Louise Bennett-Coverley
Jamaican writer, folklorist and educator (1919–2006)
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Key Takeaways
- Louise Simone Bennett-Coverley or Miss Lou (7 September 1919 – 26 July 2006), was a Jamaican poet, folklorist, actress, writer, and educator.
- Early life Bennett was born on 7 September 1919 on North Street in Kingston, Jamaica.
- After the death of her father in 1926, Bennett was raised primarily by her mother.
- Simon's College and Excelsior College, in Kingston.
- That same year, her poetry was first published in the Sunday Gleaner .
Louise Simone Bennett-Coverley or Miss Lou (7 September 1919 – 26 July 2006), was a Jamaican poet, folklorist, actress, writer, and educator. Writing and performing her poems in Jamaican Patois or Creole, Bennett worked to preserve the practice of presenting poetry, folk songs and stories in patois ("nation language"), establishing the validity of local languages for literary expression.
Early life
Bennett was born on 7 September 1919 on North Street in Kingston, Jamaica. She was the only child of Augustus Cornelius Bennett, the owner of a bakery in Spanish Town, and Kerene Robinson, a dressmaker. After the death of her father in 1926, Bennett was raised primarily by her mother. Bennett attended elementary school at Ebenezer and Calabar, continuing to St. Simon's College and Excelsior College, in Kingston. In 1943, she enrolled at Friends College in Highgate, St Mary, where she studied Jamaican folklore. That same year, her poetry was first published in the Sunday Gleaner. In 1945, Bennett was the first black student to study at London's Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA), after being awarded a scholarship from the British Council.
Career
On graduating from RADA, Bennett worked with repertory companies in Coventry, Huddersfield and Amersham, as well as in intimate revues across England. During her time in the country, she hosted two radio programmes for the BBC: Caribbean Carnival (1945–1946) and West Indian Night (1950).
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