Patrick Chamoiseau
was born in Fort-de-France on the island of Martinique in 1953. After
studying Law in Paris and taking a Master's degree in Social Economy he
worked as an educator in rehabilitation programmes for imprisoned
children, first in France and then in Martinique. Since then he has
been working for the administration of the juvenile court in
Fort-de-France.
Stimulated by his early and wide-ranging reading
of Creole literature, Chamoiseau has become increasingly interested in
the ethnology, history and language of the Caribbean, all of which
seemed to be threatened with extinction. In his work, which comprises
various genres, he pursues the polymorphic Creole identity together
with the various cultures and traditions that have influenced it.
Distancing himself from the concept of a »black identity« put forward
by the Négritude movement established by Aimé Césaire, Chamoiseau
formulated in 1989, along with Raphaël Confiant and Jean Bernabé, a
theoretical frame for Creoleness in the manifesto »Eloge de la
créolité« (1989; t: In Praise of Creoleness).
Chamoiseau's literary career was launched in the
seventies with a cartoon, followed by the play »Manman Dlo contre la
fée Carabosse« in 1982 (t: Water Mother versus the Carabossa Fairy),
which contrasts the fairy tales by Perrault with those of the Antilles
and focuses on contemporary cultural conflicts on the islands. In his
first two novels, »Chronique des sept misères« (1986; t: Chronicle of
the seven sorrows), and »Solibo Magnifique« (1988; Eng. »Solibo
Magnificent«, 1997), Chamoiseau deploys a new, musical style combining
Creole vernacular and oral traditions with the French language, so that
the texts remain comprehensible to Francophone readers. Chamoiseau
finally achieved international recognition with his third novel,
»Texaco« (1992). The work depicts the fictitional chronicle of a family
over three generations set against the backdrop of actual historical
events in the Antilles from the time of slavery to its independence
from French colonial rule. In his recently completed, autobiographical
trilogy »Antan d'enfance« (1990; Eng. »Childhood«, 1999), »Chemin
d'école« (1994; t: School days) and »A bout d'enfance« (2005; t:
Childhood's end), Chamoiseau reconstructs his childhood as a »petit
négrillon«, the narration of which is interspersed with reflections and
comments from the writer's perspective.
Chamoiseau has been awarded many literary prizes,
including the Prix Kléber Haedens, the Prize of the Island of
Mauritius, the Prix Goncourt, the Prix Carbet de la Caraïbe, and the
Special Prize of the Jury RFO. The author lives in Fort-de-France.
© internationales literaturfestival berlin | 
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