Christopher Murray Grieve (11 August 1892 – 9 September 1978), best known by his pen name Hugh MacDiarmid (), was a Scottish poet, journalist, essayist and political figure. He is considered one of the principal forces behind the Scottish Renaissance and has had a lasting impact on Scottish culture and politics. He was a founding member of the National Party of Scotland in 1928 but left in 1933 due to his Marxist–Leninist views. He joined the Communist Party the following year only to be expelled in 1938 for his nationalist sympathies. He would subsequently stand as a parliamentary candidate for both the Scottish National Party (1945) and British Communist Party (1964).
Grieve's earliest work, including Annals of the Five Senses, was written in English, but he is best known for his use of "synthetic Scots", a literary version of the Scots language that he himself developed. From the early 1930s onwards MacDiarmid made greater use of English, sometimes a "synthetic English" that was supplemented by scientific and technical vocabularies.
The son of a postman, MacDiarmid was born in the Scottish border town of Langholm, Dumfriesshire. He was educated at Langholm Academy before becoming a teacher for a brief time at Broughton Higher Grade School in Edinburgh. He began his writing career as a journalist in Wales, contributing to the socialist newspaper The Merthyr Pioneer run by Labour party founder Keir Hardie before joining the Royal Army Medical Corps at the outbreak of the First World War. He served in Salonica, Greece and France before developing cerebral malaria and subsequently returning to Scotland in 1918. MacDiarmid's time in the army was influential in his political and artistic development.
After the war he continued to work as a journalist, living in Montrose where he became editor and reporter of the Montrose Review as well as a justice of the peace and a member of the county council. In 1923 his first book, Annals of the Five Senses, was published at his own expense, followed by Sangschaw in 1925, and Penny Wheep. A Drunk Man Looks at the Thistle, published in 1926, is generally regarded as MacDiarmid's most famous and influential work.Moving to the Shetland island of Whalsay in 1933 with his son Michael and second wife, Valda Trevlyn, MacDiarmid continued to write essays and poetry despite being cut off from mainland cultural developments for much of the 1930s. He died at his cottage Brownsbank, near Biggar, in 1978 at the age of 86.Throughout his life MacDiarmid was a supporter of both communism and Scottish nationalism, views that often put him at odds with his contemporaries. He was a founding member of the National Party of Scotland, forerunner to the modern Scottish National Party. He stood as a candidate for the Scottish National Party in 1945 and 1950, and for the Communist Party of Great Britain in 1964. In 1949, MacDiarmid's opinions led George Orwell to include his name in a list of "those who should not be trusted" to MI5. Today, MacDiarmid's work is credited with inspiring a new generation of writers. Fellow poet Edwin Morgan said of him: "Eccentric and often maddening genius he may be, but MacDiarmid has produced many works which, in the only test possible, go on haunting the mind and memory and casting Coleridgean seeds of insight and surprise."
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Some of their strengths
Hugh MacDiarmid has many admirable traits.
Based on spiritual traditions from around the world, they are someone who can be described as Energetic, Extroverted, Bold, Confident, Optimistic, Intelligent, and Creative.
Bold and Confident
According to Mysticism’s Astrology tradition, Hugh MacDiarmid is someone who is a bold, confident, energetic, and optimistic person, who is able to combine personal warmth and charisma with intelligence. A person who defines themself by their friends and what groups they belong to.
Soulful and Intuitive
Based on Daoism’s Ba-Zi or ‘Chinese Zodiac’ tradition, people who know Hugh MacDiarmid well know them as someone who can be graceful, romantic, and reserved, like gentle rain.
Methodical and Exacting
According to Hinduism’s Jyotisha or ‘Vedic Astrology’ tradition, many would also describe Hugh MacDiarmid as someone who is careful, methodical, and a perfectionist.
A person who forms successful business partnerships, who appreciates the variety the world has to offer, who takes a frugal approach to life and tends to be a workaholic, and who engages in things that let them express their opinion.
Vigorous and Friendly
Based on the Mayan Tzolk’in or ‘Mayan Astrology’ tradition, Hugh MacDiarmid is someone who has a vigor and energy that applies itself to all life's activities and endeavors, and a knack for forming family-like structures, groups, and communities.
They are also someone who is patient, assertive, and who is a natural leader that likes to help others in need.
Creative and Leadership-oriented
According to Judaism’s Kabbalah tradition, Hugh MacDiarmid tends to be someone who is a natural leader, with determination, motivational powers, and who takes obligations seriously. Who has charisma, a sense of humor, and who tends to attract attention.
Some of Hugh MacDiarmid's challenges
While Hugh MacDiarmid has many strengths, nobody is perfect. They also have some challenging traits they need to manage.
For example, Hugh MacDiarmid can be Arrogant, Short-tempered, Status-seeking, Indecisive, Unrealistic, Hesitant, and Narcissistic.
Arrogant and Status-seeking
One of Hugh MacDiarmid's key challenges is that they are someone who can come across as arrogant and status-seeking.
Hugh MacDiarmid must also exercise caution as they can be short-tempered and aggressive.
Sensitive and Critical
Hugh MacDiarmid is someone who can be insecure, critical, and pessimistic, who can have difficulty relaxing, can be possessive and jealous, and who can have difficulty listening to others' opinions and perspectives and make hasty decisions.
Domineering and Stubborn
Finally, Hugh MacDiarmid also can be too rebellious, not respond to criticism well, and be too emotional and extreme about things.
