Juan Bosch
Juan Bosch was a significant figure in Dominican history, known for his dual role as a politician and an author. Born in the early 20th century to a Spanish father and a Puerto Rican mother, Bosch grew up in the Dominican countryside, where he developed a keen awareness of the struggles faced by agricultural workers. His literary career began early, and he went on to publish several notable works, including "La mañosa" and "Camino Real," which reflect his social concerns and the harsh realities of rural life.
Bosch's political activism led to his opposition against the dictatorship of Rafael Trujillo, resulting in periodic arrests and ultimately his voluntary exile in 1937. After Trujillo's assassination in 1961, he returned to the Dominican Republic and was elected president in 1963. However, his presidency was short-lived, as it was abruptly ended by a military coup just months later, with support from the United States.
Throughout his life, Bosch remained committed to political and social issues, running for the presidency multiple times after his initial term, although he was never reelected. His body of work includes both fiction and nonfiction, addressing topics ranging from democracy in the Americas to biographical accounts of influential figures. Juan Bosch’s legacy is marked by his contributions to literature and his enduring impact on Dominican politics.
Juan Bosch
Dominican novelist, short fiction writer, and former president
- Born: June 30, 1909
- Birthplace: La Vega, Dominican Republic
- Died: November 1, 2001
- Place of death: Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
Biography
Born to a Spanish father and a Puerto Rican mother, Juan Bosch would grow up to be one of most prominent figures in the history of the Dominican Republic, where he was born in the early twentieth century. Bosch grew up in the countryside, where he witnessed the harsh conditions of agricultural work that would be the focus of several of his books. As a child, Bosch wrote and illustrated stories for himself. He worked various odd jobs as a young man, including a brief stint as a carnival barker.
Bosch attended but did not graduate from the University of Santo Domingo, where he studied under Pedro Huran and began to read writers such as Horacio Quioga and Guy de Maupassant. His own books, Camino Real andLa mañosa, deal with the conditions of agricultural labor in the Dominican Republic. Bosch’s social concern brought him into conflict with the regime of Rafael Trujillo, leading to his occasional arrest and eventual voluntary exile in 1937.
Bosch settled in Cuba, where he assisted in the foundation of the Dominican Liberation Party, which worked to organize opposition to Trujillo. After Trujillo’s assassination in 1961, Bosch returned to the Dominican Republic, where he was overwhelmingly elected president in 1963. Bosch’s administration was overthrown by the Dominican military several months later; attempts to restore him were put down with the assistance of the United States. After another period of exile, Juan Bosch returned to the Dominican Republic in 1970. He ran for president several more times during the next three decades but was never reelected.
Author Works
Long Fiction
La mañosa, 1936
Dos pesos de agua, 1941
El oro y la paz, 1964
El culpable, 1979
Short Fiction
Camino Real, 1933
Cuentos escritos en el exilio, 1962
Cuentos escritos antes del exilio, 1984
Más cuentos escritos en el exilio, 1986
Nonfiction
Cuba, la isla fascinante, 1953
Trujillo: causas de una tiranía sin ejemplo, 1959
Simón Bolívar: biografía para escolares, 1960
David, biografía de un rey, 1964
Crisis de la democracia de América en La República Dominicana, 1965
Pentagonismo, sustituto del imperialismo, 1968
Apuntes sobre el arte de escribir cuentos, 1985
Hostos, el sembrador, 1985
Viaje a los Antipodas, 1992
Judas Iscariote, el calumniado, 2009
Bibliography
Arnold, A. James, Julio Rodriguez-Luis, and J. Michael Dash, editors. A History of Literature in the Caribbean, vol. 1, John Benjamins Publishing, 1994. A critical survey of the development of Caribbean literature, with a brief discussion of Bosch's political and literary contributions.
Bosch, Juan. Interview by Martin Murphy. "An Interview with Juan Bosch." NACLA Report on the Americas, vol. 46, no. 2, 2013, pp. 73–77. EBSCO Political Science Complete, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=poh&AN=88790136&site=ehost-live&scope=site. Accessed 30 June 2017. A reprint of a 1986 interview with Bosch in which he discusses his earliest involvement with politics and his experiences with the Cuban Navy.
Bosch, Matias. "Juan Bosch: The Construction of Dominican Democracy." Journal of Third World Studies, vol. 23, no. 1, 2006, pp. 17–21. EBSCO Political Science Complete, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=poh&AN=20817247&site=ehost-live&scope=site. Accessed 30 June 2017. Presents the reflections of Juan Bosch's grandson on his grandfather's influence on Dominican politics.
Laird, Loren L. "Juan Bosch: Social Drama in the Short Story." Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, 1960, scholarworks.umt.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3811&context=etd. Accessed 30 June 2017. A critical examination of the social intent of Bosch's short fiction.
Lewis, Paul. "Juan Bosch, 92, Freely Elected Dominican President, Dies." The New York Times, 2 Nov. 2001, www.nytimes.com/2001/11/02/world/juan-bosch-92-freely-elected-dominican-president-dies.html. Accessed 30 June 2017. Presents an obituary of Dominican president Juan Bosch, discussing his early life and political career.