Rosario Ferré

Rosario Ferré
First Lady of Puerto Rico
In office
1970–1972
Governor Luis A. Ferré
Preceded by Lorenza Ramírez de Arellano
Succeeded by Lila Mayoral
Personal details
Born Rosario Ferré y Ramírez de Arellano
(1938-09-28)September 28, 1938
Ponce, Puerto Rico
Died February 18, 2016(2016-02-18) (aged 77)
San Juan, Puerto Rico
Nationality Puerto Rican
Spouse(s) Benigno Trigo González
José Aguilar Mora
Agustín Costa Quintano
Children Rosario Lorenza
Benigno
Luis Alfredo
Parents Luis A. Ferré
Lorenza Ramírez de Arellano
Rosario Ferré
Born Rosario Ferré y Ramírez de Arellano
(1938-09-28)September 28, 1938
Ponce, Puerto Rico
Died February 18, 2016(2016-02-18) (aged 77)
Occupation Writer and academic
Nationality Puerto Rican
Notable awards Ateneo Puertorriqueño; LiBeratur Preis (Germany)
Spouse Benigno Trigo González
José Aguilar Mora
Agustín Costa Quintano
Children Rosario Lorenza;
Benigno;
Luis Alfredo
Relatives Luis A. Ferré (father)
Isolina Ferre (aunt)
Olga Nolla (cousin)
Website
www.rosarioferre.net

Rosario Ferré Ramírez de Arellano (September 28, 1938 – February 18, 2016) was a Puerto Rican writer, poet, and essayist.[1] Her father, Luis A. Ferré, was the third elected Governor of Puerto Rico and the founding father of the New Progressive Party of Puerto Rico. When her mother, Lorenza Ramírez de Arellano, died in 1970 during her father's term as governor, Rosario fulfilled the duties of First Lady until 1972.

She was the recipient of the "Liberatur Prix" award from the Frankfurt Book Fair for "Kristallzucker", the German translation of "Maldito Amor".[2]

Early years

Rosario Ferré (birth name: Rosario Ferré Ramírez de Arellano[note 1]) was born in Ponce, Puerto Rico, into one of Puerto Rico's wealthiest families. Her parents were the former First Family of Puerto Rico Luis A. Ferré (Governor) and Lorenza Ramírez de Arellano[3] She is the niece of the late Sor Isolina Ferré, recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Ferré received her primary education at Ponce, Puerto Rico. In 1951, she was sent to Wellesley, Massachusetts and attended Dana Hall School.[4]

Ferré began writing professionally at age 14, publishing articles in Puerto Rico's El Nuevo Día newspaper.[4] In her youth, Ferré was an advocate of independence,[4] despite the fact that her father was pro-statehood (and, later, she too became an advocate of statehood.) Upon graduating from high school she went to the United States where she gained her Bachelor of Arts degree in English and French[5] from Manhattanville College.[1] She is a member of Mu Alpha Phi sorority.[6]

Ferré returned to Puerto Rico where in the 1970s she enrolled in the University of Puerto Rico to study for her master's degree. During her time as a student, Ferré began her writing career as the founder, editor and publisher of the journal "Zona de Carga y Descarga" along with her cousin, Olga Nolla.[7] The journal was devoted to publishing the works of new writers and to promoting the ideas of the independence movement. Among the novelists and short story writers of Puerto Rico to share Ferré's commitment to satire were Ana Lydia Vega and Giannina Braschi. Ferré also has published poems and written a biography about her father.[1] Upon earning her master's degree, Ferré enrolled in University of Maryland where she graduated with a PhD in Latin American Literature.[5] Her doctoral thesis was titled: "La filiación romántica de los cuentos de Julio Cortázar" (The romantic link between the stories of Julio Cortázar).[5]

Career

Ferré began her literary career writing in Spanish. In 1976, Ferré published her first collection of short stories, "Papeles de Pandora". In 1977, she published a collection of her literary essays entitled "Sitio a Eros", which promoted political and social themes. In 1986, she published her first book, "Maldito Amor", which she self-translated into English as "Sweet Diamond Dust". After publishing "Maldito Amor", she began to write the first versions of her other books in English[8] In 2002, she published a bilingual edition of poems "Language Duel/Duelo del languaje".[1]

Ferré worked as a Professor at the University of Puerto Rico and was a contributing editor for The San Juan Star, which was once Puerto Rico's English language newspaper. Ferré has also been a visiting professor at Rutgers University and Johns Hopkins University.[1]

Honors

Ferré won the first prize in a short story contest of the Ateneo Puertorriqueño in 1974. In 1992, she was the recipient of the "Liberatur Prix" award from the Frankfurt Book Fair for "Kristallzucker", the German translation of "Maldito Amor".[2] In 1997, she was also awarded an honorary doctorate from Brown University. Ferré was a Guggenheim Fellowship recipient in 2004.[1] She is also recognized at Ponce's Tricentennial Park for her contributions in the field of literature.[9]

Personal

Upon finishing school, Ferré married Benigno Trigo González, a businessman, by whom she has three children: Rosario Lorenza, Benigno, and Luis Alfredo.[5] They divorced ten years later.[5]

While studying at the Department for Hispanic Studies of the University of Puerto Rico, she met her second husband, José Aguilar Mora, a writer and Professor of Mexican literature;[5] they divorced after a few years.[5]

Ferré met her third husband, Agustín Costa Quintano, a Puerto Rican architect,[5] at the University of Maryland, when living in Washington, D.C.. They later moved to Puerto Rico, where they resided. Ferré died of natural causes, surrounded by family on February 18, 2016 in her home in San Juan, Puerto Rico.[10]

Written works

Some of Rosario works are:[11]

Fiction

Essays

Poetry

Biographies

Critical studies of Ferré's work

Notes

  1. ↑ This name uses Spanish naming customs: the first or paternal family name is Ferré and the second or maternal family name is Ramírez de Arellano.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Rosario Ferré Official Website, Biography.
  2. 1 2 3 (Spanish) University of the Sacred Heart, News: Pasión y sentidos se cruzan en Las puertas del placer de Rosario Ferré.
  3. ↑ (Spanish) Ensayistas.org, Rosario Ferré. Retrieved January 6, 2007.
  4. 1 2 3 Wellesley College, Conference, Women Who Will: A Celebration of Wellesley College Alumnae and Their Life Paths, Person of the Week, Week of May 28, 2001: Rosario Ferré, '60.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 (Spanish) Solo Literatura.com, Rosario Ferré.
  6. ↑ "Mu Alpha Phi History" (in Spanish). Retrieved 2010-05-24.
  7. ↑ Voices from the Gaps: Women Artists and Writers of Color, Rosario Ferré.
  8. ↑ Navarro, Mireya (1998): Arts in America; "Bilingual Author Finds Something Gained in Translation". In: New York Times, 08.09.1998
  9. ↑ Literature. Travel Ponce. Retrieved June 17, 2012.
  10. ↑ New York Times: Rosario Ferré, Writer Who Examined Puerto Rican Identity, Dies at 77
  11. ↑ Stark, Lucy; Lecheler, Luke; Anunson, Dyan (December 3, 2012). "Rosario Ferré". Women Writers and Artists of Color. College of Liberal Arts – University of Minnesota.
  12. ↑ Library of Congress Online Catalog, El Acomodador: una lectura fantastica de Felisberto Hernandez .
  13. ↑ Library of Congress Online Catalog, Antología Personal.
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