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Aurelio Cortés Collection of Reinaldo Arenas

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Held at: Princeton University Library: Manuscripts Division [Contact Us]

This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held at the Princeton University Library: Manuscripts Division. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in their reading room, and not digitally available through the web.

Overview and metadata sections

Cortés, Aurelio

Aurelio Cortés (1909-2007) was a Cuban dentist and personal friend of Reinaldo Arenas. Cortés was born in Havana, Cuba in 1909. He studied oral medicine at the University of Havana and had a long career as a practicing dentist. He studied a number of languages including English, Italian, and French at "La Alianza Francesa." He worked as a translator for the Instituto Cubano de Amistad con los Pueblos (ICAAP); and also translated the works of José Lezama Lima. For over forty years, Cortés volunteered at the José Martí National Library where he worked closely with Juan Pérez de la Riva. It is at the National Library where he met Reinaldo Arenas, whom Cortés supported in the early stages of his writing. Cortés also volunteered at the La Unión de Escritores y Artistas de Cuba (UNEAC) later in life. He died at the age of 98 on March 13, 2007.

The collection contains letters written to and from Reinaldo Arenas, Aurelio Cortés, and Claude Durand. Also included are typewritten drafts of Arenas' short articles and essays some of which are dedicated to Cortés, a personal friend. Also present are a typewritten drafts of Cortés' own work that relates to his friendship with Reinaldo Arenas.

Organized in the following series: Series 1: Correspondence, and Series 2: Works By Aurelio Cortés and Reinaldo Arenas.

Purchase, 2017 (AM 2017-127).

This collection was purchased (in part) with funds provided by the Program in Latin American Studies (PLAS).

For preservation reasons, original analog and digital media may not be read or played back in the reading room. Users may visually inspect physical media but may not remove it from its enclosure. All analog audiovisual media must be digitized to preservation-quality standards prior to use. Audiovisual digitization requests are processed by an approved third-party vendor. Please note, the transfer time required can be as little as several weeks to as long as several months and there may be financial costs associated with the process. Requests should be directed through the Ask Us Form.

This collection was processed by Elvia Arroyo-Ramirez in March 2017. Finding aid written by Elvia Arroyo-Ramirez in March 2017.

Nothing was removed from the 2017 processing.

Publisher
Manuscripts Division
Finding Aid Author
Elvia Arroyo-Ramirez
Finding Aid Date
2017
Access Restrictions

This collection is open for research.

Use Restrictions

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Collection Inventory

Scope and Contents

Contains letters, notes, and correspondence to and from Reinaldo Arenas, Aurelio Cortés, and Claude Durand.

Arrangement

Arrangement observes the original order the files came in.

Physical Description

1 box

Correspondence between Claude Durand and Reinaldo Arenas, 1971-1973. 1 folder.
Scope and Contents

Donor note: "Carta de Reinaldo Arenas a Claude Durand, 1973, acerca de la publicación de Otra vez el mar. Carta de Claude Durand a Reinaldo Arenas, 2 páginas, sobre la publicación de El Palacio de las blanquisimas mofetas y, El Mundo alucinante, con comentarios acerca de Lezama Lima."

Physical Description

1 folder

Materials Viewable Online
  1. View digital content
Letter from Reinaldo Arenas to Aurelio Cortés, 1973. 1 folder.
Scope and Contents

Donor note: "Carta de Reinaldo Arenas a Aurelio Cortés, 1973, 13 páginas, a máquina con anotaciones a mano, firmada."

Physical Description

1 folder

Letters from Reinaldo Arenas to Aurelio Cortés - Short Notes and Dedications, undated. 1 folder.
Physical Description

1 folder

Letter from Reinaldo Arenas to "supuestos amigos", 1973. 1 folder.
Scope and Contents

Donor note: "Carta de Reinaldo Arenas a sus "supuestos amigos", 1973?, 4 páginas, a máquina con anotaciones a mano, firmada."

Physical Description

1 folder

Arrangement

Arrangement observes the original order the files came in.

Scope and Contents

This series includes typewritten drafts by Reinaldo Arenas and Aurelio Cortés.

Physical Description

1 box

"Reinaldo Arenas y yo: una relación absurda entre dos personalidades opuestas," By Aurelio Cortés, 1994. 1 folder.
Physical Description

1 folder

"La mesa" (Para Aurelio Cortés) and "Sobre los astros" (Para Aurelio Cortés) By Reinaldo Arenas, 1969. 1 folder.
Scope and Contents

Borrador a máquina de texto en tres partes Sobre los astros por Arenas con correcciones suyas a mano. Texto publicado en 2006.

Physical Description

1 folder

"La poesía en Reinaldo Arenas" and "Reinaldo Arenas, crítico de arte", undated. 1 folder.
Scope and Contents

Donor note: "Copia de artículo sin publicar de Aurelio Cortés titulado Reinaldo Arenas, crítico de arte, que incluye texto posiblemente inédito de Reinaldo Arenas titulado Discreta reverencia. Artículo de Aurelio Cortés titulado La poesía en Reinaldo Arenas que contiene 4 sonetos posiblemente inéditos de Reinaldo Arenas."

Physical Description

1 folder

Unpublished Typescript of Autobiography by Aurelio Cortés, undated. 1 folder.
Scope and Contents

Note: "Borrador a máquina de texto autobiográfico de Aurelio Cortés sin publicar."

Physical Description

1 folder

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