Rethinking the Haitian Revolution: Slavery, Independence, and the Struggle for Recognition

(Paperback)

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In this important book, leading scholar Alex Dupuy provides a critical reinterpretation of the Haitian Revolution and its aftermath. Dupuy evaluates the French colonial context of Saint-Domingue and then Haiti, the achievements and limitations of the revolution, and the divisions in the Haitian ruling class that blocked meaningful economic and political development. He reconsiders the link between slavery and modern capitalism; refutes the argument that Hegel derived his master-slave dialectic from the Haitian Revolution; analyzes the consequences of new class and color divisions after independence; and convincingly explains why Haiti chose to pay an indemnity to France in return for its recognition of Haitis independence. In his sophisticated analysis of race, class, and slavery, Dupuy provides a robust theoretical framework for conceptualizing and understanding these major themes.

Reviews

Haiti is the Western Hemispheres poorest and most long-suffering nations, having enjoyed few eras of good governance since winning its independence from French slavery in 1804. The revolution that freed the slaves was, as Dupuy (Wesleyan) explains, an opportunity for slaves to become masters of their own labor and destiny. Instead, the revolution was usurped by a new black ruling class that confiscated the properties of the French planters and competed for hegemony within the new classcritically, against the wishes and aspirations of the body of former slaves who wanted to be independent farmers but found themselves still working for the post-revolutionary landowning class, many of whom at first were from a mixed-race background. Dupuys most striking revision, however, concerns the nature of the heavy cash indemnity that President Jean-Pierre Boyer agreed to pay France to purchase recognition. Unlike earlier writers, Dupuy argues convincingly that the indemnity was not the main reason that Haiti failed to grow economically in the 19th century. The indemnity was not the cause of Haitian underdevelopment then, and continuing through the American occupation, it isn't now.

Summing Up: Recommended. Upper-division undergraduates through faculty.

* Choice Reviews *
This new book, by one of the most eminent theorists in Haitian studies, offers a searching reinterpretation of Haitian history. Alex Dupuy revisits the early years of Haitian independence, reinscribing Haitian history into larger developments in the history of capitalism. He also offers fresh analyses of the class-color debate in Haitian history and of the controversial decision to pay an indemnity to France in 1825 in exchange for recognition. -- Alyssa Sepinwall, California State University, San Marcos
Dupuy has committed an act of scholarship. He offers a bold and provocative appreciation of the Haitian Revolution via an unapologetic application of historical materialist principles. Grounded in a class analysis of the modes of production debate and uneven capitalist development, the author chides Haitis post-independence ruling classes for their dereliction in consolidating a strong state; their failure effectively to proletarianize the ex-slave peasant classes; and their overall inability to get beyond the divisive legacy of race, color, and shade bequeathed to them by their colonial masters. In sum, this is a book about the primitive accumulation of capital in pre- and post-independent Haiti, a country that though remaining in the periphery of global capitalism has long been central to the development of the latter. The book offers an exquisite blend of history, philosophy, theory, and empirical evidence. -- Anton Allahar, professor emeritus, department of sociology, University of Western Ontario
Alex Dupuy astutely reexamines scholarship on the Haitian Revolution and post-revolutionary Haiti in this intellectually stimulating contribution. He systematically exposes the domestic and international intrigue that marked state and class formation and the contradictory consequences for former slaves and their descendant peasants and workers at the hands of the new ruling class forces in Haiti. A brilliant tour de force! -- Hilbourne Watson, Bucknell University
A trenchant assessment of the only successful slave revolution in the Western Hemisphere, this book offers a radical approach that is foregrounded in the relationship between capitalism and slavery in the French colony of Saint Domingue. Alex Dupuy cogently dismantles contemporary arguments about Haiti being the source of inspiration for Hegels concept of the master-slave dialectic. In addition, the book also provides an erudite and highly nuanced analysis of the practice of race, class, color, and national belonging in Haiti in the aftermath of the Revolution. This volume is important reading for all students of Haitian and Caribbean history and society. -- Linden F. Lewis, Bucknell University

Author Bio

Alex Dupuy is John E. Andrus Professor of Sociology Emeritus at Wesleyan University. His books include Haiti in the World Economy: Class, Race, and Underdevelopment since 1700; Haiti in the New World Order: The Limits of the Democratic Revolution; The Prophet and Power: Jean-Bertrand Aristide, the International Community, and Haiti; and Haiti: From Revolutionary Slaves to Powerless Citizens.