Reinaldo Arenas

Reinaldo Arenas (1943–1990) was a poet, novelist, and journalist known for his experimental style and absurdist humour, in works promoting political freedom for his native Cuba. In early life he studied philosophy and literature. Following his initial sympathy for the 1959 revolution, Arenas grew critical of the Castro government and left for New York in 1980. His open homosexuality and subversive writings had been a mark of contention for the state since the late 1960s, as well as the cause of his imprisonment for ‘ideological deviation’ in 1973.

Among Arenas’ works are Pentagonia, a set of five novels charting a ‘secret history’ of post-revolutionary Cuba, and Hallucinations, a retelling of dissident priest Fray Servando Teresa de Mier’s life. He died in New York, in 1990, aged forty-seven.

In 1993, his autobiography, Before Night Falls, was on the New York Times list of the ten best books of the year. In 2000 the work was made into a film directed by Julian Schnabel.