{"id":52991,"date":"2020-10-15T12:23:58","date_gmt":"2020-10-15T19:23:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.creativecircle.com\/?p=52991"},"modified":"2020-10-15T12:23:58","modified_gmt":"2020-10-15T19:23:58","slug":"jose-marti-revolutionary-writer-martyr","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.creativecircle.com\/blog\/jose-marti-revolutionary-writer-martyr\/","title":{"rendered":"Jos\u00e9 Mart\u00ed: Revolutionary, Writer, Martyr"},"content":{"rendered":"

Jos\u00e9 Mart\u00ed is commonly thought of as the patron saint of Cuba. He is almost a deity, the most universally beloved and revered figure in the island\u2019s post-colonial history.* A teacher, journalist, poet, philosopher, and revolutionary, Mart\u00ed relentlessly co-conspired to free Cuba from Spanish rule. His death at the beginning of the Cuban War of Independence<\/a> branded him as a martyr and inspired his countrymen to fight for their freedom.<\/p>\n

Born in Havana in 1853, he came of age during the Ten Years War<\/a>, Cuba\u2019s first attempt to rid themselves of Spanish sovereign rule. At 16, he was already a promising writer, academic, and staunch proponent of liberty for his island nation. During the conflict, he was incarcerated, sentenced to hard labor, and eventually deported to Spain.<\/p>\n

\u201cSaber leer es saber andar. Saber escribir es saber ascender\u201d<\/strong><\/em>
\nKnowing how to read is knowing how to walk. Knowing how to write is knowing how to fly.<\/strong><\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

After attending university and continuing his writing career, Marti moved to Mexico, where he met his wife and later spent time teaching in Guatemala. He made attempts to return to Cuba, but after having a request to practice law denied, he eventually left for the United States. During that time, he worked as a journalist (even founding newspapers and magazines himself), professor, and writer. He taught Afro-Cuban exiles how to read and write, earning the nickname \u201cEl Maestro,\u201d and was considered a renewer of Spanish poetry. Mart\u00ed is renowned as one of the most important writers of the 19th century.<\/p>\n

As he spent more time in the United States, he connected with the community of Cuban exiles. While making plans for the Cuban War of Independence, he eventually tapped into this network to raise money for the war effort and sent weapons to Cuba. In 1892 he was elected<\/a> \u201cdelegate\u201d of the Partido Revolucionario Cubano. As a writer and philosopher, he managed to bring together various factions of rebels Including Antonio Maceo and M\u00e1ximo Gomez, who were leaders during the Ten Years War, forming a unified alliance against Spanish occupation.<\/p>\n

No hay hombre sin Patria, ni Patria sin libertad\u201d<\/strong><\/em>
\nThere is no man without his country, nor a country without liberty<\/strong><\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

On April 11, 1895, Marti, Gomez, and others landed in Cuba and met with the Cuban rebels lead by Maceo. It soon became clear while he was an excellent communicator and strategist, Marti was not a soldier. One month later, on May 19, he was killed during the Battle of Dos Rios.<\/p>\n

According to scholars, when he galloped on horseback in Dos Rios it was \u201cbasically suicide.\u201d Some note that it was \u201cthe best possible death for him,\u201d not because he longed for death, but rather he would have chosen to die on the battlefield in pursuit of liberty. In his poetry he deems dying in the light of the sun as the death of a good man.<\/p>\n

My great-grandmother\u2019s personal favorite:<\/strong><\/em>
\n\u201cSer culto para ser libre.\u201d<\/strong><\/em>
\nBe educated to be free<\/strong><\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

While he was only 42 at the time of his death, Mart\u00ed left behind an incredible legacy as a politician, journalist, and writer, shaping Cuba\u2019s liberation not only through his ideology, but also his martyrdom. The start of the Cuban War of Independence failed to appeal to the common man as it was organized by the intellectual elite rather than the masses, but Mart\u00ed\u2019s death provided a source of inspiration that permeated the rest of Cuban culture, as well as much of Latin-America and the subsequent migrants of the Cuban diaspora.<\/p>\n

Cuba\u2019s signature song, \u201cGuantanamera,\u201d draws its best known lyrics (there are many versions of it, as folk songs lend themselves to adlibbing the verses) from one of Mart\u00ed\u2019s poetry collections, Versos Sencillos or \u201cSimple Verses.\u201d The excerpted stanzas are highlighted below (with fairly literal translations by yours truly).<\/p>\n

I:1<\/strong><\/p>\n

Yo soy un hombre sincero
\nDe donde crece la palma,
\nY antes de morirme quiero
\nEchar mis versos del alma.<\/p>\n

I am an honest man
\nFrom where the palm grows,
\nAnd before I die I want to
\nThrow my verses from my soul.<\/p>\n

V:3<\/strong><\/p>\n

Mi verso es de un verde claro
\nY de un carm\u00edn encendido:
\nMi verso es un ciervo herido
\nQue busca en el monte amparo.<\/p>\n

My verse is of a soft green
\nAnd of a flaming carmine:
\nMy verse is of a wounded deer
\nThat searches for shelter in the hills.<\/p>\n

XXXIX:1<\/strong><\/p>\n

Cultivo una rosa blanca
\nEn julio como en enero,
\nPara el amigo sincero
\nQue me da su mano franca.<\/p>\n

I cultivate a white rose
\nIn July just as in January,
\nFor the honest friend
\nThat gives me their open hand.<\/p>\n

III:2<\/strong><\/p>\n

Con los pobres de la tierra
\nQuiero yo mi suerte echar:
\nEl arroyo de la sierra
\nMe complace m\u00e1s que el mar.<\/p>\n

To the earth\u2019s poor
\nI’d like to cast my luck:
\nThe streams of the mountains
\nPlease me more than the sea.=<\/p>\n

*Meanwhile, the most revered indigenous (or pre-colonial) figure would be Hatuey, a Taino chief who led the first fighters against the Spaniards and was burned at the stake. He is known as Cuba\u2019s First National Hero. The most generally beloved and revered figure might be Fidel Castro or Che Guevara, but the love is very much not universal, especially among Cuban-Americans.<\/em><\/p>\n

Note: Parts of this article without linked citations take their evidence from The Cuba Libre Story: Episode 1 Breaking Chains<\/em><\/p>\n

\n

About the author.<\/strong>
\nAlessandra is the mentor, educator, and writer behind Boneseed, a private practice devoted to deep self-inquiry through a range of physical, energetic, and mental modalities. She has over 500 hours of yoga, mentorship, and facilitation training and can be found slinging knowledge on her website, newsletter, and @bone.seed.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Jos\u00e9 Mart\u00ed is commonly thought of as the patron saint of Cuba. He is almost a deity, the most universally beloved and revered figure in the island\u2019s post-colonial history.* A teacher, journalist, poet, philosopher, and revolutionary, Mart\u00ed relentlessly co-conspired to free Cuba from Spanish rule. His death at the beginning of the Cuban War of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":52994,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[95,87],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-52991","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-dei","category-perspectives"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nJos\u00e9 Mart\u00ed: Revolutionary, Writer, Martyr | Creative Circle<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Jos\u00e9 Mart\u00ed is commonly thought of as the patron saint of Cuba. 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