Réunionnais literature is the literature of persons linked to the island of

Réunion Réunion (; french: La Réunion, ; previously ''Île Bourbon''; rcf, label= Reunionese Creole, La Rényon) is an island in the Indian Ocean that is an overseas department and region of France. It is located approximately east of the island ...

, a French

overseas department The overseas departments and regions of France (french: départements et régions d'outre-mer, ; ''DROM'') are departments of France that are outside metropolitan France, the European part of France. They have exactly the same status as mainlan ...

in the

Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by th ...

east of

Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...

. It is written in French and in Réunionnais creole as well as other languages.

History

The origins of Réunionnais literature are in Réunionnais short stories and poetry, which flourished beginning in the mid-18th century.

Évariste de Parny Évariste Desiré de Forges, vicomte de Parny (6 February 17535 December 1814) was a French poet. Biography De Parny was born in Saint-Paul, Réunion, Saint-Paul on the Isle of Bourbon (now Réunion); he came from an aristocratic family from th ...

and

Antoine Bertin Antoine is a French given name (from the Latin ''Antonius'' meaning 'highly praise-worthy') that is a variant of Danton, Titouan, D'Anton and Antonin. The name is used in France, Switzerland, Belgium, Canada, West Greenland, Haiti, French Guiana ...

were writers born in the island in the 18th century, but who spent most of their lives away from their birthplace. For them Réunion was a subject that represented beauty and youthful memories. This theme of exoticism was one that predominated in literature written by French-language writers from Réunion writing for a readership in France. Réunion was recounted as a lost paradise inhabited by happy natives, as in the 1924 novel ''Ulysse, Cafre ou L'Histoire dorée d'un Noir'' by

Prix Goncourt The Prix Goncourt (french: Le prix Goncourt, , ''The Goncourt Prize'') is a prize in French literature, given by the académie Goncourt to the author of "the best and most imaginative prose work of the year". The prize carries a symbolic reward o ...

winning Réunionnais authors Marius-Ary Leblond. In the 19th century, the novel became more important; '' Les Marrons'' by Louis Timagène Houat was a major work. In French poetry,

Leconte de Lisle Charles Marie René Leconte de Lisle (; 22 October 1818 – 17 July 1894) was a French poet of the Parnassian movement. He is traditionally known by his surname only, Leconte de Lisle''. Biography Leconte de Lisle was born on the French overseas ...

and

Léon Dierx Léon Dierx (; March 31, 1838 – June 11, 1912) was a French poet born in Saint-Denis in 1838. He came to Paris to study at the Central School of Arts and Manufactures and subsequently settled there, taking up a post in the education office. He ...

were leading Parnassians. A movement away from representing Réunion as a picturesque and Romantic generalised tropical paradise for the entertainment of foreign readers and towards a literature with a distinct cultural identity can be seen in the poetry of Pierre-Claude Georges-François (1869 - 1933), which moves away from classical forms of French poetry. His 1931 collection ''Poèmes d'Outre-Mer'' contained the first

free verse Free verse is an open form of poetry, which in its modern form arose through the French ''vers libre'' form. It does not use consistent meter patterns, rhyme, or any musical pattern. It thus tends to follow the rhythm of natural speech. Definit ...

in Réunionnais literature, daringly mixed with classical

alexandrine Alexandrine is a name used for several distinct types of verse line with related metrical structures, most of which are ultimately derived from the classical French alexandrine. The line's name derives from its use in the Medieval French '' Rom ...

s. Jean Albany's 1951 ''Zamal'' turns the tables on the colonial literary tradition by representing France as the "other", and introduces Creole. Slavery and the specifics of Réunionnais history, geography, fauna and flora are explored. Boris Gamaley's ''Vali pour une reine morte'' (1973) is written in a variety of languages: French, Creole, Malagasy and other African and Indian languages to represent the linguistic and cultural influences of the island, using the languages of indigenous people, colonisers, slaves and indentured labourers. Réunionnais literature has experienced a revival since Réunion became a departement. Créolie is a movement in Réunionnais literature.

Major authors

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Reunionnais literature French literature