THE THEME OF IDENTITY IN LÉON-GONTRAN DAMASʼS POETRY

Abstract

This article analyzes the theme of identity in the poetic work of one of the founding fathers of Afro-Caribbean letters Léon-Gontran Damas (1912-1978), whose works are still better known in English-speaking or Portuguese-speaking countries than in metropolitan France. Starting from the first cry of black revolt in poetry against the French presence in the overseas territories (Pigments, 1937), we will try to explain the originality of this multifaceted writer whose positions taken against the assimilationist policies of the French Republic and the disastrous consequences of the colonial enterprise have long irrigated the thought of Creole authors (Tirolien, Fanon, Glissant, Depestre) in their fight for a better consideration of the cultural and linguistic specificities of the French Antilles. In addition, the paper pays homage to his extraordinary literary work as well as his struggle for the freedom and the dignity of the colored people worldwide. What is more, the rise in power of racist and discriminatory attacks and the extremization of the discourse of many Western politicians prove that the authorʼs literary work has never been so topical since it still constitutes a bulwark against the resurrection of European colonial thought and its imperialist excesses. After all, Damasʼ anti-racism invites us to fiercely resist a logic of scapegoating minorities in multicultural societies, especially in formerly colonizing and slaving countries where the followers of the exploitation of man by man occupy the center front of the media scene and whose hate speech against socially disadvantaged classes seriously undermine living together.