certain characteristics of Haitian literature of the 1830s, these terms are inadequate to discuss the
complexities of poetry of this period. More than a reflection of French Romanticism, and
certainly more than a mere precursor to the poetry of twentieth-century Haitian writers like Carl
Brouard and Jacques Roumain, Haitian poetry in the 1830s arguably represents the most
significant turning point in nineteenth-century Haitian literature. The themes of personal history
and more importantly of national history as elaborated in Ardouin’s and Nau’s texts inaugurate
the themes of Haitian poetry which will remain dominant throughout the nineteenth century.
This chapter explores the 1830s as a pivotal time in the development of Haitian poetry as a
national project.
Changes in Haitian society, politics, and economics were dramatic during this time.Haitian poetry in the 1830s cannot be studied in isolation, and providing an historical context can
only enhance an understanding of the literature of the period. This chapter will therefore begin
with a review of Haitian history from 1820 to 1840, citing twentieth-century historical studies as
well as the Haitian journals Le Républicain and L’Union, both of which serve as valuable
nineteenth-century Haitian sources for the events from 1836-1839. Following this historical
information, recently published articles surrounding the bicentennial of the Haitian Revolution
will also help contextualize the current relevance of Haitian poetry from the 1830s. The personal
poetry of Ardouin and Nau will then be situated in relation to debates already occurring in Haiti
at that time around issues of literary imitation and elitism. The rest of the chapter will be
devoted to examining their national poems, first those about Haiti’s pre-revolutionary past and
finally the poems which feature the Haitian Revolution.
The aforementioned literary journals and the beginnings of Haitian Romantic poetrydeveloped during the twenty-five year presidency of Jean-Pierre Boyer. His rule is not only the