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TheHistoryandStorybehindtheAuthorofFarmingofBones.pptxEdwidge Danticat
The History and Story behind the Author of Farming of Bones
Early Life
Mrs. Danticat was born on January 19, 1969 in Port-au-Prince, Haiti
When she was only four years old, in 1973, her mother and father moved to the United States and left her and her brother with an aunt and uncle.
Eventually, in 1981, Mrs. Danticat joined her parents but, with only being familiar with the Creole language and the Haitian style of dress and mannerism, she found adapting to life in the United States difficult.
As a way to escape unpleasant situations, she began to write stories.
Meanwhile, in 1970, thousands of Haitians began to flee poverty and repression under the Dictatorship of the Duvalier family.
On April 22, 1971 Jean-Claude Duvalier, became the new Dictator of Haiti after his Father’s, Francois Duvalier, death.
1977, on the 15 of August, U.S. ambassador, William B Jones arrives in Haiti to meets with Jean Claude to discuss civil rights in Haiti
Jean Claude Duvalier
Born on July 3, 1951, Port-au-Prince, Haïti
The only son of François Duvalier, he succeeded his father as president for life in April 22 1971, becoming the youngest named president at 19.
Due to pressure from the USA, Jean began to “moderate” the tyrannical and corrupt rulings that came from his father by easing press censorship and replacing a few of his father’s old cabinet members with a few of his own.
Nevertheless, Haiti continued to be semi-isolationist when dealing with foreign relations and any political opposition was met with death or torture
Due to the increase in Social unrest from the people of Haiti, Jean Claude fled in February 1986 and left the country under military rule until his return in 2011
He died on October 4, 2014 in Port-au-Prince
Rising through Adversity
Although her Parent’s wanted her to become a doctor, Mrs. Danticat graduated from Barnard College in New York City in 1990 with a B.A. in French Literature.
Then in 1993 she received a Masters of Fine Arts degree from Brown University
Her first published work, Breath, Eyes, Memory(1994), was actually her master’s thesis and was a autobiographical account on the relationships between several generations of Haitian women.
Acclaimed Fame
Danticat has received numerous honors, including the Pushcart Short Story Prize and awards from magazines like The Caribbean Writer and Essence.
In 1998, Breath, Eyes, Memory was picked by the famous talk-show host Oprah Winfrey for her book club and granted Danticat even greater success.
She wrote her second novel, the Farming of Bones, in 1998 and explained that the meaning behind the title was a Haitian term for harvesting sugar cane.
The story background was related to the massacre of Haitian emigrants by Dominican dictator Rafael Trujillo in 1937.
Through her stories, Danticat continues to explore the struggles of power, women, social injustice and fighting poverty
Citations
Britannica, T. E. (2018, September 30). Jean-Claude Duvalier. Retrieved from https://www.britannica.com/biography/Jean-Claude-Duvalier
Britannica, T. E. (2019, January 15). Edwidge Danticat. Retrieved from https://www.britannica.com/biography/Edwidge-Danticat
Breath, Eyes, Memory. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.oprah.com/oprahsbookclub/about-breath-eyes-memory-by-edwidge-danticat
Edwidge Danticat. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://edwidgedanticat.com/
