naval. The second stanza continues the paralypsis: En nuestro mar nunca encontr^ piratas de Moscfi. Ni bloqueo. Ni marines. Ni lanchas para infiltrar espias. and the implications are obvious. The bloqueo refers to the United States actions during the "Missile crisis," and Mr. Magoon, adi6s. Mr. Night, Mr. Shadow, adi6s. — Buenos dias, Fidel. 228 t]rie lanchas refer to the Bay of Pigs invasion. In the third stanza Guillen sees Russia and Cuba marching together, both free, "frente a un mismo enemigo que habremos de veneer II In "Cualquier tiempo pasado fue peor" (pp- 46-49) the poet praises the Castro revolution for having put an end to many of the evils that formerly kept Cubans from develop ing a true sense of national identity. An interesting and original metaphor employs a hypothetical Cuban baseball team to symbolize yankee domination of the island's most impor tant positions (political, economic, and social) while Cubans were relegated to the lowest ones. Guillen describes "Un club cubano de beisbol" in this manner: Primera base: Charles Little. Segunda base: Joe Cobb. Catcher: Samuel Benton. Tercera base: Bobby Hog. Short stop: James Wintergarden. Y menos mal el cargabates: Juan Guzmltn. Three consecutive poems renew the attack on racial prejudice in the United States. "EstS bien" (pp. 61-63) is an ironic piece in which Guillen urges the "negro del Sur crucificado" to keep on singing his "spirituals" while he rises up against his oppressors and kills them.36 o c . Similar advice is given to the Negro in the metro politan slums of the North in "Un negro canta en Nueva York" (pp. 127-128). ";Ay, que tristeza tengo!" (pp. 151-152) warns Cuban exiles in Miami that they will be mistreated and discriminated against there because they are Mulattoes. 229 "Gobernador" (p. 64), a short, sarcastic poem, lists the qualifications a yankee must possess in order to become governor of his state. For example: Cuando hayas ensehado tu perro a abalanzarse sobre un negro y arrancarle el higado de un bocado, alSgrate, ya puedes ioh bianco! ser gobernador de tu Estado. ' The third poem of the series, "Escolares" (p. 65), is a quartet which attacks the racism indoctrinated in yankee children by their elders. The scene is Alabama; but, on a broader plane, "Escolares" is an indictment of the socio-political system that allows such conditions to exist. The tone is at the same time bitter and sarcastic: Cumplieron sus tareas (practicas) los [escolarizados muchachos blancos de Alabama: cada uno presents una rama de flamboyant, con cinco negros ahorcados. "Oh, General en tu PentSgono!" (pp. 85-86) attacks the United States military policies. Among the charges GuillSn levies are germ warfare: - , Manipulas frascos de tifus, menigitis en celoftn, y bombardeas los pulmones con una mosca pulmonar. and premeditated murder: ■^The history of the United States is certainly not devoid of men like Orville Faubus and George Wallace. This poem, however, suggests that racist governors are the rule rather than the exception. _ - 2 30 trotas con un cuchillo en alto y cuentas ya todos los muertos que vas de un golpe a sepul£ar. In "Coplas americanas" (pp. 93-96) Guillen revives the theme of yankee interference and influence in the Carib bean. He asks Puerto Rico: quiero saber por qu£ dice, siempre dice, dice siempre, dice: yes. This verse contains two implications pertinent to the study: first, Yankee political domination has relegated Puerto Rico to a position of total submission to the wishes of the United States; second, yankee influences have permeated Puerto Rican culture to such an extent that not even her language retains its former aspect of the island's cultural heritage. It is bad enough that Puerto Rico always answers yankee requests affirmatively; it is even worse that her affirmation is an English yes rather than a Spanish si. "Abril sus flores abrla" (pp.’ 103-104), inspired by the 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion, retells the story of the failure of the traitorous participants ("Pagados estSn en d61ares") to carry out their mission. Guillen reminds Cubans that the yankees were behind the plot: y en ingles 6rdenes tienen de que en Cuba ni un ensueho, ni una flor, ni un clrbol quede. An interesting aspect of Guillen's approach in Tengo is his metaphoric use of animals. The United States is 231 depicted as a gluttonous buffalo who devoured Cuba’s sugar fields in "Estci el bisonte imperial" (pp. 105-106) and as an impure pirate bison whose booty was Cuba in "D^cimas" (pp. 120-122). It becomes an ugly gringo wolf preying upon the Canal in "Panaml" (pp. 129-130). — In "Se acabo" (pp. 142-143) Fidel Castro is praised for having broken the strap used by the yankees to beat Cuba into submission: se acab6 el cuero de manatl con que el yanqui te pego. and for having rescued Cuba's sugar industry from the claws of the yankee thieves (" ... uhas de yanquis ladrones"). Both "jAbur, don Pepe!" (p. 147) and "Al mismo indi- viduo" (p. 148), which denounce alleged undercover attempts by the United States to interfere with the Castro revolu tion,^^ are dedicated to ... Jos£ Figueres, de Costa Rica, que vino a Cuba para dividir la revolucidn, enviado por los yanquis. On the other hand, "Letrilla cubana" (pp. 149-150) and "Son del Bloqueo" (pp. 153-154) deal with a more overt form of yankee interference: the United States' blockade of Cuba 3 8A similar yankee "trick" is the subject of "Tour ing for Trujillo" (pp. 155-157). This poem is dedicated to "unos soldados yanquis que el gobierno de Trujillo calific6 de 'turistas' y que desembarcaron en la Repfiblica Dominicana para proteger al dictador." 232 during the "Missile crisis" of 1962. while "Letrilla cubana" extends its condemnation to the United States in general ("un tal por cual," "el enemigo brutal, " "el deco- rado animal,"), the "Son del Bloqueo" specifically singles out former President Kennedy to bear the brunt of the attack. In a "nonsense-poem," similar to the "pequeha letania" to Senator McCarthy, Guillen exclaims: Kennedy con su bloqueo nos quiere cerrar el mar, Quenedl, quenedci, afeitar a los barbudos, volvernos a esclavizar. Quenedi, queneda, Quenedci. In summary, Nicolds Guill§n's work is abundant with examples of anti-yankee sentiment. His belief that United States interference in Cuba impeded the development of a Cuban national consciousness is manifested in his poetry. Furthermore, investigation of his poetic production indi cates that Guillen's preoccupation with and denunciation of the yankees has steadily increased both in quantity and in intensity. ■^Guill^n has stated that both poems were written during the crisis (p. 149). CHAPTER VIII CONCLUSIONS History delineates the roles played by the Negro and by the United States in Cuba. In the earliest days of the colonial period, Negro slaves were brought to the island to replace the depleted Indian population in providing labor for the Spanish. These Negroes came in ever-increasing numbers, and, clinging to their African customs and traditions, they nevertheless mingled and mated with the whites, with whom they formed the foundations of Cuba's mulatto culture. The Negro also formed the base of the sugar industry, and he was relegated to the lowest class of colonial society. Cuba's independence was achieved in 189 8, not as the result of war between the colony and the mother country, but as a consequence of the war between the United States and Spain. From that time it was the United States, more than any other country, which exercised the dominant role in Cuba's history and development. Because of the island's strategic location in refer ence to the United States' Caribbean policy, Yankee-Cuban 233 234 relations have completed a cycle: from direct intervention and control under the Platt Amendment, to indirect control by "dollar diplomacy," to direct expulsion of U.S. interests and controls by Fidel Castro. After the United States brought about Cuba's inde pendence, the island's economic structure did not change radically. Control of commerce and of methods of production continued to rest in the hands of the same landowners who had exploited these resources in the colonial period. Much political and most economic power accrued to these exploit ers, the great majority of whom were 'North Americans. Many of the psychological and social ramifications of slavery lingered on well into the twentieth century, even though Cubans had theoretically achieved racial equality with the establishment of the Republic. And while all Cubans were equal according to the law, in everyday reality there still existed practices and mental attitudes which discriminated against colored Cubans. In spite of the significance of the contributions of the mulattoes in the intellectual, political, and economic development of the country, there existed a denial not only of their rights, but also of their capabilities. From the time he abandoned the escapist world of the Modernists to become actively involved in the real world that surrounded him, Nicolas Guillen has functioned as a diagnostician of Cuba's ills. His diagnosis: Cuba suffers from an acute lack of cubanidad. Guillen was convinced that there were two main fac tors impeding the development of cubanidad: one was the lack of appreciation of the contributions of the Negro to Cuban society; the other factor was United States influence on and control of Cuba's politics, economy, and society.-*- Early in life he set for himself the task of helping his country find the cubanidad he was convinced she so desperately needed in order to develop a national conscious ness. The first step toward this goal must be the removal of the impediments, according to Guillen. He launched his search on this basis. Examination of Nicolas Guillen's entire poetic pro duction has revealed this phenomenon: a positive, poetical manifestation of his affirmation of the importance of Negro contributions to Cuba's mulatto culture. The phenomenon is manifested in a negative way in the poet's denunciation of the United States. Chronological analysis of Guillen's poetry indicates a trend of progression in his approach, from the extremely positive, in 1930, to the extremely negative in 1964. Motivos de son (1930) is at the extreme positive end of. the spectrum. Each of the eight motivos is a manifesta- -*-Guill{ln confirmed these factors in a letter to Arthur Schomburg, dated October 27, 1932. (Arthur Schom- burg, compiler, Nicolas Guillen Scrapbook, n.d., not paged.) 236 tion of Guillen's positive approach; each of them affirms the Negro heritage of Cuba. One motivo, however, illus trates both the positive and the negative approaches ("Tta no sabe inglS"). Songoro cosongo (1931) is primarily concerned with the positive approach. In this collection Guillen proudly presents the primitive qualities of the African ancestors of today's Cuban. ("Rumba," "Canci6n del bongo," and "Mujer nueva," for example.) But along with the pride there is an increase in the negative note ("Pequeha oda a un negro boxeador cubano" and "Caha"). It is still restrained, but much more specific than it was in the subtle example in the Motivos. . In West Indies Ltd. (1934) Guillen maintains a close balance between the two approaches. Manifestations of the African heritage ("Sensemayi," "Balada de los dos abuelos") probably slightly outnumber the anti-yankee poems ("West Indies Ltd.," "Maracas"), but the anti-yankee note is much more intense than before. The first part of Cantos para soldados y sones para turistas (1937), concerned with soldiers and dictatorships, does not lend itself to this study. However, the second part is a blistering attack upon United States tourists ("Visita a un solar," "Cantaliso en un bar"). But it is probably in El son entero (1947) that the balance begins shifting toward emphasis of the negative approach. This 237 collection contains many poems of Negro affirmation ("Son nllmero 6," "Un son para ninos antillanos"), but Guillen increases the anti-yankee note ("Mi patria es .dulce por fuera," "Son venezolano") to such an extent that the nega tive manifestations seem to outweigh the positive ones. By the time La paloma de vuelo popular (195 8) was published, Guillen was well-established in his propagandis- ; tic phase. The poems of this collection are overwhelmingly manifestations of his anti-yankee sentiments ("El Bandeiin," "Little Rock"), while it contains only two examples of the positive approach ("Muralla," "Epistola"). However, it is in Tengo (1964) that Guillen reaches the peak of his anti-yankee poetry. Here he is extremely hostile and belligerent ("Bonsai, 19 59," "Tengo," "Frente al 'Oxford'"), and the few positive manifestations of his search for cubanidad in this collection are obscured by the negative ones. The positive approach of Nicolas Guillen's search for cubanidad is his striving to awaken the Cuban people to the contributions of the Negro to their mulatto culture. He combats racial discrimination by emphasizing the fact that Cuba is mulatto. He poetizes the mixture of the Spaniard and the African who dance the same son ("La canciSn del bong6"), and he describes Cuba as the offspring of one Negro grandfather and one white, both of the same size ("Balada 238 de los dos abuelos"). Two little children, one Negro, the other white, become branches of the same tree ("Dos nifios"). He uses African themes to suggest the permanence of the Negro's contribution in contemporary society ("La balada del Gtiije"). Guillen also attempts to awaken the Cuban Negro him self from the lethargic and apathetic state into which he had fallen. He is made to realize that he has had, and still has, much to contribute to the nation. The use of African themes, words, rites, customs, and rhythms is evident in many of his poems. However, Guillen's work, often erroneously designated as "Negro poetry," is never confined to dealing with fossilized Afri can cultural traits in Cuba. Reaching beyond the artificial verses of the so-called "Afro-Cuban poets," many of them "blancos pintados de negro,Guillin succeeded in inter preting the mulatto essence of Cuba, drawing his inspira tion from the authentic national culture. The negative approach to Guillen's search for cuba nidad resulted from his belief that Yankee culture had per meated all sectors of Cuban culture to an alarming extent. This belief is manifested in his poems. He described Cuba's Spanish language as contaminated with yankeeisms. The 2Rafael Est^nger, Cien de las mejores poesias cubanas (3rd ed.; La Habana^ 1950), p. 50l 239 Platt Amendment was especially repugnant to him, and his poetry manifests this repugnance. "Dollar diplomacy" was often symbolized in his works by a large sugar plantation owned by United States capital and worked by landless Cuban labor. The extent to which Guillen used his poetry as a vehicle for attacking yankee interference becomes clear upon examination of his entire poetic production. From a single instance in Motivos de son to the high-point of his propa gandists work in Tengo (4 positive examples, 31 negative) a pattern of increased militancy and intensity is discernible. Biographical data suggests that Guillen was biased and impassioned from earliest childhood. Much of his recent work indicates that this was probably true, and his current poems can be construed to be anti-yankee propaganda. These poems are a reflection of the philosophy which he himself summarized in this way: No hay mas de dos caminos: o aceptar el hecho revolu- cionario ... o emprender el trillado camino a Miami ... Por cierto que allci se convierten en criados de los yanquis.^ He has stated.that for the time being he must sacrifice his poetic art in order to participate fully in the battle against Imperialism. 3Nicolcis GuillSn, "La nueva patria," in Prosa de prisa: crSnicas (La Habana, 1962), p. 330. 240 In summary Nicolcis Guillen's search for cubanidad assumed two distinct directions. One is a positive approach, in which he affirms the mulatto essence of Cuba by emphasizing the formerly neglected contribution of the Negro. In this way he attempts to make Cubans aware of the bond they share in their rich African heritage, and to combat racial discrimi nation . The second direction is a negative approach, in which he attempts to unite his people in condemning what he considers to be the common enemy: the United States. Examination of Guillen's poems reveals that they are almost exclusively manifestations of his preoccupation with these two themes. B I B L I O G R A P H Y 241 BIBLIOGRAPHY Poems of Nicolcis Guillen Motivos de son. La Habana: Rambla, Bouza y Cia., 1930. . S6ncroro cosonao. poemas mulatos. La Habana: Rambla, Bouza y Cia.,19 31. One of a limited first edition (300) pre sented to friends and admirers of Nicolcis Guilldn is in the Schomburg Collection of the Harlem Branch of the New York Public Library. West Indies Ltd. Poemas. La Habana: Ucar, Garcia y Cia., 1934. Cantos para soldados y sones para turistas. Mexico: Edi torial Amescua, 1937. Espana, poema en cuatro angustias v una esperanza. Mexico: Editorial Mexico Nuevo.*.... 19 37 . Songoro cosongo y otros poemas. Con-una carta de don Miguel de Unamuno. La Habana: Editorial "La Verdnica," 1942. El son entero, suma podtica 1929-1946. Con una carta de D. Miguel de Unamuno, textos musicales de Eliseo y Emilio Grenet, Alejandro Garcia Caturla y Silvestre Revueltas. Buenos Aires: Editorial Pleamar, 1947. Elegla a Jacques Roumain en el cielo de. Haiti. La Habana: Editorial Yagruma, 1948. Elegla a Jesfis Menendez. La Habana: Editorial Pdginas, 1951. Sdngoro cosongo. Motivos de son. West Indies Ltd. Espaha: poema en cuatro angustias v una esperanza. Buenos Aires: Editorial Losada, 1952. Cantos para soldados v sones para turistas. El son entero. . Buenos Aires: Editorial Losada, 1952. 242 243 La paloma de vue.lo popular. Eleglas. Buenos Aires: Edi torial Losada, 1959. Tengo. Pr6logo de Jos4 Antonio Portuondo. La Habana: Uni- versidad Central de Las Villas, 1964. Antologia mayor. La Habana: Ediciones Uni6n, 1964. The most extensive anthology published to date. Articles and Other Works of Nicolcis Guillen "Charla de Nicolls Guillen en el Lyceum Lawn Tennis Club de La Habana," El Comercio (Lima), July 26, 1946. Text of a lecture given by Guillen. "Cuba: pueblo y poesia," Ultra, 2 {February, 1937), 174- 177. "Discurso de NicolSs Guillen al recibir el Premio Stalin de la Paz," Repertorio Americano, 49 (March-April, 1955), 40-41, "Discurso He Nicolcis Guillen en el Pen Club," Cuba y la USSR, April, 1948, pp. 24-25. "Informe al I Congreso de Escritores y Artistas Cubanos," IDEA, XIII (July-September, 1962), 1-2, 11. "La carcajada dolorosa de Luis Carlos Ldpez," Revista de America, June-July, 1951, pp. 440-443. Marinello, Juan, co-author. Hombres de Is Espana leal. La Habana: Editorial Facetas, 1938. Prosa de prisa: Crdnicas. Edited by Samuel Feij6o. La Habana: Universidad Central de Las Villas, 1962. A collection of selected periodical articles published by Guillen from 1938 to 1961. "Recuerdos Colombianos," Bohemia, September 26, 1948, pp. 20-21, 91, 105. Nicolcis Guillen Scrapbook. Compiled by Arthur Schomburg. New York Public Library, Harlem Branch. An unpublished collection' of letters and poems sent by Guillen to Schomburg from 1931 to 19 38. 244 Works about Nicolas Guillen Aleman, Luis. "Charla con Nicolcis Guillen, Repertorio ~ Americano, 45 (December 10, 1949), 376-378. _________. "Entrevista a Nicolcis Guillen," La pajarita de papel, October-December, 1949, pp. 78-82. Allen, Martha E. "Nicolcis Guillen, poeta del pueblo," Revista Iberoamericana, XV (July, 1949), 29-43. Altolaguirre, Manuel. "Resena sobre Sdngoro cosongo," Revista de Occidente, 36 (April-June, 1932), 381- 384 . Ardura, Ernesto. "Itinerario de la RepCiblica, " Revista Men- sual de Cultura, 24 (1954), 61-68. Artel, Jorge. "PresentaciSn de Nicolias Guillen," Voces de America, June, 1946, pp. 385-390. Augier, Angel. Nicolas Guillen: notas para un estudio biogrcifico-crltico, tomo I. La Habana: Universidad Central de Las Villas, 1962. This is a very valuable source of informa tion on Guillen's life and work up to 19 34. _________. "Presencia cubana en la vida y la obra de Nicolcis Guillen," Universidad de La Habana, 159 (January- February, 1963), 13-26. This is the manuscript of Augier1s lecture at the convocation honoring Guillen at the Univer sidad de La Habana on October 20, 1962. Barrenechea-, Julio. "Nuestro negro Guillen," Repertorio Americano, 42 (June 29, 1946), 26-27. Bartra, Agusti. "Adan negro," Cuadernos Americanos, CXXXIV (May-June, 1964), 199-218. Boti, Regino. "La poesia cubana de Nicolcis Guillen," Revista bimestre cubana, May-June, 1932, pp. 343- 353. Carpentier, Ale jo, ed. Nicolcis Guillen: sus mejores poemas. La Habana: Biblioteca bcisica de cultura cubana, n.d. Carrera Andrade, Jorge. "Nicolcis Guillen, mensajero del trdpico," Letras del Ecuador, April 23, 19 51, p. 11. 245 Carrera Andrade, Jorge. "Nicolcis. Guillen, poeta del hombre comtan y mensajero del tr6picoRevista de las Indias, 90 (June, 1946), 465-472. Carruthers, . Ben Frederic. "Eusebia Cosine and Nicolcis Guillen," Theatre Arts Monthly, 29 (November, 1945), 662-663. Cartey, Wilfrid. "Como surge Nicolcis Guillen en las Antil- las," Universidad de Antioquia, 34 (April-June, 1958), 257-274. ~ Castcin Pontrelli, Mary, "The Criollo Poetry of Nicolcis Guillen." Unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, Yale University, 1958. This work is a valuable stylistic analysis of Guilldn's poetry up to 1947. Couffon, Claude. Nicolas Guillen. Paris: Editions Pierre Seghers, 1964. This work, mainly a translation into French of "some of Guillen's poetry, offers some interesting insights into the poet's personal life. de Gaetani, Francis M. "Nicolas Guillen; a Study of the Phonology and Metrics of His Poetry." Unpublished Master's thesis, Columbia University, 1940. Fernandez de Castro, Josl Antonio. "Ha surgido el poeta del son: Nicolas Guillen," La Semana, May 6, 1930, p. 4. Ferrand, Manuel. "Raiz espahola en la poesia de Nicolcis Guillen," Estudios Americanos, 8 (November-December, 1954), 461-487. Figueira, Gaston. "Dos poetas iberoamericanos de nuestro tiempo," Revista Iberoamericana, X (November, 1945), 107-117. Florit, Eugenio. "Nicolas Guillen, poeta entero," Revista de America, February, 1948, pp. 243-248. Fuenmayor, Alfonso. "La poesia se harS. mSs social," Cromos, April 27, 194-6 , pp. 28-29, 69-70. Hays, H. R., ed. Twelve Spanish American Poets. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1943. This work contains some biographical infor mation on Guillen and English translations of six of his poems. 246 Hughes, Langston, and Carruthers, Ben Frederic, trans. Cuba Libre, Poems by Nicolcis Guillen. Los Angeles: Anderson and Ritchie, 1948. This work contains English translations of several of Guillen's pre-1947 poems. Jerez Villarreal, Juan. "El secuestro de Nicolcis Guillen," America, September, 1941, pp. 8-llJ Lazo, Raimundo. "Con motivo de una biografla de Nicolcis Guillen," Universidad de La Habana, 170 (November- December, 1964) , 7-21. This article contains very little informa tion on Guillen's current biography. Marinello, Juan. "El homenaje de la esperanza," Universidad de La Habana, 159 (January-February, 1963), 7-12. This is the manuscript of Marinello's lec ture at the convocation honoring Guillen at the Universidad de La Habana on October 20, 1962. ________ . "Hazana y triunfo americanos de Nicolcis Guillen," Repertorio Americano, 33 (April 10, 1937), 211-215. Mir6, CSsar. "El son entero de Nicolcis Guillen," Mercurio Peruano, XXVIII (1947), 270-273. Moncada, Julio. "Nicolcis Guillen, son de Cuba," Antcirtica, August, 1946, pp. 102-104. Neruda, Pablo. "Homenaje.a Guillen, en Chile," Revista Cubana, 64 (December, 1948), 344-349. Novlis Calvo, Lino. "Dos poetas para alcaldes," Romance, May 15, 1940, p. 8. Ortiz Oderigo, N§stor. "Nicolcis Guillen, poeta social," Saber vivir, VI (1947), 38-39. Pedroso, Regino. "El poeta Guillen y yo. Una silueta dentro de una 'interview'," in the Ideales de una Raza section of the Diario de la Marina, December 15, 19 29, not paged. Sanclamente, Alvaro. "La poesia de Nicolcis Guillen," Revista de las Indias, 89 (May, 1946), 300-306. Tamayo Vargas, Augusto. "Tres poetas de America: CSsar Vallejo, Pablo Neruda y Nicolcis Guillen," Mercurio Peruano, 39 (1958), 483-503. 247 Urrutia, Gustavo. "Oro virgen," in Diario de la Marina, November 11, 1931, not paged. Valle, Rafael H. "Dillogo con Nicolcis GuillSn," Universidad de Mexico, III (1937), 21-26. rr.v. White, Florence E. "Poesia Negra in the Works of Jorge de Lima, Nicolcis Guillen and Jacques Roumain 192 7-19 47." Unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, the University of Wisconsin, 1952. Williams, Eric. "Four poets of the Greater Antillies," Caribbean Quarterly, 2 (October-December, 19 52) , 8- 19. Cuban Literature and Culture Arrom, Jos§ Juan. Estudios de literatura hispanoamericana. La Habana: Ucar Garcia, S~! A., 1950. ' _____. "La poesia afrocubana," Revista Iberoamericana, IV (February, 1942), 379-411. BSez, Paulino G. Poetas jdvenes cubanos. Barcelona: Edi- tora MauccT! n. d. (The introduction is dated "Enero de 1922".) Ballagas, Emilio. Mapa de la poesia negra americana. Buenos Aires’ ! Editorial Pleamar, 19 43. ________ . "Situacion de la poesia afroamericana," Revista cubana, XXI (1946), 5—60. Basave, Agustin. "Poesia Afro-Antillana," La nueva democra- cia, XXXIV (October, 1954), 60-63. Bellini, Giuseppe. Poeti Antillani. Milan: Editoriale Cisalpino di Varese, 1957. Bueno, Salvador. Historia de la literatura cubana. La Habana: Editorial Minerva, 1954. ________. Medio siglo de literatura cubana (1902-1952). La Habana: Comision Nacional Cubana de la Unesco, 1 9 5 3 * ________ . Medio siglo de poesia cubana (1902-1952). La Habana: Comisidn Nacional Cubana de la Unesco, 1953. 248 Cable, George W. "Creole Slave.Songs," The Century Maga zine:, April, 1886, not paged. Cabrera, Lydia. "Eggtie o Vichichi Finda," Revista bimestre .cubana, 60 (1947), 47-120. Carneiro, Levi. "O Movimento Afrocubanista," Revista da Academia de Letras, 61 (January 30, 1941), 67-76. Carpentier, Alejo. La mflsica en Cuba. Mexico: Fondo de cultura econfimica, 1946. This work is considered to be the first serious documented history of Cuban music. _________. "Posibilidades de la mfisica afrocubana," Musi- calia, 7 (July-August, 1929), 15-17. Castellanos, Israel. La brujeria y el hahiguismo en Cuba. La Habana: Lloredo y Cla., 1916. Dennett, R. E. Nigerian Studies, or the Religious and .Political System of the Yoruba. London: Macmillan, 1910. Devieri, Hugo. Versos de piel morena. Buenos Aires: Edi torial Mayo, 1945 . Estenger, Rafael. Cien de las mejores poesias cubanas. 3rd ed. La Habana: Ediciones Mirador, 1950. Fernandez de Castro, Jos£ Antonio. "La literatura negra actual de Cuba," Estudios Afrocubanos, 4 (1940), 3- 22. _________. Tema negro en las letras de Cuba (1608-1935). La Habana: Ediciones Mirador, 1943. Fitts, Dudley, ed. Antologia de la poesia americana contem- porlnea. Norfolk: New Directions, 1942. Ford, J* D. M., ed. Bibliographies of Hispano-American Literature, vol. 2. Cambridge: Harvard University — Press, 1934. Franco,.JosS Luciano. Afroam^rica. La Habana: Junta Na cional de Argueologia y Etnologfa, 19 61. Frank, Waldo. "Latin America: a Cultural Inventory," The Saturday Review of Literature, April 9, 194 9, pp. 7- 9, 21-31. 249 Frieiro, Eduardo. "Poesia afro-antilhana," Kriterion, 8 (July-December, 1955), 356-399. Gonzalez y Contreras, Gilberto. "La poesia negra," Revista bimestre cubana, 37 (1936) , 40-45. Guirao, Ramon. Qrbita de la poesia afrocubana, 1928-37. La Habana: Ucar, Garcia y Cia., 1938. Henriquez Urena, Max. Panorama histSrico de la literatura cubana (1492-1952). New York: Las Americas, 19 63. Lachatanere, Romulo. "Las religiones negras y el folklore cubano," Revista HispSLnica moderna, IX (1943) , 138- 143. : Manual de santeria. La Habana: Editorial Caribe, 1942. Leguizamdn, Julio A. Historia de la literatura hispanoame- ricana, vol. 2~ Buenos Aires: Editorial Reunidos, 1945. L6pez Morales, Humberto. Poesia cubana contemporinea. Cadiz: Editorial Escelicer, 1963. Manzoni, Aida Cometta. "Trayectoria del negro en la poesia de America," Nosotros, II (November-December, 1939), 19 6-212. Marinello, Juan. Literatura hispanoamericana. Mexico: Ediciones de la Universidad Nacional de Mexico, 1937. _________ . Po^tica: ensayos en entusiasmo. Madrid: Espasa-Calpe-, S. A., 1933. Matthews, John F. "African Footprints in Hispanic-American Literature," The Journal of Negro History, XXIII (July, 1938), 265-289. Novds Calvo, Lino. El negrero. Mexico: Ediciones de Lerma, S. A., 1933. Olivera, Otto. Cuba en su poesia. Mexico: Ediciones de Andrea, 1965. Ortiz, Fernando. "De la mtasica afrocubana," Universidad de La Habana, May-June, 1934, pp. 8-24. 250 Ortiz, Fernando. "Factores humanos de la cubanidad," Revista bimestre cubana, March, 1940, pp. 6-28. _________. Glosario de afronegrismos. Con un pr6logo de Juan M. Dihigo. La Habana: Imprenta El Siglo XX, 1924. This work is indispensable in interpreting' the afronegrismos found in Afro-Cuban poetry. . Hampa afrocubano— los brujos negros. Madrid: Fernando Fe, 19 06. _________. "La religidn en la poesia mulata," Estudios afro- cubanos, I (1937), 15-62. "Los taltimos versos mulatos," Revista bimestre cubana, 35 (1940), 303-326. _________. "Mas acerca de la poesia mulata," Revista bimes tre cubana, 33 (1936), 23-39. _________. "El estudio de la mtisica afrocubana," Musicalia, 4 (November-December, 1928), 115-119. _________. "La cubanidad y los negros," Estudios afrocuba- nos, III (1939), 3-27. Pereda Valdes, Ildefonso. Llnea de color, ensayos afroa- mericanos. SaxTtuago de Chile: Editiorial Ercilla, 1936. Pichardo Moya, Felipe. "Camagiiey y la cultura nacional," Mensuario de la Direccidn de Cultura del Ministerio de Educacion de La Habana, April, 19 50, pp. 2-6. Portuondo, Jos§ Antonio. Bosquejo hist6rico de las letras cubanas. La Habana: Minesterio de Relaciones Exte- riores, Departamento de Asuntos Culturales, I9 60 . . . . Ramos, Arthur. Las culturas negras en el nuevo mundo. Trans. by Ernestina de Champourcin. Mexico: Fondo de cultura econdmica, 1943. This work, originally written in Portuguese (1937), is the first general account of the develop ment of Negro cultures in the Americas. Remos, Juan J. Proceso histdrico de las letras cubanas. Madrid: Ediciones de Guadarrama, 19 5 8 . , — ......... Reyes, Alfonso. "Las jitanj&foras," in La experiencia lite- raria. Buenos Aires: Editorial Losada, 1942. 251 Rodriguez, E. Luis. "La poesia negra en Cuba," Universidad de Antioquia, 8 (July, 1939) , 625-631. Sanz y Diaz, Jos§. Lira negra (selecciones espanolas y afroamericanas). Madrid; Aguilar, 19 45. This book is housed in the Rare Books Col lection of the Doheny Library of the University of Southern California. Schons, Dorothy. "Negro Poetry in the Americas," Hispania, 25 (October, 1942), 309-319. Torre, Guillermo. "Literatura de color," Revista bimestre cubana, 38 (1936), 10-69. Triana, Josd. "La poesia actual," Casa de las Americas, IV (January-April, 1964), 34-48. Varela, Jose Luis. Ensayos de poesia indigena en Cuba. Madrid: Ediciones Cultura Hispanica, 1951. Villaverde, Cirilio. Cecilia Valdes o la Loma del Angel. 3rd ed. La Habana: Editorial Excelsior, 1914. Vitier, Cintio. Cincuenta ahos de poesia cubana (19 02- 19 52). La Habana: Direccidn de Cultura del Minis- terio de Educacidn, 1952. Cuban History Ballesteros y Bereta, Antonio. Historia de Espafia y su influencia en la historia universal. Vol. 8. Bar- • celona: Salvat Editores, 1936. Bemis, Samuel Flagg. Latin American Policy of the United States. New York: Harcourt, Brace and World, 1943. Benham, F. , and Holley, H . . . A. A Short Introduction to the Economy of Latin America. London: Oxford Univer sity Press, 1961. Bosch, Juan. Cuba, la isla fascinante. Santiago de Chile: _ Editorial Universitaria, 1955. Callahan, James M. Cuba and International Relations. Bal timore: The Johns Hopkins Press, 1899. Castro, Fidel. La historia me absolved. Lima: Ediciones Futuro, 19 61. 252 Castro, Fidel. La Revoluci6n Cubana: Escritos y Discursos. Edited by Gregorio Selser. Buenos Aires: Editorial Palestra, 1960. Chapman, Charles Edward. A History of the Cuban Republic. New York: Macmillan, 1927. Draper, Theodore. Castroism: Theory and Practice. New York: Frederick A. Praeger, 1965. _________. Castro's Revolution: Myths and Realities. New York: Frederick A. Praeger, 1962. Fitzgibbon, Russell H. Cuba and the United States 1900- 19 35. Menasha, Wisconsin: George Banta Publishing Company, 19 35. Friedlander, Heinreich E. Historia econdmica de Cuba. La Habana: Imprenta Jestis Montero, 1944 . Gerassi, John. The Great Fear. New York: Macmillan, 1963. This is a well-documented (and rather' sensa tional) analysis of the political and social climate of Latin America up through the early 19 60's. Guerra- y Sanchez, Ramiro. Azticar v poblacidn en las Antil- las. 2nd ed. La Habana: Editorial Cultural, 1935. Herring, Hubert. A History of Latin America. 2nd ed., rev. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1964. Jenks, Leland Hamilton. Our Cuban Colony. New York: The Vanguard Press, 1928. Johnson, Willis Fletcher. The History of Cuba. New York: B. F. Buch and Company, 1920. i Larson, David L., ed. The "Cuban Crisis" of 19 62. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1963. This work contains official documents and a chronology of the crisis. Leiseca, Juan M. Historia de Cuba. La Habana: Montalvo, Ccirdenas y Cia. , 1925. Lockmiller, David A. Magoon in Cuba: a History of the Sec ond Intervention. 1906-1909. Chapel Hill: ■ The Uni versity of North Carolina Press, 1938. 253 Lux, William R. "The Development of the Sugar Industry in Colonial Cuba, 1511-1895." Unpublished Master's thesis, The University of Southern California, 19 63. Ortiz, Fernando. Cuban Counterpoint: Tobacco and Sugar. Translated from the Spanish by Harriet de Onls. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1947. Pezuela y Lobo, Jacobo de la. Diccionario geocrrcif ico, esta- distico,.hist6rico de la isla de Cuba. Madrid: Imprenta de las Viudas de Aragoza y Soler, 1831. Remos, Juan J. Historia de la Nacion Cubana. Madrid: Edi ciones Guadarrama, 19 52. Rippy, J. Fred. Latin America. A Modern History. Ann Arbor: The University of Michigan Press, 19 58. Saco, Jos§ Antonio. Historia de la esclavitud de la raza africana en el Nuevo Mundo y en especial en los paises Am^rico-Hispanos. Vol. I. La Habana: Edi torial Buxton, 193 8. This work is a copiously documented history of the slave trade. SSnchez Albornoz, Claudio, and Vinas, Aurelio. Lecturas Hist6ricas Espaholas. Madrid: Editorial Tarus, 1960. Sears, Joseph Hamblen. The Career of Leonard Wood. New York: D. Appleton Company, 1919. U.S. Congress. House. House Executive Documents, 33rd Cong., 2nd sess., 93 (serial 790). ________ . Senate. Senate Reports, 35th Cong., 2nd sess., - Num. 3 51. Senate. Situation in Cuba, Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, 87th Cong., 2nd sess., Res. 226. . ,Urrutia> Manuel. Fidel Castro- Company', - Inc. New York: ' Frederick~A.’ Praeger,' 19 64 . Wright, Irene A. "The- History of Sugar," Louisiana Planter and Sugar Manufacturer, LIV (1915), 11, 125-156, 206-207 . 270, 302,, _3 66-367 , 378-379V ~ . 254 M i s c e 11aneous Dario, Rub£n. "Psicologlas carnavalescas,” Tribuna Libre (Buenos Aires), February 26, 1896, not paged. del Rio, Angel. "Federico Garcia Lorca," Revista Hispgmica Moderna, July-October, 1940, pp. 206-207. de Vega Carpio, Lope. Qbras de Lope de Vega, publicadas por la Real Academia Espariola. Madrid: Sucesores de Rivadeneyra, 1913. Garcia Lorca, Federico. Qbras completas de Federico Garcia Lorca. Recopilacion y notas de Arturo del Hoyo. 4th ed. Madrid: Aguilar, 1962. ~ ~ ________ . "Son," Musicalia, II (April-May, 1930), 43-44. Harris, Rex. Jazz, a Revised Edition. Middlesex: Penguin Books, 1954. Hilton, Ronald, ed. Who’s Who in Latin America:- A Bio graphical Dictionary of Notable Living Men- and Women of Latin America. 3rd ed., rev. Part VII.- Stan ford: Stanford University Press, 1951. Hughes, Langston. The Weary Blues. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1929. ~ _________, and Bontemps, Arna. The Poetry of the Negro, 1746-19 49. Garden City, New Jersey: Doubleday, 1949. Kidder, Frederick E., and Bushong, Allen D., ed. Theses on Pan American Topics Prepared by Candidates for Doc toral Degrees in Universities and Colleges in the United States and-Canada. Washington: The Organi zation of American States, 1962. Krehbiel, Henry Edward. Afro-American Folksongs. 4th ed. New York: G. Schirmer, Inc., 1914. La vida de Lazarillo de Tormes. Edicidn de Julio Cejador v Frauca. Madrid: Ediciones La Lectura, "Clcisicos Castellanos" series, number 25, 1914. Lemaitre, Georges. From Cubism to Surrealism in Literature. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1941. Lindsay, Vachel. The Congo and Other Poems. New York: Macmillan, 1915. 255 Rosenheim, Edward W. What Happens in Literature. A Guide to Poetry, Drama and Fiction. Chicago: The Univer sity of Chicago Press, 1960. Schomburg, Arthur. "My Trip to Cuba in Quest of Negro Books," Opportunity. Journal of Negro Life, Febru ary, 1933, pp. 48-50. Vicente, Gil. Gil Vicente, Qbras Completas, com prefcicio e notas do professor Marques Braga. Vol. VI. Lisboa: Livraria Si da Costa, 1944.

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Political Alienation In The Novels Of Mariano Azuela

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Creator Farrell, Joseph Richard (author)

Core Title Nicolas Guillen: Poet In Search Of 'Cubanidad'

Degree Doctor of Philosophy

Degree Program Latin American Studies

Publisher University of Southern California (original), University of Southern California. Libraries (digital)

Tag Literature, Modern,OAI-PMH Harvest

Language English

Contributor Digitized by ProQuest (provenance)

Advisor McMahon, Dorothy Elizabeth (committee chair), Hesse, Everett W. (committee member), Servin, Manuel P. (committee member)

Permanent Link (DOI) https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-c18-649913

Unique identifier UC11361023

Identifier 6904526.pdf (filename),usctheses-c18-649913 (legacy record id)

Legacy Identifier 6904526.pdf

Dmrecord 649913

Document Type Dissertation

Rights Farrell, Joseph Richard

Type texts

Source University of Southern California (contributing entity), University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses (collection)

Access Conditions The author retains rights to his/her dissertation, thesis or other graduate work according to U.S. copyright law. Electronic access is being provided by the USC Libraries in agreement with the au...

Repository Name University of Southern California Digital Library

Repository Location USC Digital Library, University of Southern California, University Park Campus, Los Angeles, California 90089, USA