Enduring Myths

Ebook available to libraries exclusively as part of the JSTOR Path to Open intiative.

The field of Haitian literary studies has become increasingly robust, stretching across numerous languages and continents to demonstrate the richness of Haitian writings. Yet a number of unacknowledged myths about Haiti and Haitians undergird and often skew critical readings of Haitian literary texts. Drawing on scholarly publications from the locales most invested in Haitian Studies (Haiti, France, Québec, US, etc.) and privileging a black feminist framework, Enduring Myths: Scholars and Stories about Haiti resolutely centers Haiti and Haitians to reveal and refute myths such as that of monolingual authenticity, exile as a necessary condition for Haitian writers, and the silent Haitian woman. Each chapter closes with a reading of one or two short stories to illustrate the breadth of the Haitian short story tradition as but one example of what scholars overlook when clinging to preconceived notions about what constitutes true Haitian literature. Spanning from the 19th to the 21st centuries, the analyzed stories are by Ignace Nau, Virginie Sampeur, Fernand Hibbert, Philippe Thoby-Marcelin, Marie-Thérèse Colimon-Hall, Évelyne Trouillot, Kettly Mars and Chantal Kénol. This book urges scholars and the field of Haitian studies as a whole to reassess our approach to Haitian literature and to the country itself.