White Spirit

by Paule Constant, Betsy Wing (Translation)

After answering a classified ad placed by an import-export company looking for energetic young men willing to take on responsibilities for its African branches—no diploma required—Victor finds himself on The Will of God , a dilapidated boat heading into the heart of darkness as even Conrad couldn’t have imagined. With the piquant mixture of hilarity and painful disenchantment characterizing Paule Constant’s vision of the “colonial novel,” White Spirit follows three innocents—Victor; Lola, a mulatto prostitute; and Alexis, who does not know he’s a monkey—as they negotiate the perverse system of desires and hatreds on an African banana plantation. Selling what no one wants or needs, Victor takes delivery of a barrel of mysterious powder promptly christened “white spirit” for its ability to bleach the black arms of the workers handling the shipment. To become whiter and worthier of love, Lola buys some—and then the rest vanishes. In this nightmarish Africa where colonized and colonizers have each other in a stranglehold, the "white spirit" unleashes an obsession that merges whiteness with a return to paradise—an obsession that can only end in catastrophe. Through it all, with her characteristic caustic language, fierce irony, and enormous tenderness for human frailty, Constant portrays the ridiculous without ridicule—and, miraculously, sparks a light of hope in the midst of the torment and suffering.

Genres: Fiction

182 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1989

About the author

Paule Constant est une écrivaine française, qui a passé une grande partie de sa vie à l'étranger: Afrique, Asie et Amérique du Sud. Depuis le 8 janvier 2013, elle est membre de l'Académie Goncourt.

Paule Constant is a French novelist, who spend many years abroad: Africa, Asia and South America. Since january, 8, 2013, she is a member of the Académie Goncourt.

Reviews

[Nguyễn Vũ · Rating 2 out of 5]

Giễu nhại thái quá tạo ra cảm giác thiếu chân thật. Cốt truyện nhiều chỗ vô lí. Không hiểu sao lại đoạt giải tiểu thuyết hay nhất của Viện hàn lâm Pháp 1990.

[Huy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Đọc thú vị, giọng văn hay hấp dẫn nhưng cảm giác mạch truyện bị hơi gấp một xíu, nếu chậm rãi một tí nữa thì hay hơn.

[Ricardo García Sánchez · Rating 1 out of 5]

De lo peor que he leído en mi vida. Sólo voy a decir eso.
Mi puntuación es un 2/10.

[Maya · Rating 4 out of 5]

White Spirit is a post-colonial novel, which address issues of colonial rule in Africa, rural/urban divide, race, whiteness...

There is a pervasive longing for whiteness most specifically illustrated in Lola's desperate attempts to bleach her skin and hair and cleanse herself. White symbolizes cleanliness and purity, it is desirable and seen as human. Dark on the other hand is unclean, unattractive and compared to being wild and bestial.

A very interesting book...

[Kimberly Lewis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Strange book, but it's sticking with me -- about a hapless French dolt who goes to Africa to get money or happiness or something back in the colonial days. Finds Africans washing their skin with bleach. Heavy symbolism...

[Shitesite · Rating 2 out of 5]

Irgendwo zwischen Satire und Ornament scheitert „White Spirit“, der fünfte Roman von Paule Constant. Sie will Afrika erklären, blickt aber auf Afrika herab. http://www.shitesite.de/2015/06/03/du...