The Post-Columbus Syndrome

Reflecting on the relationship between memory, power, and national identity, this book examines the complex reactions of the people of the Caribbean to the 500th anniversary of Columbus's discovery of the New World. Viala analyzes the ways in which Columbus became a reservoir of metaphors to confront anxieties of the present with myths of the past.

“In The Post-Columbus Syndrome, Fabienne Viala takes the reader on a tour de force of the Caribbean’s history, politics and art, using the 500th anniversary of Columbus’s arrival in the Americas as its focal point of analysis. … The book’s seamless flow through several art forms and genres constitutes one of its greatest merits: the reader engages with Haitian novels, theatre in Martinique, Jamaican dub poetry and performative arts in Puerto Rico, amongst others.” (Jorge Sarasola, OCCT Oxford Comparative Criticism Translation, occt.ox.ac.uk, June, 2018)

"Fabienne Viala's book is a study in breadth, depth, and virtuosity. Covering an astonishingly wide range of subjects, genres, writers, and theories, and delving thoughtfully into the underlying myths and beliefs of three different linguistic areas of the Caribbean, she succeeds spectacularly in finding something new to say not only about some of the Caribbean 'giants' of thinking about identity, but, as few observers of the modern Caribbean can, also about a common cultural identity, based on her genuinely original interpretation of the contested and always complex notion of cultural memory. It is a joy to read." - Antoni Kapcia, Professor of Latin American History, University of Nottingham, UK

"A significant work of comparative Caribbean cultural studies. Fabienne Viala demonstrates an impressive ability to move between different Caribbean contexts to offer insight into the processes of memory and memorialization throughout the region. The Post-Columbus Syndrome is an important contribution to understanding hemispheric culture." - Raphael Dalleo, Associate Professor of English, Florida Atlantic University, USA

"The Post-Columbus Syndrome is a very important book for Caribbean Intellectual History. Within most recent trends in Cultural Studies, Fabienne Viala examines the links between the multiple variants of relevant writings in the region, shifting between non-fiction essays to fiction, including both poetry and narrative. These are studied in their geo-political context, and corresponding cultural policies around the 500th Anniversary of Colombus' 'discovery of the New World.' The book is, thus, valuable not only for its research, arguments, and analysis, but also for its novel approach. I strongly recommend its use for university courses, for academic discussions, and for general readers interested in Caribbean identities." - A.G. Quintero-Rivera, Professor at the Social Science Research Centre, University of Puerto Rico

Fabienne Viala is Associate Professor of Hispanic and Caribbean Studies at the University of Warwick, UK.