Renée Méndez Capote

Renée Méndez Capote y Chaple (12 November 1901 – 14 May 1989), also known by the pseudonyms Io-san, Berenguela, and Suzanne, was a Cuban writer, essayist, journalist, translator, suffragist, and feminist activist.[2][3][4][5] She worked in children's literature, short stories, essays, and biographies.[6]

Renée Méndez Capote
BornRenée Méndez-Capote y Chaple
(1901-11-12)12 November 1901
Havana, Cuba
Died14 May 1989(1989-05-14) (aged 87)
Cuba
Pen nameChaple,[1] Io-san, Berenguela, Suzanne
OccupationWriter, essayist, journalist, translator, feminist activist
LanguageSpanish
NationalityCuban
GenreEssay, narrative, short story, children's literature, biography
Literary movementFeminism
Years active1917–1989
Notable workMemorias de una cubanita que nació con el siglo (1969)
SpouseManolo Solís

Life and work

The daughter of Domingo Méndez Capote and María Chaple y Suárez, she made her publishing debut in April 1917 with an article titled "El primer baile" (The first dance) for the alumni newsletter of La Salle College.[7]

Her works include Memorias de una cubanita que nació con el siglo (Memories of a Cuban girl who was born with the century), considered a classic of testimonial literature.[8] In the journalistic field, she contributed to several of her country's publications, such as Diario de la Marina, La Gaceta de Cuba, Revolución y Cultura, Unión y Juventud Rebelde, as well as the magazines Bohemia, Social y Mujeres and the weekly newspaper Pionero.[9]

In September 1934, Méndez Capote was a survivor of the last voyage of the American luxury cruise liner Morro Castle. She was one of the few passengers to escape the expensive A-Deck staterooms alive as well as one of the few woman passengers to be rescued by one of the ship's own lifeboats (most other passengers survived by jumping off the ship).[10]

Activism

Together with Berta Arocena de Martínez Márquez, she was one of the founders of the Lyceum on 1 December 1928, one of the "most cultural and intellectual" feminist organizations of the era.[11] They were joined by Carmen Castellanos, Matilde Martínez Márquez, Carmelina Guanche, Alicia Santamaría, Ofelia Tomé, Dulce Marta Castellanos, Lilliam Mederos, Rebeca Gutiérrez, Sarah Méndez Capote, Mary Caballero, María Josefa Vidaurreta, and María Teresa Moré in organizing a group which advocated for women's suffrage.[12] This became a lobbyist institution in Cuba's parliament and organized several feminist events in the country.[11]

Works

Essays
  • Oratoria cubana (1926)
  • Lento desarrollo de la Cuba colonial (1978)

Biographies
  • Domingo Méndez Capote. El hombre civil del 95 (1957)
  • Memorias de una cubanita que nació con el siglo (1963)
  • Ché: comandante del alba (1977)
  • El niño que sentía crecer la hierba (1981)

Reports
  • Apuntes (1927)
  • Relatos heroicos, 241 pp (1965) (Crónicas de viaje, 1966)
  • De la maravillosa historia de nuestra tierras (1967)
  • Episodios de la epopeya(1968)
  • 4 conspiraciones (1972)
  • Un héroe de once años (1975)
  • El tráfico infame (1977)
  • Hace muchos años una joven viajera (1983)
  • A Varadero en carreta (1984)
  • El remolino y otros relatos (1982)

Others
  • "Dos niños en la Cuba colonial" (short story, 1966)
  • "Fortalezas en la Habana colonial" (release, 1974)
  • "Costumbres de antaño" (1975)
  • "Por el ojo de la cerradura" (testimonial, 1977)
  • "Cuentos de ayer" (1978)
  • "Amables figuras del pasado" (1981)
  • "Recuerdos de la vieja biblioteca" (article, 1981)

References
  1. Méndez Capote, Renee. "Memorias de una cubanita que nació con el siglo" [Memories of a Cuban girl who was born with the century] (PDF) (in Spanish). Editorial Argos Vergara S.A. Retrieved 6 October 2016.
  2. López-Cabrales, María del Mar (2007). Arenas cálidas en alta mar: entrevistas a escritoras contemporáneas en Cuba [Hot sands and high seas: interviews of contemporary women writers in Cuba] (in Spanish). Editorial Cuarto Propio. p. 2007. ISBN 978-956-260-393-5.
  3. Romeu, Raquel (2000). Voces de mujeres en las letras cubanas [Voices of women in Cuban literature] (in Spanish). Verbum Editorial. p. 197. ISBN 978-847-962-158-2.
  4. "Fallece Renée Méndez Capote" [Renée Méndez Capote Dies] (in Spanish). Habana Radio. 29 March 2013. Retrieved 6 October 2016.
  5. Jorge, Teresita. "Una cubana inolvidable" [An unforgettable Cuban woman]. Mujer (in Spanish). Havana: Radio Reloj. Archived from the original on 24 April 2014. Retrieved 6 October 2016.
  6. "Biblioteca Nacional recuerda a Renée Méndez Capote" [National Library remembers Renée Méndez Capote] (in Spanish). Redacción IPS Cuba. 8 June 2013. Retrieved 6 October 2016.
  7. "Méndez Capote, Renée. Narrador (1901–1989)". Diccionario de autores (in Spanish). Cubaliteraria. Retrieved 6 October 2016.
  8. "Renée Méndez Capote (1901–1989)". Repeating Islands. 12 November 2010. Retrieved 6 October 2016.
  9. "Renée Méndez Capote en pasado y presente" [Renée Méndez Capote in past and present] (in Spanish). Televisión Camagüey. 10 November 2011. Archived from the original on 11 August 2013. Retrieved 11 August 2013.
  10. Deitch, Joseph (8 September 1974). "Shore Residents Recall Fire On Morro Castle 40 Years Ago". The New York Times. Spring Lake. p. 69. Retrieved 16 April 2018.
  11. Stoner, K. Lynn (30 April 1991). From the House to the Streets: The Cuban Woman's Movement for Legal Reform, 1898–1940. Duke University Press. p. 74. ISBN 9780822311492. Retrieved 6 October 2016 – via Google Books.
  12. Actas del IX Congreso de la Asociación Internacional de Hispanistas: 18–23 de agosto de 1986: Berlín [Proceedings of the 9th Congress of the International Association of Hispanists: 18–23 August 1986: Berlin] (in Spanish). International Association of Hispanists. 1989. p. 1449. ISBN 978-389-354-828-6.
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