Literary voices from Haiti
Yesterday, as I finished reading Dave Eggers’ Zeitoun—an excellent read about one Muslim family’s saga in New Orleans during and after Hurricane Katrina—I began to wonder about the literary feats that Haiti’s devastation will produce.
In a way, it seems a bit callous to ponder such a thing at this moment. The physical and emotional toll is still so raw in every image coming out of Haiti, after all.
But Eggers‘ beautifully written nonfiction narrative was inspired by a shorter piece in McSweeney’s Voice of Witness Series book about Hurricane Katrina. And though I hesitate to compare Haiti and Katrina, the stories that come out of the island will, I suspect, find their way into some sort of anthology or magazine or books, whether published by McSweeney’s or someone else. Perhaps they’ll be “as told to” stories. Maybe they’ll be the tales of the country’s accomplished writers and artists. Or tales of American journalists covering the earthquake’s aftermath. Most likely, it’ll be a combination of these things.
I look forward to reading many of these narratives. But it’s the post-earthquake stories from the country’s writers that I most hope I have the chance to read after reading pre-earthquake selections from some of Haiti’s literary voices in Saturday’s New York Times. There’s a certain rawness, humanity, and celebration of survival against unfavorable odds that’s present in their pre-earthquake writing. Many of these read as if they could have been written today, but the fact that they weren’t can only make us wonder about the darkness, humanity, and strength that will manifest themselves in witness narratives about the earthquake.
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Laura — To think such literary notions right now it not entirely callous, because here and there, amid the rubble and horror in Haiti, some people are, indeed, taking notes. There’s no other way for the world to know the whole and real truth.
Thanks, Scott. You’re certainly correct — that’s part of the way people deal with tragedy, but trying to document it, whether mentally or on paper. Despite knowing that, it’s hard for me (and perhaps me alone) to even entertain the more beautiful, cultural outcomes of the earthquake that will come down the line at a time when the destruction remains so raw. But then again, I can’t deny that I’m entertaining those thoughts, so that, too, says something about how the mind works in such situations, no matter which side of the TV screen one’s on.
There are lots of layers to it. If last Thursday, someone known for churning out hot-selling nonfiction books about disasters and other chaotic events was on the phone to his or her publisher saying, “I need to get to Haiti!” that’s a bit cynical. If someone was in Haiti when the quake struck, and is still alive and still there, and attempting to keep a journal because someday he or she wants to get the story out to the world, that’s entirely understandable. But is either impulse — best-selling author’s or regular person’s — valid?
In response to another comment. See in context »Good point, Scott. Depending on your motivation and view of the world, both could be considered valid. Perhaps the question isn’t which one is valid but which one is compassionate.