Derek Walcott

Cambridge Studies in African and Caribbean Literature

by Edward Baugh

This succinct account the life of Nobel laureate Derek Walcott focuses on his development as poet, playwright and man of the director, producer, teacher. Friends and colleagues who figured in his career are recalled. The importance of his native St Lucia and family influences in the shaping of his creativity and his view of the world are highlighted, as these evolved in synergy with his receptivity to the poetry and theatre of the wider world. In this evolution, the tensions and complex nuances of the concept “home” are seen as an informing factor. The story points to Walcott’s seminal contribution to the emergence of Caribbean literature, with his response to the region’s colonial history as a central factor.

Genres: Poetry, Nonfiction

112 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 2006

Reviews

[Nelson]

For readers for whom Bruce King's encyclopedic (but pre-death) biography is too long and detailed. As a short trot through the highlights of the life, this will do. It isn't much on analysis of the major works and perhaps focuses over-much on production dates of Walcott's many theatrical ventures. No doubt that's in part because such work puts him in a place at a particular time and thus is valuable from a chronological perspective. Those wanting deeper engagement with the major theatrical and poetic works will have to look elsewhere. But it does a nice job of summarizing key events in the life. The volume appeared in 2017, just when the metoo movement was taking off. One suspects that, in time, fuller lives are going to have to spend more than a page or two on the relevant allegations in Walcott's life as they take the measure of the man as well as the writer.

[Nnyeka Collette]

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