Background Ninon is a supporting character in the fictional novel Texaco by Patrick Chamoiseau. While she is only present in the book for a limited period of time, Ninon’s story relates to the historical lives of women who lived on plantations and experienced the first days of freedom after being raised, taught, and enduring the life of […]
Category: Freedom
Building Materials
Building Materials Meaning Within the Novel Building materials are resources that are used for construction. Their importance in the novel, Texaco by Patrick Chamoiseau, comes from their use in constructing hutches. Hutches were homes for those like Marie Sophie, who never truly had a home. They were a part of their owners, and the way […]
Birds
Introduction As something we encounter on the daily, it is easy to overlook the importance birds hold in literary works. In Patrick Chamoiseau’s novel Texaco, the topic of birds gets brought up multiple times throughout the story, and it communicates something different with the readers each time. Birds in literature have served as symbolic references […]
Saint-Pierre
Introduction Saint-Pierre is a port city located on the island of Martinique in the West Indies. The city of Saint-Pierre was founded by French settlers in 1635 (“Saint-Pierre”). Its main export is sugar. As of 2004, the estimated population is 4,544. Saint-Pierre serves as an important port city on the island of Martinique. In the […]
Mentoh
Introduction The Mentoh is a figure that is represented as an other-worldly being that has a vast knowledge of everything about the world. The Mentoh is often depicted in Patrick Chamoiseau’s Texaco as a guide for the enslaved peoples and formerly enslaved people to take over the city. The Mentoh represents power and freedom, as […]
Maroons and Marronage
History Sparking from the traumatizing and damaging slavery experience, individuals, known as maroons, escape their plantation, seeking out a better life. Although the exact date is not clear, the early 1600’s is believed to be the start of slavery. As a result of the awful conditions the enslaved persons endured, they escaped from their plantations […]
Esternome Laborieux
Esternome Laborieux is the deuteragonist of the novel Texaco by Patrick Chamoiseau. His life is characterized by a series of ups and downs and attempts of mediating his want for stability with his feeling of obligation for change. He is the father of the narrator, Marie-Sophie Laborieux. Esternome’s life is recounted throughout the first half […]
Knowledge
Storytelling throughout generations and with others is a powerful method that keeps our ancestors, their stories, and their wisdom alive today. From drawing on cave walls to our current social media platforms, humans have always found importance in sharing knowledge with others. Humans have always found a strength in knowledge and a weakness in ignorance […]
