María Bibiana Benítez, was Puerto Rico"s first female poet and one of its first playwrights.
Background
Benitez, (born María Bibiana Benítez Batista ) was born into a middle-class family in the town of Aguadilla. Her father Jose Benitez Bermudez (1762-1832), was a lieutenant in the Spanish Army who on April 28, 1797 defended "Louisiana Puntilla" against an English invasion. Her father could afford such a luxury since he also held an important position within the Spanish colonial government.
Career
Her family loved literature and owned a private library which contained a collection of the best books available at the time. Benítez was able to attend the best private schools where she learned about poetry and composition. In 1813, she moved to the coastal town of Luquillo, where she wrote the majority of her poems.
Benitez was also the great-aunt of whom is considered to be the greatest Puerto Rican poet, Jose Gautier Benítez.
Benitez moved to the Calle Cristo in city of San Juan. In San Juan she presented her play and she also published the rest of her poems.
Among her better known poems are "Soneto" (1839) and "Dialogo Alegorico" (1858). Maria Bibiana Benitez died on April 18, 1873 in San Juan Puerto Rico.