Anagrams of annihilation: the (im)possible writing of the middle passage in NourbeSe Philip and...

7/26/2019 Anagrams of annihilation: the (im)possible writing of the middle passage in NourbeSe Philip and douard Glissant

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Alessandro Corio

Marie Curie Research Fellow, University of Birmingham

Anagrams of annihilation: the (im)ossi!le writing of the middle

assage in "our!e#e $hili and %douard &lissant

alors le tourment se rpandit alentour, salentit et dormitpendant des temps, rejaillit avec des claboussures de lumireet dardeur, disparut encore pour flamber nouveau dans une

poitrine ou une tte ou une foule exaspre.

(. Glissant,La Case du commandeur, p. 1!"

t#e s#ip sailedt#e rains camet#e loss arose

t#e ne$roes aret#e trut# is

(%ourbe&e '#ilip,Zong!, 1)"

'he slave shi ong: a !ioolitical aradigm for Atlantic modernity

*n &eptember 1!+1, a merc#ant s#ip called t#e on$ sailed from -est frica /it# )!0

slaves, bound for amaica. *t /as captained b2 3u4e 5ollin$/ood, and o/ned b2 a famil2 from

3iverpool, t#e Gre$sons. 6#e car$o /as full2 insured accordin$ to t#e standard marine insurance

policies of t#e time. *nstead of t#e customar2 six to nine /ee4s, t#e vo2a$e too4 four mont#s, on

account of t#e captains navi$ational errors. 72 8! %ovember, sixt2 fricans and seven

cre/members #ad succumbed to a sic4ness t#at /as rava$in$ t#e s#ip. *t is believed t#at fort2 ot#er

slaves ma2 #ave t#ro/n t#emselves into t#e ocean as a result of fear, sufferin$ and lac4 of food.

5aptain 5ollin$/ood, realisin$ t#at t#e insurers /ould not compensate losses $enerated b2

sic4ness, decided to jettison, and t#us murder, 198 slaves. :e cited a ;lac4 of /ater to justif2 #is

decision and /as never accused or prosecuted for murder. 6#is t2pe of loss /ould be compensated

under t#e insurance polic2 t#at secured t#e value of t#e #uman merc#andise s#ipped b2 t#e on$. *n

fact, t#e operatin$ la/s of propert2 #ad conferred on eac# of t#e slave bodies a measurable and

recoverable


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-#en t#e insurers refused to pa2 out for t#e losses incurred in t#e on$, t#e Gre$sons appealed to

t#e court. 6#e captain 3u4e 5ollin$/ood /as alread2 dead /#en t#e jur2 found t#e insurers liable

and ordered t#em to compensate t#e s#ips o/ners for t#eir losses> t#e 198 murdered slaves.

6#e le$al report of t#e case is t#e onl2 arc#ival record of t#is tra$ic episode, /#ic# /as

destined to become exemplar and to pla2 an important role in t#e abolitionist campai$n in 7ritain

and ?nited &tates. s ames -alvin /rites inBlack Ivory, ;t#e line of dissent from t#e on$case to

t#e successful campai$n for abolition of slaver2 /as direct and unbro4en, #o/ever protracted and

uneven (-alvin 8001> 1@". 6#e case /as follo/ed b2 suc# abolitionists as Alauda# B )"> for example in -illiam

-ilberforces speec#es at t#e :ouse of 5ommons or in -illiam 6urners 1+)0 canvas The Slave

ShipC /#ic# /as ori$inall2 entitled Slavers Throing verboard the "ead and "ying# Typhoon

Coming n. 6#e atrocious scene of t#e on$ soon ac a sort of textual cenotap# to t#e paradi$matic fi$ure

of t#e droning human body (t#e comparison is particularl2 fittin$, as a cenotap# is an empt2 tomb

or a monument erected in #onour of a person or $roup of people /#ose remains are else/#ere". -e

use t#e term ;paradi$m in more or less t#e same sense in /#ic# Gior$io $amben interprets t#e

%aEi concentration camp as a paradi$m of t#e actual planetar2 biopolitical order. ccordin$ to #im,

;/#at t#e example s#o/s is its belon$in$ to a class, but for t#is ver2 reason t#e example steps out of

its class in t#e ver2 moment it ex#ibits and delimits it FH. 6#e example is trul2 a paradigmin t#eet2molo$ical sense> it is /#at is Is#o/n besideJ, and a class can contain ever2t#in$ except its o/n

paradi$m ($amben 1@@+> 88". *n t#is sense, t#e dro/nin$ #uman bodies of t#e on$ ;step out as

a paradi$matic fi$ure of t#e biopolitical apparatus of slaver2 and of t#e ;state of exception

composin$ t#e $lobal capitalist modernit2.

6#is article aims to anal2se #o/ an event li4e t#e on$ massacre and its uncomfortable

memories can unloc4 t#e overall biopolitical nature of t#e transatlantic slave s2stem and econom2.

Given t#e centralit2 of t#e slave trade in t#e development of modern capitalist societies (-illiams1@))", * /ill


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relation bet/een politics and life in contemporar2 societies C #ave avoided considerin$ slaver2 and

t#e plantation s2stem as pivotal aspects in t#e $enealo$2 of t#e biopolitical apparatuses re$ulatin$

t#e $lobal mec#anisms of soverei$nt2 and $overnance. *nside t#is /ider frame/or4, * /ill consider

#o/ t#e specific en$a$ement of some contemporar2 5aribbean aut#ors /it# t#e unspea4able core

of de#umanisation and silencin$ produced b2 slaver2 is paradoxicall2 capable C t#rou$# a turbulent

and painful confrontation /it# lan$ua$e, memor2, silence and t#e #istorical unconscious C of

developin$ some effective responses to t#ose over/#elmin$ structures. *n particular, t#e creative

/or4 of %ourbe&e '#ilip and douard Glissant s#o/s us #o/ /ritin$ can specificall2 en$a$e /it#

t#is multifarious relation bet/een t#e lan$ua$e of t#e 3a/, /it# its tremendous po/er of capturin$

and sometimes underminin$ or destro2in$ life, and t#e creative po/er of lan$ua$e itself to res#ape

identities and subjects, bot# on a personal and on a collective level. 6#ose openin$s ma2 allo/ us to

ima$ine and perform empo/erin$ and creative relations bet/een life and its forms, /#ic# can be

considered as attempts to inau$urate an ;affirmative biopolitics (Bsposito 800+" in our present.

6#e stor2 of t#e on$tends to repeat itself, to multipl2, to accumulate and to recur. *t refuses

to remain confined in a delimited spatiotemporal frame and context. s /e /ill see, repetition,

accumulation and imKpossibilit2 seem to be t#e main tropes of t#is narrative on several levels. 6#is

is precisel2 /#at reveals its #auntin$ and uncann2 position inside t#e blac4 tlantic biopolitical

modernit2> its restraints as /ell as its unpredictable potentialities. *t is a stor2 t#at cannot be told

and2et must be told and unDtells itself a$ain and a$ain. 3i4e t#e tale ellipticall2 narrated in 6oni

LorrisonsBeloved, ;t#is is not a stor2 to pass on (Lorrison 1@+!> 8!=". *t is a stor2, man2 stories

indeed, /#ic# #ave been abandoned to an under/ater space of oblivion and anni#ilation. t t#e

same time, t#ose silenced stories as4 us to find t#e lan$ua$e and t#e form to conve2 and relate

t#em, to bear /itness to t#is silence. *t is a tale about a terrific and traumatic event t#at never fails to

return> an ab2ss t#at #aunts and disrupts ever2 conse


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(7aucom 8001> 8". s a matter of fact, b2 pedanticall2 follo/in$ t#e contract of insurance, captain

5ollin$/ood #ad produced somet#in$ of value in eac# of t#ose moments in /#ic# a slaves bod2

#it t#e surface of t#e sea> ;an apocal2pse in /#ic#, t#rou$# t#e metap#oric ima$ination of t#e

capital, deat# and t#e mone2 form name one anot#er as literal e @0". s t#e literar2 /or4 of %ourbe&e '#ilip and douard Glissant s#o/s, suc# an event turns

out to be an apocal2pse oflanguage, too. 6#e act of /ritin$ must face t#is unrecoverable loss of

meanin$.

ccordin$ to t#e operatin$ protocols of propert2 and profit, t#e captain of t#e on$ /as not

a murderer but someone /#o acted correctl2 to maximiEe profits at a moment of $reat ris4 for t#e

interests of t#e o/ners and t#e investors. Me$ardless of /#et#er t#is implied 4illin$ t#e slaves or

4eepin$ t#em alive to be sold on a slave mar4et in amaica, captain 5ollin$/ood acts as an executor

of an absolute po/er of life and deat#> #e #oldst#e po/er to 4eep t#ose bodies alive or abandon

t#em to deat#. -it#out loosin$ its specificit2, t#is tra$ic and almost unbelievable event ;steps out

as a paradi$matic example of a more $eneralised and diffused space of exception, /#ic# confi$ures

t#e slaver2 s2stem and t#e colonial order as a fundamental counterpart in t#e $enealo$2 of t#e

modern biopolitical space and model of soverei$nt2. 6#e paradi$matic fi$ure of t#e dro/nin$

#uman bod2, in its sublime tra$ed2, is per#aps t#e absolute Eero point in t#e objectification and

commodification of t#e #uman inside t#e capitalist order of modernit2. *n t#e colonial state of

exception nurtured b2 t#e Liddle 'assa$e, t#e #uman ;


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slaver2 and t#e Liddle 'assa$e are not onl2 a foundin$ step in t#e $enealo$2 of -estern capitalist

modes of production, circulation and exc#an$e. 6#rou$# t#e massive development of slaver2 and

t#e plantation s2stem, modern biopo/er #as developed and carried out some of its cruellest and

most effective devices of capture, $overnment, discipline, subju$ation and ne$ation of life. *n a

certain sense, it can be stated t#at slaver2 and colonial domination, /it# t#eir practices of dominion

and subju$ation of t#e bodies, and also /it# t#eir le$al formaliEation and t#eir racist social and

ideolo$ical structures, #ave constituted a veritable laboratory of biopolitics in t#e -estern

modernit2.1

Bioolitics and slavery: facing the unseaa!le

-#at does it mean to situate t#e transatlantic slaver2 and plantation s2stem inside t#e

modern $enealo$2 of biopolitics and /#at 4ind of en$a$ement does postcolonial literature establis#

/it# itO 7efore considerin$ t#e 4ind of creative confrontation t#at literature is able to put in place

/it# t#is biopolitical core of de#umanisation and unspea4abilit2, let us ma4e more explicit t#e

fundamental lin4 bet/een t#e ;seuil de modernit biolo$i 1++", as it is

described b2 Lic#el Noucault and furt#er developed b2 suc# p#ilosop#ers as Gior$io $amben and

Moberto Bsposito, and t#e structural violence of slaver2, colonialism and racism. s Noucault /ritesin a famous passa$e ofLa volont) de savoir, t#e extension of po/er over biolo$ical life mar4ed t#e

emer$ence of modernit2. :e defines biopolitics as ;ce 1++". -#at Noucault tries to point out /it# t#e biopolitical t#res#old is a

s#ift in t#e art of $overnment and in soverei$nt2 t#at #appened in Burope around t#e 1+t#centur2>

Lais ce


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5ontrar2 to Noucaults su$$estion t#at biopo/er /as a -estern modern innovation, t#is

stud2 ar$ues t#at t#e ver2 need to produce and accumulate life /as itself en$endered in t#e tlantic

/orld b2 t#e assembla$es of c#attel slaver2. *n t#e plantation s2stem /e can alread2 identif2 some

of t#e most specific implementations of t#e biopolitical ;droit de mort et pouvoir sur la vie

(Noucault 1@!> 1+9"> t#e pervasive and intimate control, surveillance and ;care of t#e bod2 to

increase its productivit2. Nor instance, in t#e Code noir, t#e le$al text drafted in 1+= b2 5olbert

re$ulatin$ t#e slave trade and t#e plantation s2stem in t#e Nrenc# colonies, slaves are personal

propert2 (;c#attels" but paradoxicall2, at t#e same time, t#e2 do #ave a soul in a 5#ristian sense> an

infantiliEed soul conceived to better imprison and enslave t#eir bodies. 6#is document could be read

in its entiret2 as t#e ultimate example of /#at biopolitics means> t#e bod2 is captured and reduced

to ;bare life t#rou$# t#e le$al apparatus, overlappin$ reli$ious discourse, t#e instrumental and

economic care of t#e slaves bod2, t#e most brutal p#2sical punis#ment and, above all, its complete

commodification, as stated in t#e infamous article ))> ;Rclarons les esclaves tre meubles et

comme tels entrer dans la communaut (5astaldo 800".

6#e concept of ;relation of exception #as been introduced b2 $amben in (omo Sacer,

rel2in$ on 5arl &c#mitt and -alter 7enjamin. -it# ;exception t#e p#ilosop#er means a relation of

articulation bet/een space and po/er /#ic# is not based on t#e simple distinction bet/een an

inside and an outside, but on a ;t#res#old of indistinction bet/een t#e t/o, /#ere ;/#at is excluded

in it is not, on account of bein$ excluded, absolutel2 /it#out relation to t#e rule ($amben 1@@+>

1!". 6#e mec#anism of inclusion into t#e space of soverei$nt2 paradoxicall2 functions t#rou$#

exclusion and abandonment. Bxception is a 4ind of ;inclusive exclusion (81", /#ere t#e subject is

included in t#e rule precisel2 by bein$ excluded from it> ;/#at is excluded in t#e exception

maintains itself in relation to t#e rule in t#e form of t#e rules suspension. The rule applies to the

e*ception in no longer applying# in ithdraing $rom it (1!D+". ccordin$ to $amben, t#e modern

$enealo$2 of t#e ;state of exception #as found its most definitive and /orldDspreadin$

accomplis#ment in t#e institution of t#e concentration camps, /#ic# #e defines as ;t#e ne/biopolitical nomos of t#e planet ()=". s #e claims in t#e t#ird volume #e devotes to t#e stud2 of

biopolitical soverei$nt2,+emnants o$ %uschit,. The -itness and the %rchive($amben 1@@@"#t#e

%aEi concentration camps #ave pus#ed t#e ori$inal project of biopo/er to/ards its extreme limit>

t#e complete separation, inside t#e #uman bein$, of t#e livingand t#espeaking, of ;bare life and

t#e possibilit2 of lan$ua$e itself. s far as /ritin$ is concerned, t#is split implies a fundamental

confrontation of creative lan$ua$e /it# t#is absolute ne$ativit2> t#e impossibilit2 and t#e necessit2,

at t#e same time, to bear /itness for t#is ab2ss of violence and ne$ation of life. :o/ever, a severes#ortcomin$ of $ambens t#eor2 of exception, and mainl2 of t#e biopolitical t#eor2, is t#at it


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remains firml2 Burocentric, almost i$norin$ colonialism and its contemporar2 le$acies in t#e

$lobalised /orld s2stem. %onet#eless, in #is muc#

:istorians debate /#et#er t#e first appearance of camps ou$#t to be identified /it# t#e camposde concentracionest#at /ere created in 1+@ b2 t#e &paniards in 5uba in order to repress t#einsurrection of t#at colon2s population, or rat#er /it# t#e concentration campsinto /#ic# t#eBn$lis# #erded t#e 7oers at t#e be$innin$ of t#e t/entiet# centur2. -#at matters #ere is t#at inbot# cases one is dealin$ /it# t#e extension to an entire civilian population of a state ofexception lin4ed to a colonial /ar. ($amben 8000> 9+"

6#e Lartinican poet and politician im 5saire #ad alread2 been ver2 explicit in

identif2in$ t#e colonial $enealo$2 of modern biopolitics. *n a famous and controversialintroduction

#e /rote in 1@)+ to a collection of texts b2 t#e Nrenc# abolitionist Sictor &c#Tlc#er, 5saire claims

t#at t#e juridical mec#anism of exception /as alread2 the rulein t#e Buropean colonies,and t#atits

extreme condensation in %aEiconcentration camps onl2rendered t#e events /#ic# #ad #appened

for centuries in t#e colonial ;univers concentrationnaire more explicit> ;lllema$ne naEie na fait


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Un*telling the a!yss in "our!e#e $hili+sZong!

fter t#e anal2sis of t#e biopolitical and t#anatopolitical core of t#e blac4 tlantic #istorical

experience, involvin$ t#e relation bet/een t#e 3a/ and t#e bare life it mana$es to produce, let us

come bac4 to t#e initial account of t#e on$ massacre and consider #o/ literature deals /it# suc# a

deep silencin$> a stor2 t#at cannot be told, 2et must be told. Bver2 attempt to bear /itness for t#e

victims and recover t#eir true stor2 must face its paradoxical impossibilit2> t#e absolute loss and t#e

void t#at constitute t#e 4ernel of suc# an event. 6#e e/is# poet 'aul 5elan, facin$ t#e dramatic

experience of $enocide and extermination camps /it# t#eir absolute devastation of ever2 lan$ua$e

and meanin$, /rote in #is poem ;sc#en$lorie t#at ;no one K bears /itness for t#e K /itness

(Rerrida 8000> 1+"> nobod2 can reall2 spea4 for t#ose /#o #ave definitel2 lost ever2 po/er to tell

t#eir o/n stor2. 6#e account of t#e on$massacre $iven above is not C and cannot be C its true

stor2. 6#e sea silenced t#e stories of t#e people carried and murdered ever2 time t#e /ater, /#ic#

became t#eir $rave, s/allo/ed one of t#e 198 bodies up. 6#is constitutive loss is irrecoverable.

*n 800+, t#e 5anadian poet born in 6rinidad and 6oba$o, %ourbe&e '#ilip, publis#ed an

astonis#in$ poem entitledZong!, /#ic# represents a perfect example of #o/ t#e poetic /or4 can

deal /it# t#is ab2ss of silence and loss and /it# t#e paradoxical impossibilit2 of testimon2. 6#ere is

anot#er fundamental issue at sta4e #ere> t#e merel2 biopolitical confrontation bet/een t#e lan$ua$e

of t#e la/ and t#e bod2, and bet/een t#e /ritin$ of t#e bod2 and t#e bod2 of /ritin$ C in an attempt

to free or remove t#ese lost bodies from t#at lo$ic and lan$ua$e t#at #as transformed t#em into an

absolutel2 4illable and exploitable bare life. s t#e aut#or confirms in an intervie/ /it# 'atricia

&aunders, t#is implies a creative and painful /or4 inside t#e lan$ua$e itself>

-#at * feel stron$l2 is t#at /e cant tell t#ese stories in t#e traditional /a2, or t#e -estern /a2of narrative C in terms of a be$innin$, a middle, and end. * t#in4 part of t#e c#allen$e, certainl2

for me, /as to find a form t#at could bear t#is ;not tellin$. * t#in4 t#is is /#at Zong! isattemptin$> to find a form to bear t#is stor2 /#ic# cant be told, /#ic# must be told, but t#rou$#not tellin$. (&aunders 800+> !8"

6#is is /#2 s#e is compelled to avoid an2 temptation of producin$ linear and representative

narratives or l2rical voices, /#ic# /ould ris4 ne$lectin$ t#e essential dimension of loss t#at

constitutes t#e counterDmemor2 of t#e event. 6#erefore, s#e is pus#ed to/ard a creative /or4 t#at

aims to subvert t#e lan$ua$e of la/ and di$ into its silence, as s#e explains in t#e essa2 ;%otanda

t#at follo/s t#e last section of t#e poem>


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* enter a different land, a land of lan$ua$e C * allo/ t#e lan$ua$e to lead me some/#ere C dont4no/ /#ere, but * trust. FH L2 intent is to use t#e text of t#e le$al decision as a /ord storeQ toloc4 m2self into t#is particular and peculiar discursive landscape in t#e belief t#at t#e stor2 oft#ese frican men, /omen and c#ildren t#ro/n overboard in an attempt to collect insurancemonies, t#e stor2 t#at can onl2 be told b2 not tellin$, is loc4ed in t#is text. *n t#e man2 silences/it#in t#e &ilence of t#e text, * /ould loc4 m2self in t#e same /a2 men, /omen, and c#ildren/ere loc4ed in t#e #olds of t#e slave s#ip on$. ('#ilip 800+> 1@1"

6#e =00D/ords report of t#e trial, Gregson v. Gilbert, is included at t#e ver2 end of t#e boo4

as t#ou$# toinvert its dominant position in t#e arc#ives. 6#e entire poetic /or4 ofZong! develops

from t#is uni 1@@". 6#e poet ta4es t#e letter of t#e

arc#ive and cuts, splits, rearran$es and repeats /ords and p#rases /it# a ;profoundl2 antiDnarrative

sensibilit2 (Ne#s4ens 8018> )19". Bver2 form of poetr2 and, more $enerall2, of creative /ritin$

needs rules and formal boundaries /it# /#ic# to stru$$le in order to find its o/n effective and

sin$ular form. *n t#is case, t#e aut#or #as c#osen to limit #erself to t#e le$al text to avoid to be

over/#elmed b2 madness, nonsense and intolerable pain. 3ee L. en4ins su$$ests t#at '#ilips

c#oice to use le$al lan$ua$e ma4es t#e poem ;not aboutt#e event but o$ it, in a material sense

(en4ins 800)> 1!8". :ere, t#e form becomes t#e content, indeed> t#e form is t#e 6#in$ itself t#at

/e, as readers, must deal /it# in an often disconcertin$ and disturbin$ experience of t#e

impossibilit2 of ma4in$ sense of ;an event t#at eludes understandin$, per#aps permanentl2 ('#ilip

800+> 1@+". 6#e Gregson v. Gilbert report expresses in a lan$ua$e t#at is bot# utterl2 s#oc4in$ and

painfull2 direct t#e biopolitical and le$al apparatus transformin$ #uman life into a ;subject of

propert2> ;*t #as been decided, /#et#er /isel2 or un/isel2 is not no/ t#e

;birt#, deat#, life C murder, t#e la/, a microcosm C a universe (1@1". e splits it into fra$ments,


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letters and s2llables, and scatters t#em on t#e pa$e. 6#e /ord ;/ater seems to stru$$le to be

articulated across multiple lines. Rurin$ a recordin$ of t#e poem s#e performed in 6oronto, 8'#ilip

read it /it# an increasin$ speed t#at seemed to mimic an ec#o and a babblin$, a si$# and a scream,

a $roan and a rattle at t#e same time> a /ord t#at #as to fi$#t a$ainst its $rave of /ater to be, as

'#ilip sa2s, ;exa to be resurfaced

and be capable of spea4in$ a$ain. 7ot# t#e sonic and t#e $rap#ic dimensions become central in t#e

composition of t#ose poems. *nZong! / 0t#e disposition of t#e letters and s2llables represents t#e

/aves /#ereas t#e /#ite spaces, t#e silences, evo4e t#e repeated fallin$ of t#e bodies into t#e sea.

6#e readers e2e is stimulated to move in ever2 direction on t#e pa$e, even movin$ inside t#ese

$rap#ic c#oreo$rap#ies, and to build connections and relations bet/een /ords, fi$#tin$ to ma4e

sense /#ere all order and meanin$ #as been destro2ed. 6#e intolerable violence and cruelt2 of t#e

on$ slave s#ip is accordin$l2 doubled b2 t#e measured and controlled violence operated b2 t#e

poet on t#e le$al text> ;* murder t#e text, /rites '#ilip, ;literall2 cut it into pieces, castratin$ verbs,

suffocatin$ adjectives, murderin$ nouns, t#ro/in$ articles, prepositions, conjunctions overboard,

jettisonin$ adverbs> * separate subject from verb, verb from object C create semantic ma2#em, until

m2 #ands bloodied, from so muc# 4illin$ and cuttin$ ('#ilip 800+> 1@9".

Zong! is divided into six sections, /#ose titles, five in 3atin and one in Voruba, refer to

different aspects of t#e massacre> s, /#ic# means ;bones and refers to bot# t#e necessit2 and t#e

impossibilit2 of retrievin$ and identif2in$ t#e bones, to localiEe t#e dead, /#ic# is an essential

$esture in ever2 mournin$ (Rerrida 1@@9"Q Saland 1entusrefer to t#e meteorolo$ical aspects lin4ed

/it# t#e experience of t#e deported people, to t#eir p#2sical sufferin$, dispersion and loss of

meanin$Q+atio, /#ic# means ;reason but also refers to t#e le$al lan$ua$e, /#ere ratio decidendi

indicates t#e central reason for a le$al decisionQ&errum, ;iron, immediatel2 brin$s to mind t#e

c#ains t#at imprisoned t#e slaves on t#e s#ip, but also t#e iron bullets t#at /ere sometimes used to

overt#ro/ t#eir bodies into t#e seaQ and 2bora, t#e title of t#e final and almost unreadable session,

/#ic# is t#e Voruba name for t#e spirits of t#e sea. -#ereas t#e first session retains an almostvertical disposition of t#e /ords and p#rases, even if ever2 s2ntactic and lo$ical order is completel2

deconstructed, in t#e subse 3atin, Nrenc#, *talian, rabic, Rutc#, ona, Voruba etc. 6#isincredible /or4 of fra$mentation and recreation of lan$ua$e, revealin$ ;t#e c#aos t#at is alread2


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t#ere ('#ilip 800+> 80=", becomes for t#e poet t#e onl2 /a2 to cope /it# t#e biopolitical and

epistemic violence of t#e lan$ua$e t#at structured t#e on$ massacre and t#e slave trade> ;for t#e

ver2 first time since /ritin$ c#ose me, concludes '#ilip, ;* feel t#at * do#ave a lan$ua$e C t#is

lan$ua$e of $runt and $roan, of moan and stutter C t#is lan$ua$e of pure sound fra$mented and

bro4en b2 #istor2 (ibid.".

%ourbe&e '#ilip emplo2s a lar$e variet2 of tec#ni /e act li4e detectives tr2in$ to recompose t#e fra$ments of t#is poetic

puEEle. '#ilip is inspired b2 t#is drive to/ards creative recover2, as indicated in #er c#oice to ;6#e poet is t#e detective and t#e detective t#e poet ('#ilip 800+> !+". *n t#e

follo/in$ passa$es from t#e first section /e can experience #o/ t#e le$al lan$ua$e is at t#e same

time exposed in its brutalit2 and subverted b2 t#ese poetic operations. 3e$al lan$ua$e is fra$mented

and brou$#t bac4 to an opposite function, t#at is to substitute t#e biopolitical reduction and

anni#ilation of #umanit2 /it# t#e #uman necessit2 to bear /itness to sufferin$ and loss and to

;defend t#e dead. 6#is is /#at 7aucom defines as a ;melanc#ol2 counterdiscourse of #umanit2

(7aucom 800=> 80!", /#ose tas4 is ;to render t#e unseen visible, to bear /itness to t#e trut# of /#at

#as not been (and cannot #ave been" /itnessed. Lelanc#ol2 ma2 constitute an inabilit2 to for$et

/#at cannot be remembered, but it also comprises t#e obli$ation to see /#at #as not been seen

(81+". *ts epistemolo$ical s#ift consists in identif2in$ ;an affective, interested, and ima$inar2

investment in t#e traumas of #istor2 as a trut#ful form of 4no/led$e (888".

6#e follo/in$ excerpt fromZong! / 03s#o/s #o/ t#e t2pif2in$, iterative and conventional

lan$ua$e of t#e la/ and of actuarial and financial reason /or4s b2 transformin$ #uman life into

propert2, literall2 le$alisin$ murder or better transformin$ it into a reasonable action motivated b2

t#e circumstances (;is necessar2 K to murder K t#e subject in propert2 K t#e save in under/riter", b2

assi$nin$ it a monetar2 and financial value of exc#an$e. djectives li4e ;usual and adverbs li4e;etc. are converted into verbs and t#e2 describe t#e absolute subsumption of life into t#e norm of

finance discourse (;to usual W K etcQ ;/#ere etc. tunes justice K and t#e ratio of murder".

&tereot2ped catac#resis, suc# as ;/ei$#t of circumstance, re$ain metap#oric potentialit2 as t#e2 are

isolated b2 silence or recomposed into ne/ clusters (;t#e usual in occurredQ ;t#e just in ration",

/#ereas t#e melanc#olic lan$ua$e of sufferin$ seems at times capable to interrupt t#e monolo$ic

discourse of t#e la/ (;t#e suffer in lost">

defend t#e dead


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/ei$#t of circumstance

$round

to usual W

etc

/#ere t#e ratio of just

is less t#an

is necessar2

to murder

t#e subject in propert2

t#e save in under/riter

/#ere etc tunes justice and t#e ratioof murder

is

t#e usual in occurred

t#e just in ration

t#e suffer in loss

('#ilip 800+> 8=D"

*n anot#er excerpt fromZong! / 04t#e reader is directl2 exposed to t#e 6#in$ of t#e eventitself, to its absolute sin$ularit2 (;t#e t#is K t#e t#at K t#e frenE2" and to t#e impossibilit2 for t#e

lan$ua$e of reason to rebuild a meanin$ of t#e event.&ome /ords or p#rases refer to t#e experience

of t#e people carried on t#e s#ip> t#eir p#2sical and moral pain (;t#e frenE2"Q t#eir destin2 and t#e

impossibilit2 for t#em to understand t#eir situation, to situate t#emselves and ma4e sense of /#at

t#e2 /ere endurin$ (;ne$roes of no belon$in$". &ome clusters refer to /#at #appened durin$ t#e

passa$e (;lea42 seas W K cas4sQ ;came t#e rainsQ ;came t#e perils" and to t#e c#oices made b2 t#e

captain and t#e cre/ (;on board K no restQ ;to murder">

t#ere /as

t#e t#is

t#e t#at

t#e frenE2

lea42 seas W

cas4s

ne$roes of no belon$in$


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on board

no rest

came t#e rains

came t#e ne$roes

came t#e perils

came t#e o/ners

masters and mariners

t#e t#is

t#e t#at

t#e frenE2

('#ilip 800+> 8@"

ll t#ose fra$ments, p#rases and clusters, separated b2 silence and scattered on t#e /#ite of

t#e pa$e, cannot matc# /it# one anot#er and ever2 desirable meanin$ or explanation, ever2 ; ratio

is time and a$ain collapsed and dispersed. -#at 4ind of emotional and co$nitive participation does

t#is text demand of t#e readerO 6#e formal /or4 t#rou$# lan$ua$e t#at t#e aut#or ac#ieves s#apes

an implicit reader, /#o is far removed from t#e liberal tradition of t#e impartial spectator, t#e

position still partiall2 implied b2 6urners canvas The Slave Ship (7aucom 800=> 8=D@". 6#e

aut#or as4s t#e reader to loo4 directl2 into t#e #orror of t#e event and to s#are t#e co$nitive loss of

t#e victims, runnin$ t#e ris4 of bein$ petrified b2 it. t t#e bottom of t#e pa$e, beneat# a line

dividin$ t#em from t#e rest of t#e text, a stream of proper nouns flo/s. 6#ese are not t#e names of

t#e people jettisoned and murdered on t#e on$. 6#eir names /ere never re$istered on an2 official

document, as t#eir #umanit2 and sin$ularit2 /ere obliterated at t#e ver2 moment t#e2 entered t#e

biopolitical circuit of exploitation. 6#e lo$boo4s usuall2 reported t#e


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lan$ua$e and subject become reduced.9*n #is ma$isterial essa2Le "iscours antillais (1@+1", t#e

Lartinican poet and p#ilosop#er douard Glissant proposed fundamental concepts C suc# as

;tourment d#istoire, ;mmoire rature and ;nvrose #istori 9D9)" #as

reduced #uman bodies to t#eir ultimate commodification, to a nameless, untestifiable condition t#at

anticipated t#eir effective dro/nin$, eit#er in t#e ocean or in t#e bell2 of t#e plantation. Glissant #as

neatl2 and repeatedl2 summed up t#is absolute alienation of t#e bod2 and t#e speec#> ;le corps

alin de lesclave, au temps du s2stme servile, est en effet priv, comme pour lvider

entirement, de la parole. &exprimer est non seulement interdit, mais comme impossible

envisa$er. FH Rans cet univers muet, la voix et le corps sont la poursuite dun man )0=". :is representation of t#e mute universe of slaver2 is close to $ambens treatment of

t#e fi$ure of ;der Luselmann in t#e concentration camps and of t#e paradoxes of /itnessin$ fort#is absolute loss of #umanit2 and lan$ua$e. *n +emnants o$ %uschit,, t#e *talian p#ilosop#er #as

deepl2 anal2sed #o/ ever2 testimon2, as /ell as literature astestimon2, is based on a fundamental

lac4 or loss. *ndeed, t#e ;complete /itness, t#e one /#o #as full2 experienced t#e absolute

de#umanisation of t#e camp, is at t#e same time t#e one /#o cannot spea4, not onl2 because #e #as

not survived, but because #e #as been completel2 captured and anni#ilated b2 t#e biopolitical

apparatus of desubjectification $overnin$ t#e camp. $ambens anal2sis of t#e aporia of /itnessin$

and its lin4s /it# t#e lan$ua$e of literature is extremel2 effective and particularl2 in tune /it#Glissantian critical and creative /or4>


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6#e lan$ua$e of testimon2 is a lan$ua$e t#at no lon$er si$nifies and t#at, in not si$nif2in$,advances into /#at is /it#out lan$ua$e, to t#e point of ta4in$ on a different insi$nificance C t#atof complete /itness, t#at of /#o b2 definition cannot bear /itness. FH 6#e value of testimon2lies essentiall2 in /#at it lac4sQ at its center it contains somet#in$ t#at cannot be born /itness toFH. 6#e ;true /itness, t#e ;complete /itness, are t#ose /#o did not bear /itness and cannotbear /itness. ($amben 1@@@> 1@, 99"

Glissants incessant en$a$ement /it# suc# an #istorical ab2ss of untestifiable violence and

;dlire verbal is essential to understandin$ t#e development of #is poetics of ;Melation and

;creoliEation, and t#e et#ics and politics of memor2 t#at are connected /it# it. Loreover, #is

p#ilosop#2 of relation and more $enerall2 t#e epistemic dimension of #is /ritin$ operate as a 4ind

of creative reversal of t#e sublime dimension of slaver2, movin$ from t#e unspea4able to t#e

pol2p#onic and pointin$ us some possible alternatives to ret#in4 t#e biopolitical ab2ss of modernit2

in an a$$irmative/a2. 6#is means findin$ ne/ creative /a2s to t#in4 and ima$ine t#e relation

bet/een life, its forms and its potenc2. An t#e side of t#e literar2 creation, t#is unendin$ exploration

of t#e ab2ss brin$s to a fundamental ;opacit2 and ;c#aos of /ritin$ and t#e impossibilit2 to #old to

t#e traditional temporalit2 and narrative conventions of t#e -estern realist novel. 6#is is t#e case of

suc# at2pical counterDnovels asLa Case du commandeur (Glissant 1@+1" and Tout5monde(Glissant

1@@9", carr2in$ t#e reader into a fictional maelstrom and inspirin$ t#em to tr2 ne/ /a2s of readin$

t#e text and t#e /orld (5orio W 6orc#i 800> 11)". s #e /rote about -illiam Naul4ner, /#o is t#e

main model and source of inspiration for #is fictional universe, t#e novel doesnt point an2

fundamental trut#, but is en$a$ed in an incessant process of deferral and unveilin$ of meanin$

t#rou$# fra$mentation, accumulation and ellipsis> ;un suspens de ltre FH. 'ar ce processus

continu dune criture diffracte, 1)1". lmost in t#e same 2ears, t#e 5uban /riter and sc#olar ntonio 7enYteEDMojo

developed a similar postmodern vision of t#e 5aribbean text as a ;supers2ncretic and

;pol2r#2t#mic performance t#at escapes -estern binar2 patterns, in #is /ellD4no/n The +epeating

Island(7enYteEDMojo 1@@". :is vision is c#aracteriEed b2 an even more utopic turn, inspired b2ReleuEe W Guattaris ;nomadolo$2 and b2 t#e t#eories of 5#aos>

*f /e loo4 at t#e 5aribbeans most representative novels /e see t#at t#eir narrative discourse isconstantl2 disrupted, and at times most annulled, b2 #eteroclitic, fractal, baro


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constellationof past, present and future and t#at, for Glissant, needs to be explored t#rou$# a

;prop#etic vision of t#e past>

3e pass, notre pass subi,

nous restons convaincus


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undefined moments of time, into different c#aracters (men, plants and animals" and st2listic

re$isters, $oin$ from t#e picares oP il sest pass 90=". n2/#ere, explorin$ t#is epistemic

and co$nitive disorientation t#rou$# t#e means of lan$ua$e and ima$ination is not sufficient.3iterature in its relation /it# t#e ab2ss of #istor2 must not onl2 be diffracted and allusive. *t must

also beshared. 6#is is t#e second element t#at forms t#e basis for #is poetics of Melation.

*n t#e final section of ;3a


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ima$e of promise, a 4no/led$e of endin$s /it# a 4no/led$e of be$innin$s (7aucom 8001> !".

-#at ris4ed becomin$ a source of isolation and a melanc#olic deadloc4, s#o/s up as a transversal

and s#ared memor2 t#at can activate ne/ cultural and political possibilities for a future of crossD

cultural relations#ips.

6#e fi$ure of t#e dro/nin$ #uman bod2 is t#en central to Glissants /or4Q li4e an uncann2

#auntin$ element, it persists inside t#e discourse as a #ole or void, troublin$ ever2 realistic sta$in$

of c#aracters and t#e linearit2 of t#e prose. :e furt#er elaborates t#is fundamental passa$e from t#e

muteness of slaver2 to t#e pol2p#onic and s#ared memor2 of t#e ;6outDmonde in t#e c#apter

openin$'o)ti6ue de la +elation, si$nificantl2 entitled ;3a bar 1!D81".

*n a po/erful alle$oric displacement, t#e opacit2 and muteness of t#e terrif2in$ ab2ss of sufferin$ is

reversed into a ne/ form of s#ared 4no/led$e, /#ic# ma2 inau$urate a different temporalit2 for t#e

#umanit2DtoDcome>

3e terrifiant est du $ouffre, trois fois nou linconnu. ?ne fois donc, inau$urale,


20/23

ima$ination, is Glissant able to contribute to t#e poetic and political productivit2 of /#at /e ma2

call an ;affirmative biopolitics, namel2 ;a politics t#at is no lon$er over life but o$life (Bsposito

800+> 11". -#at /as supposed to become t#e docile, de#umanised and commoditiEed bod2 of t#e

slave s#o/s up as ;a bod2 in insurrection a$ainst t#e disciplinar2 re$imes t#at see4 to produce it

(7aucom 8001> +". 6#e alle$orical scene of rene/al openin$ Glissants'o)ti6ue de la +elation

confirms t#e painful reversal of t#e scene of t#e on$ and its s#ift to/ards an opposite scene of

pol2p#onic s#arin$ of different memories> a transversal and nomadic subjectivit2 rejectin$ ever2

exclusivist or universalist appropriation of t#e past and of collective sufferin$, and pointin$ to/ards

/#at #e defined as ;m)moire culturelle de la collectivit) Terre (Glissant 800!> 89". 6#is transversal,

r#iEomatic and antiD$enealo$ical dimension of memor2 supplements t#e more traditional and

potentiall2 dan$erous forms of t#e tribal memor2 (;la mmoire de la tribu", al/a2s ris4in$ to be

appropriated and essentialiEed, so as to become an instrument of recrimination, exclusion and

racism. An t#e contrar2, t#e tas4 of t#e /riter is to $o t#rou$# t#e ab2ss in order to avoid becomin$

its prisoner and to overt#ro/ it into an openin$ to/ards t#e unpredictabilit2 of a /orldl2

communit2 to come> ;la mmoire de la collectivit 6erre est prospective, partir de nous, de notre

prsent. ?ne mmoire du futur (Glissant 800!> 1=".

6#is researc# #as been funded b2 t#e Buropean ?nion &event# Nrame/or4 'ro$ramme (N'!K800!C8019" under $ranta$reement no. 8@+)==. * /ould li4e to $ratefull2 ac4no/led$e t#e Buropean 5ommission D Mesearc# Bxecutive $enc2(MB" for a/ardin$ me a Larie 5urie *ntraDBuropean Nello/s#ip to conduct t#is researc# into 5aribbean 3iterature and7iopolitics /it# Rr 3ouise :ard/ic4 at t#e ?niversit2 of 7irmin$#am (for furt#er details of t#e project, see`#ttp>KKcaribiolit./ordpress.comK".

References

$amben, G. (1@@+", (omo Sacer. Sovereign 'oer and Bare Li$e, &tanford> &tanford ?niversit2

'ress.

$amben, G. (1@@@",+emnants o$ %uschit,. The -itness and the %rchive, %e/ Vor4> one 7oo4s.$amben, G. (8000",7eans -ithout 2nd, Linneapolis> 6#e ?niversit2 of Linnesota 'ress.

7ar4at, &.L. (800=",Le corps de*ception. Les arti$ices du pouvoir colonial et la destruction de la

vie, 'aris> ditions msterdam.

7aucom, *. (8001", ;&pecters of t#e tlantic, The South %tlantic ;uarterly, 100> 1, pp. 1D+8.

7aucom, *. (800=", Specters o$ the %tlantic. &inance Capital# Slavery# and the 'hilosophy o$

(istory, Rur#am and 3ondon> Ru4e ?niversit2 'ress.

7au$#, B. (F1@!H 8018", ;6#e -est *ndian -riter and #is [uarrel /it# :istor2, Small %*e, 9+, 1>8, pp. 0D!).


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7enYteEDMojo, . (1@@", The +epeating Island. The Caribbean and the 'ostmodern 'erspective,

second edition, Rur#am and 3ondon> Ru4e ?niversit2 'ress.

5astaldo, . (800", Codes noirs= de lesclavage au* abolitions, prface de 5#ristiane 6aubira,

'aris> RalloED&ire2.

5saire, . (1@)+", ;Sictor &c#Tlc#er et labolition de lesclava$e, in S. &c#Tlc#er, 2sclavage et

colonisation, 'aris> '?N.

5#anc, R. (8001",'o)ti6ue baro6ue de la Cara>be, 'aris> Zart#ala.

5orio, . W 6orc#i, N. (800". ;?ne autre manire de lire le monde. Bntretien avec douard

Glissant,8?tre librairie, 11, pp. 118D11=.

de Lartino, B. (F1@=H 8018", ;5risis of 'resence and Meli$ious Meinte$ration,(au. @ournal o$

2thnographic Theory, 8> 8, pp. )9)D=0.

Rerrida, . (1@@9",Spectres de 7ar*, 'aris> Galile.

Rerrida, . (8000", ;I self unsealin$ poetic textJ> 'oetics and 'olitics of -itnessin$, in +evenge

o$ %esthetic= The 'lace o$ Literature in Theory Today, 7er4ele2> ?niversit2 of 5alifornia

'ress.

Reslauriers, G. (8000",'assage du milieu, screenpla2 b2 '. 5#amoiseau, *ss2DlesDLoulineaux> 3es

films du Map#ia.

Bsposito, M. (800+",BAos= Biopolitics and 'hilosophy, Linneapolis> ?niversit2 of Linnesota 'ress.

Nanon, N. (1@=8",'eau noire# mas6ues blancs, 'aris> ditions du &euil, coll. 'oints.

Ne#s4ens, B.L. (8018", ;ccounts ?npaid, ccounts ?ntold> L. %ourbe&e '#ilips Zong!and t#e

5atalo$ue, Callaloo 9=> 8, pp. )0!D)8).

Noucault, L. (1@!=", Surveiller et punir. 8aissance de la prison, 'aris, Gallimard.

Noucault, L. (1@!",La 1olont) de savoir, t. *,(istoire de la se*ualit), 'aris, Gallimard.

Glissant, . (1@+1a",Le "iscours antillais, 'aris> ditions du &euil, coll. 'oints.

Glissant, . (1@+1b",La Case du commandeur, 'aris> ditions du &euil.

Glissant, . (1@@0",'o)ti6ue de la +elation, 'aris> Gallimard.Glissant, . (1@@9", Tout5monde, 'aris> Gallimard, coll. Nolio.

Glissant, . (1@@",&aulkner# 7ississippi, 'aris> Gallimard, coll. Nolio Bssais.

Glissant, . (800!",7)moires des esclavages, 'aris> Gallimard.

Godec#ot, . (1@@=",Les Constitutions de la &rance depuis 04, 'aris> Garnier Nlammarion.

an4ins, 3.L. (800)", The Language o$ Caribbean 'oetry= Boundaries o$ 2*pression, Gainesville>

?niversit2 'ress of Nlorida.

o#nson, B.3. (800@", Caribbean Ghostriting, 5ranbur2, %> ssociated ?niversit2 'ress.Zanor, N. (800",(umus, 'aris> Gallimard.


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Lorrison, 6. (1@+!",Beloved, 3ondon> 5#atto W -indus.

%anc2, .3. (1@+",La Communaut) d)s:uvr)e, 'aris> 5#ristian 7our$ois diteur.

%esbitt, %. (8009", 1oicing 7emory. (istory and Sub ?niversit2 of Sir$inia 'ress.

'#ilip, %. (800+",Zong!, Liddleto/n, 56> -esle2an ?niversit2 'ress.

&aunders, '. (800+", ;Refendin$ t#e Read, 5onfrontin$ t#e rc#ive> 5onversation /it# L.

%ourbe&e '#ilip, Small %*e, 8, 18> 8, pp. 9D!@.

&toler, .3. (1@@=", +ace and the 2ducation o$ "esire= &oucaults (istory o$ Se*uality and the

Colonial rder o$ Things, Rur#am> Ru4e ?niversit2 'ress.

-alcott, R. (1@@@", -hat the Tilight Says= 2ssays, %e/ Vor4> Narrar, &traus and Giroux, 1@@@.

-alvin, . (8001",Black Ivory= Slavery in the British 2mpire, Axford, ?Z> 7lac4/ell 'ublis#ers.

-illiams, B. (F1@))H 1@@)", Capitalism and Slavery, 5#apel :ill, %5> 6#e ?niversit2 of %ort#5arolina 'ress.


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1Nor an inDdept# readin$ of t#e relation bet/een Noucaults /or4 on biopo/er and colonial racism, see &toler 1@@=.

2#ttp>KK/ritin$.upenn.eduKpennsoundKxK'#ilip.p#p(accessed 10 Larc# 801)".

3&ee also o#nson 800@. Nor recent Nrancop#one narratives on t#e Liddle 'assa$e, see Zanor 800 and Reslauriers 8000.

46#e /ord ;mitan meanin$ ;milieu, comes from t#e ancient Accitan. *t #as passed into Lartinican creole t#rou$# t#eancient Nrenc# spo4en b2 mariners and settlers durin$ t#e slave trade and t#e colonial plantation.
http://writing.upenn.edu/pennsound/x/Philip.phphttp://writing.upenn.edu/pennsound/x/Philip.phphttp://writing.upenn.edu/pennsound/x/Philip.php

Anagrams of annihilation: the (im)possible writing of the middle passage in NourbeSe Philip and...

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