Slavery, Blackness and Hybridity: Mauritius and the Malaise Creole

Book Description
For the past two decades Mauritians have focused on their remarkably successful economy and tended to ignore the poverty and marginalisation of a significant minority in their country. This book examines this situation among the Creoles, descendents of African and Malagasy slaves who live in Mauritius, an Indian Ocean island that has experienced three centuries of subsequent colonization by the Dutch, the French and the English. The author investigates le Malaise Créole, a socio-cultural phenomenon said to affect the progress and well being of Creoles in the society. The discussion of le Malaise Créole unravels a tragedy and cultural paradox for Mauritians have all essentially become social and biological hybrids but continue to perceive and treat their 'roots'as a source of power, purity and identity. In the quest for power and social order, dominant groups in the society promote a 'roots'discourse that has contributed to a rigid ethnic hierarchy. As slave descendants, Creoles experience problems identifying and confirming their 'roots.'Dominant and negative perceptions of slavery, blackness and hybridity also result in their of experience racial discrimination and economic marginalisation. To culturally survive in the new millennium Creoles are compelled to foster a roots discourse of their own for without 'roots'they are treated as a people who lack identity and power. Today Creoles are commonly stereotyped as lazy, spendthrift and hedonistic. The author's empirical research in five locations challenges these stereotypes and indicates how socio-economic and spatial factors diversify Creole identity. She advances several interpretations of le malaise Créole and investigates what kind of phenomenon this is, arguing that although whiteness is highly valued in Mauritius, global values focusing on hybridity and power in blackness are beginning to influence Creole identity and to empower this ethnic group.

About the Author
Rosabelle Boswell teaches at Rhodes University in Grahamstown and has recently written several articles on identity, policy and human rights in Mauritius. In 2002, she won a Development Cooperation Prize from the Belgian government and the Royal Africa Museum at Tervuren for her paper on Mauritian civil society.


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For the past two decades Mauritians have focused on their remarkably successful economy and tended to ignore the poverty and marginalisation of a significant minority in their country. This book examines this situation among the Creoles, descendents of African and Malagasy slaves who live in Mauritius, an Indian Ocean island that has experienced three centuries of subsequent colonization by the Dutch, the French and the English. The author investigates le Malaise Créole, a socio-cultural phenomenon said to affect the progress and well being of Creoles in the society. The discussion of le Malaise Créole unravels a tragedy and cultural paradox for Mauritians have all essentially become social and biological hybrids but continue to perceive and treat their 'roots' as a source of power, purity and identity. In the quest for power and social order, dominant groups in the society promote a 'roots' discourse that has contributed to a rigid ethnic hierarchy. As slave descendants, Creoles experience problems identifying and confirming their 'roots.' Dominant and negative perceptions of slavery, blackness and hybridity also result in their of experience racial discrimination and economic marginalisation. To culturally survive in the new millennium Creoles are compelled to foster a roots discourse of their own for without 'roots' they are treated as a people who lack identity and power. Today Creoles are commonly stereotyped as lazy, spendthrift and hedonistic. The author's empirical research in five locations challenges these stereotypes and indicates how socio-economic and spatial factors diversify Creole identity. She advances several interpretations of le malaiseCréole and investigates what kind of phenomenon this is, arguing that although whiteness is highly valued in Mauritius, global values focusing on hybridity and power in blackness are beginning to influence Creole identity and to empower this ethnic group.


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