kingdom and Alexandre Pétion’s republic) after independence were identified by the sovereignty
and persona of their respective leaders, Haiti in the 1830s would be legitimated by having its
poets. Most importantly, Lamartine and Hugo are consistently identified in the journals as
French poets, and the hope is that Haiti will have poets of similar caliber it can claim as its own.
According to the anonymous contributor who introduces Hugo’s poetry, Haiti will but has not yet
fully developed an interest in poetry. Again the emphasis is placed on Haiti’s participation in
global advancements in multiple areas, which includes literature and poetry:
Nous nous intéressons bien un jour à la poésie, et autre que les chants de
l’étranger auront du retentissement chez nous, des voix, s’élevant de notre sein
même, s’adresseront, ce qui sera mieux, à nos sympathies nationales.^80It is important to note that such changes and debates surrounding Romanticism and theimportance of the nation were nearly contemporary in both France and Haiti. If Haitians indeed
turned outward from current literary activity in Haiti, it is because they sensed a connection with
Romantic expression while nonetheless being committed to national prosperity. Numerous
articles from these two journals consistently contextualize what adoption of Romantic sentiment
likely represented for Haitian writers at the time. The opening issue of Le Républicain stresses
that since Antiquity, civilizations “se régénèrent avec le contact,” and literature, it is implied, is
to be considered along with commerce, diplomacy, and industry, all of which need the benefit of
exchange for the larger purpose of national development.^81 Speaking in general terms, one
editor cautions: “Ne copiez pas servilement de parti pris les autres nations...mais quand la vérité
vous apparaît, quelle soit d’origine française, anglaise, allemande, que votre nationalité lui donne
l’asile.”^82 In literature specifically, Haitians naturally recognized France as an important source
(^80) L’Union le 12 avril 1838.
(^81) “De la nationalité et de la communauté des peuples."
(^82) “De la nationalité et de la communauté des peuples.” Italics my emphasis.