Posted on September 27, 2021 in Review of the Week
Stieber, Chelsea. New York University, 2020
380p bibl index, 9781479802135 $89.00, 9781479802159 $30.00, 9781479802166
Writing in the precise, evocative language of a masterful chronicler, Stieber (Catholic Univ. of America) examines Haiti’s volatile post-independence struggles in governing. It is a revolutionary tale of the battle between autocratic or republican rule waged in the press and literary circles of the period. Covering the entire 19th century and the first half of the 20th, Stieber provides an in-depth analysis of the personalities of those seeking power and the historical external and internal events that shaped the fate of a nation. She provides insightful details about the fluctuating, and constantly changing, military and public attitudes toward self-governing. Haiti—as empire and as republic, including its rise from an enslaved colonial state through the ruptures of post-colonial civil wars—has been examined in depth by scholars. What makes this study particularly significant, and singular, is Stieber’s exhaustive examination of primary source material—newspapers, pamphlets, official government documents, personal correspondence, and literary texts. Through her critical analyses of writing as a tool to shape a nation, Stieber unveils the multilayered meanings of liberté that defined Haiti from its declaration of independence in 1804 to the mid-20th century. This compelling and accessible study would provide fertile ground for a similar examination of Haiti from where Stieber ends in 1954 to the present day.
Summing Up: Essential. Lower-division undergraduates through faculty; professionals; general readers.
Reviewer: A. J. Guillaume Jr., emeritus, Indiana University South Bend
Interdisciplinary Subjects: Latin American & Latina/o Studies
Subject: Humanities – Language & Literature – Romance
Choice Issue: Oct 2021
In honor of Public Works Week, we take a sociological look at city development and planning in Dividing Paradise. This week's review presents a case study of Paradise Valley, which demonstrates class tensions and economic disparity in rural areas.
Posted on in Review of the Week
In celebration of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, this week's review brings together research on "1.5 generation" Koreans in the US and beyond
Posted on in Review of the Week
To commemorate Mental Health Awareness Month, this week's review looks at how "mattering" impacts one's well-being, relationships, and community
Posted on in Review of the Week
This week's review digs into the complexity and challenges of feminist activism on social media—an online space rife with neoliberal, self-governing logic
Posted on in Review of the Week