“Krik? Krak!” by Edwidge Danticat: Common Theme and Symbolism

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Outline

Edwidge Dandicat, is the author of “Krik? Krak!.” It includes a collection of nine short stories, each different in characters and content, but with the same underlying theme and idea. Through her stories, Dandicat wishes to give a picture of the story of Haiti, which is her land too. She narrates the sufferings and hardships of the people of Haiti, as a result of colonialism, despotism and military rule. The superstitions of the people led to the deaths of many women during that time. The political terror and the resulting economic crisis and poverty, caused for the migration of many people to other countries, especially the US. This paper is about the common theme and symbolism used in the narrations.

Analysis of Krik? Krak!

Edwidge Dandicat is a Haitian writer, born in Port-au-Prince in the year 1969. She was brought up by her aunt till the age of twelve, since her parents migrated to New York when she was very young, and later on she too migrated to New York. Though her nostalgia about her land is not very much, it is evident that Haiti is held close to her heart. Within a short period, Dandicat has emerged as one of the most successful African-American woman writer who narrates the life and sufferings of the people of her island through her powerful works. Her style of writing is very often compared with that of Flannery O’Connor. The history of Haiti, the political consequences of colonialism and the condition of women are the common themes in her stories. Among her works, ‘Krik? Krak!’, which was released in 1995, is one that won her a lot of fame. ‘Krik? Krak!,’ was written before the Haitians Americans’ democracy. In this paper, an analysis of the stories and the basic theme is going to be discussed. The book contains a collection of nine different short stories, but with a lot of symbolism of the sufferings of the people of Haiti, especially the women and the cultural consequences of colonialism and political tyranny. (Edwidge Danticat b.1969).

The stories in the book deal with the problems faced by the Haitians as a result of colonialism. The characters are all perfect depictions of Haitians, who is changed as a result of colonialism, but still hold on to some of their traditional beliefs. She also presents the political state of affairs in Haiti, its effect on the people and indirectly refers even to the despotism which Haiti had to suffer. She presents mother-daughter relationship and its meanings in some of the stories in the book. She refers to the superstitions which caused for atrocities against wome. She means to express her views about the power of women through her stories, but makes it a point to keep feminism away from it. In spite of the sufferings of the Haitians, she narrates a ray of hope in all her characters, that they will be freed from their problems and dilemmas in following the colonial culture and religion.

Through the stories, she conveys the message that the Haitians have suffered a lot due to colonialism and despotism and that it is time that the Haitians be granted democracy. Dandicat says, “I wanted to raise the voice of a lot of the people that I knew growing up, and this was, for the most part, … poor people who had extraordinary dreams but also very amazing obstacles.” (Birnbaum v. Edwidge Danticat). The stories are filled with symbolism about Haiti’s history and the people’s sufferings. Haiti is paralleled with a mother/prostitute, who dreads the night or the dark period of her life, and has suffered more than for her age, but decides to face all the obstacles with the hope of a better future. Firstly, colonialism resulted in the establishment of Christianity and another culture.

Secondly, the period of despotism by Duvalier and extreme economic exploitation during that time caused Haiti to become one of the poorest countries in the world. This made a small percentage of its population to flee from the country for safer lives. This can be seen in the first short story, in which the hero flees the country in a boat. As is the history, many families settled in the US, one among which was the family of Dandicat. As a result, the newer generations got alienated from Haiti’s original traditions and culture. The youth became ignorant of them, since most of them accepted Christianity and others had become part of the US population. However, everything about them haven’t changed. Traces of their culture and superstitions still remain, as is evident in “Caroline’s Wedding.” The mother does not want her daughter to marry a foreigner, though she follows Christianity and regularly goes for the mass. She is superstitious and believes in the powers of bone soup.

The power of hope in the Haitians are indirectly conveyed in the stories. The people of Haiti, try to resist the changes by conveniently closing their eyes to reality. They hope that a day would soon come when they no longer would have to deny realities. “Night Women” presents such a woman who tries to hide to her son, the truth that she is a prostitute. The writer shows that this kind of denial does not always help. Marie in “Between the Pool and the Gardenias,” keeps the baby long after it is dead, till it begins to rot. Finally, Marie gets arrested on an accusation of witchcraft. The importance given to water in the stories show that, it is a water that alienates Haitians from the rest of the world, and all their troubles are contained inside it. Most of the people trying to cross it are killed in between. The hero in the first story, gets killed at the end. A woman on the boat, gives birth to a still-born baby and therefore suicides. The Massacre river, contains the blood of many of Haitians who were killed in a massacre, of which Dominican Republic was responsible. The Haitian women identify themselves as whether they are descendents of the victims of that massacre or not.

Dandicat, means to convey the message that the only way to pass the culture of a country with a violent history is from mothers to daughters. (Davis, 1). This is the reason for the importance she has given to this relationship in her stories. In “Nineteen Thirty-Seven,” Jopsephine’s mother considers Josephine’s birth was connected with the death of her grandmother. The new link formed when an old one broke. This shows the importance given by the Haitians to the ancestors, their traditions and the significance of passing it on to the next generations. They are determined to keep their past alive. The Haitians are proud of their courageous and brave ancestors who tried to resist colonialism. Another aspect of the Haitian life is the poor condition of its women. They were treated unequally by men. The discrimination towards women took many faces in Haiti. Superstitions were excuses for killing women on the accusations of witchcraft. The story, “Nineteen Thirty-Seven” deals with the story of a woman accused of witchcraft and put in prison. Each story, gives a different perspective of the women of that time. Dandicat, is the voice of the women, who were oppressed and mistreated in Haiti. She wishes to show their real courage and power through her works. (Edwidge Danticat).

Dandicat gives an exact picture of the courage and braveness of the people of Haiti in resisting and rebelling colonialism, which was followed by despotism and then military rule. The political instability and economic exploitation faced by the Haitians are stated as the major reasons for their penury, which the writer ridicules. The chaos, and violence due to political issues caused the migration of a large number of people to other countries, especially the US. She says that the Haitians have had enough by now and that they must be granted democracy.

All the works in the book, though different stories, are related to each other in their themes and the writer’s intended message. In spite of the fact that Dandicat is settled in the US, she has a clear vision of the history of Haiti, its people and their sufferings. In the same year this book was written, the US troops began to withdraw from Haiti, and the period of military rule was over, leading to the election for a democratic government.

Works Cited

Edwidge Danticat b.1969. Regents of the University of Minnesota. 2006. Web.

Birnbaum v. Edwidge Danticat. The Morning News. 2004. Web.

Davis, Rocio G. Orral Narrative as Short Story Cycle: Forgiving Community in Edwidge Danticat’s Krik? Krak. Questia. Vol. 26, 2001. Web.

Edwidge Danticat. 2009. Web.

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“Krik? Krak!” by Edwidge Danticat: Common Theme and Symbolism

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