Salvador Reyes Figueroa

Salvador Reyes Figueroa was a Chilean writer who won the National Literature Prize 1967.

Biography

He was born in Copiapó to Arturo Reyes and Luisa Figueroa on August 16, 1899. His first studies are at the Instituto Comercial de Antofagasta (Antofagasta Commercial College).^[1]

He travelled by the North of his country, then lived in Valparaíso. By the end of 1920, he migrated to Santiago, where immediately started working as a successful journalist. He wrote for Zig-Zag, Las Últimas Noticias, and Hoy under the nickname "Simbad".^[1]

In 1928 he co-founded the magazine Letras along with Ángel Cruchaga Santa María, Manuel Eduardo Hübner, Luis Enrique Délano and Hernán del Solar. According to some researches, this publication would gather the best writers of its time together.^[2]

In 1939, President Pedro Aguirre Cerda anointed him as consul in Paris. Eventually he also had high diplomatic positions in Barcelona, London, Rome, Haiti^[3] and Athens.^[1]

Reyes was member of the Chilean Academy of Language between 1960 and 1970.^[4]

He obtained the National Literature Prize in 1967. He died in Santiago, on February 27, 1970.^[1] His ashes were cast to the sea in front of Antofagasta.^[3]

Postmortem recognition

Between 1990 and 1999, his collection was displayed in the Wulff Castle, in Viña del Mar.

Works

The following is a list of his works in their original title (in Spanish), kind and year of publication.

• Barco ebrio, Poetry, 1923.

• El último pirata, Stories, 1925.

• El matador de tiburones, Novel, 1926.

• El café del puerto, Novel, 1927.

• Los tripulantes de la noche, Tales, 1929.

• Las mareas del sur, Poetry, 1930.

• Lo que el tiempo deja, Tales, 1932.

• Tres novelas de la costa, Novel, 1934.

• Ruta de sangre, Novel, 1935.

• Piel nocturna, Novel, 1936.

• Norte y sur, Short Novels, 1947.

• Mónica Sanders, Novel, 1951.

• Valparaíso, puerto de nostalgias, Novel, 1955.

• El continente de los hombres solos, Chronicles, 1956.

• Rostros sin máscaras, Interviews, 1957.

• Los amantes desunidos, Novel, 1959.

• Los defraudados, Tales, 1963.

• El incendio del astillero, Tales, 1964.

• Andanzas por el desierto de Atacama, Chronicles, 1966.

• Fuego en la frontera, Essay, 1968.

• La redención de las sirenas, Theater, 1968.

• Crónicas de Oriente, Chronicles, 1973.^[1]

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d e} Translated from Escritores.cl, Salvador Reyes Figueroa Biography (Spanish in the original), retrieved on June 3, 2009, with the written consent of the copyright holder, according to the statement found on the said page:

   © escritores.cl - Permitida la reproducción de su contenido mencionando la fuente siempre y cuando no sea con fines de lucro (© escritores.cl - Reproduction permitted for all the content, provided its source is stated and not for commercial use)

   .
2. ^ Armando Roa Vial (1998) Peregrinajes literarios en Francia, Editorial Universitaria, 1998, ISBN 956-11-1386-4, 9789561113862, page 147. Retrieved on July 1, 2009.
3. ^ ^{a b} (Spanish) Memoria Chilena, Salvador Reyes (1899-1970), Presentación, retrieved on June 30, 2009
4. ^ Academia Chilena de la Lengua, Nómina de Miembros (Only in Spanish), retrieved on June 30, 2009

External links

More information can be found at:

• (Spanish) Memoria Chilena (Chilean Memory) hosts an extensive research on the author.