René Depestre

Martin Munro (Florida State University)
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René Depestre is a Haitian intellectual and writer. Unlike his great predecessor, Jacques Roumain, or his most prominent contemporary, Jacques-Stephen Alexis, Depestre was not born into the Haitian elite, but into a lower middle class family in Jacmel, the southern port town noted for its Carnival, architecture and artists that would continue to feed the poet’s imagination long after he left Haiti. He first came to prominence as a member of the

La Ruche

group of young militants that formed following Jacques Roumain’s death in 1944.

La Ruche

was a student journal founded by Depestre, Alexis and others, and for the two young authors in particular it was a means of attaching themselves to Roumain’s legacy of radical Marxism directed against the Haitian political elite. Of all the…

1982 words

Citation: Munro, Martin. "René Depestre". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 13 November 2010 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=12869, accessed 19 March 2024.]

12869 René Depestre 1 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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