The Key West citizen

From the original pageDe la página original

This page carries the passage as it was found on the newspaper page, copied with its reading errors and all. The article's fuller presentation is still to come; the original page is linked above.Esta página lleva el pasaje tal como se encontró en la página del periódico, copiado con sus errores de lectura y todo. La presentación completa del artículo aún está por venir; la página original está enlazada arriba.

HAITI: Black Peasants and

Voodo. By Alfred Metraux. Uni

verw Boeks. M. 50

The three million peasants who

exist in the valleys and on the

mountain slopes of Haiti are not

types for tourist posters. They’re

picturesque, but their poverty and

misery are too apalling.

Alfred Metraux wasn't a tour

ist. He was sent to the island

republic to study rural life, and

while doing so he was won over

by the charm and friendliness of

these destitute people. His book

reflects his genuine affecton, but

its scholarly yet highly readable

prose is never marred by con

descending paternalism nor

maudlin apologies.

The Haitian peasants Metraux

writes about stand on their own

feet as they try to wrest a living

from rocky slopes and impover

ished soil. Their day to day strug

gle for 'survival, their lighter

moments, their common law jnar

riages and polygamy practice,

their superstitiutions and relig

ion come alive for the most casual

reader.

The illustrations, mostly

I

photographs by Pierre Verger,

are remarkable for capturing the

spirit of the people with superb

technical artistry.

Numerous (and probably rare)

snapshots of pagan rituals point

up the author’* concern with

voodoo. His intelligent under

standing of the peasant’s religion,

which mixes Catholic practices

with longstanding pagan rites,

doesn't use the customary sensa

tional treatment to make it dra

matic. It doesn’t need it It’s

pretty heady in its own right.

According to the author, voodoo

worshipers see no problem in

their dual allegiance. They iden

How to cite this articleCómo citar este artículo

The Key West citizen. (1960). Key West, Fla., 1960-11-20. Haiti in the American Press. Library of Congress, Chronicling America: https://www.loc.gov/resource/sn83016244/1960-11-20/ed-1/?sp=14

ReferencesReferencias

Library of Congress, Chronicling America: The Key West citizen, 1960-11-20.