 Impossible to stop reading
The Black Jacobins, by C.L.R. James is one of the most passionate books I have ever read. James has no difficulty drawing the reader into one of the only successful slave uprisings. James' own ideas (he is a Communist) seep into the plot of the book, but this only adds to the effectiveness of the book. The Black Jacobins reads more like an epic book or play, than a non-fiction work about early San Domingo.
It is difficult not to root for the slaves after James' vivid description in chapter one on the harsh realities of life for a slave living in San Domingo. In addition to this, James makes it impossible not to take a liking to Toussaint. James places Toussaint on a pedastel, and shows just how God-like Toussaint was to the masses under his command. Whenever I think of Toussaint I think of "To Us a Saint," because a saint is exactly what he was to San Domingo.
It does not matter if you have any familiarity with the Haitian Revolution, The Black Jacobins is a compelling book. It sounds cliché but I had difficulty putting this book down once I started. I recommend this book to any person interested in history and success stories.
The black Jacobins
Eye opening historical reference regarding the Haitian, French, and American revolutions and how these and the other struggles during the 1700's were rooted, to some degree, to slavery.
Excellent, but at a graduate level.
 Flawed, albeit the classic work on the field of Haitian revolutionary studies
~The Black Jacobins: Toussaint L'Ouverture and the San Domingo Revolution~ is considered the classic work on the Haitian Revolution, which inaugurated Atlantic World studies as a field. Madison Bell's Toussaint Louverture is a better biographical vignette of Louverture, then trying to glean insight from James' work. Laurent Dubois and David Patrick Geggis, the more modern Haitian Revolution scholars should be approached first. C.L.R. James' work, though a classic, has become antiquated, and is too tainted by this quasi-Marxist historical analysis.
The revolution seemingly could have a peaceful fruition and climax, but concilitory Toussaint L'Ouverture was forcibly removed, and the demagogue Jean-Jacques Dessalines filled the void. Since the Haitian Revolution, Haiti has been mired in blood, violence, and seemingly perpetual, oscillating vibrations between anarchy and despotism.
The problem with James is that he is too much of a hagiographer of the Haitian Revolution. He goes so far as to make counter-factual statements that the Africans were perfectly willing to be at peace with one another back in Africa, in their idyllic little worlds, but for the Europeans inciting them to enslave one another as flesh merchants while warring with one another. This hyberbole and such flawed analysis taints his book. Avengers of the New World: The Story of the Haitian Revolution is a better book.
Good Read!
Excellent!
At time, Mr. James annoyed me to no end. But what kept me reading was he had the balls to write truth, though at times his constantly editorializing made me roll my eyes. His work has certainly added to my body of knowledge about Haiti, Toussaint and other players.
The fact is that the Haitians kicked Bonapart and the French army's butt, coming and going! They lost over 50,000 men.
The Black Jacobins deals more with Toussaint the man, and acquaints the reader with some of the other major character, i.e. Christophe, Moise, Dessalines, Rigaud, etc. .
I highly recommend the book.
Excerpts that moved me:
"In overthrowing me, you have cut down in St. Domingo only the trunk of the tree of liberty. It will spring up again by its roots for they are numerous and deep.." Toussaint L'Ouverture
"But today as then, the great propertied interests and their agents commit the most ferocious crimes in the name of the whole people, and bluff and browbeat them by lying propaganda".
"The secret of England's impotence for the first 6 years of the way may be said to lie in the two fatal words, St. Dimingo."
"Where imperialists do not find disorder, they create it deliberately."
"That calm confidence in its capacity to deceive is a mark of the mature ruling class."
"But Dessaline could not wait. On March 24th, the third day of the bombardment, the French captured a black man and a black woman. The man said he was blind, only the whites of his eyes could be seen and he could scarcely walk, while the old black woman with him said that she was deaf. Suspecting them to be spies the French beat them mercilessly, but they only sobbed and wailed, said nothing and lay as if unable to move. Lacroix, on his rounds, took pity on them, and asked that they should be allowed to go about their business, but not until the French threatened to shoot them did they get up and walk. As soon as they were out of reach, they began to dance, and ran to the fortress to give Dessalins' order to evacuate." This was so funny to me. I laughed out loud. Grandma and Grandpapa pulled the oki doke. Or as the kid say `faked them out!"
Amazing!
As a first generation Haitian-American I've always been fascinated by the culture of my ancestors. My father used to tell me if I wanted to understand Black America I needed to understand Haitian history. He would say, "How Haiti goes so go Black people". Reading Black Jacbins has given me a better understanding of the message he was trying to convey.
The challenges Blacks in many countries around the world face today mirror those that originated within the Haitian revolution. Beyond the issues of freedom from slavery and imperialism, Haiti is provides a glimps of the beauty of an independent Black Republic as well as its challenges within the global arena. Although other works on 20th century geo politics can provide more detailed insight into Haiti's current political state, Black Jacobins will provide the back drop for the current international stances by nations on Haiti.
Other reviewers have enjoyed the book but have written that it contains to much of a marxist slant. To them I would say, if you have ever been to Haiti you would know that even today the country is highly structured based on class. This is, as C.L.R James illustrates, a product of the european colonialism. I'll go even further to say, if those same critics don't believe we live in a class based society in America they are very naieve. Nontheless, I recommend this book to those who not only enjoy carribean history but world history.
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