36 pages • 1 hour read
Alejo CarpentierThe Kingdom Of This World
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 1949A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Part 1, Chapters 5-8Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Part 1, Chapter 5 Summary: “De Profundis”
Macandal’s poison spreads through the Plaine du Nord, first affecting livestock and then humans. The enslavers respond with increased violence toward enslaved Haitians, but that does not quell the spread of disease. Even imports are somehow poisoned. However, finally, an enslaved person gives up information: “Macandal, who had been made a Vodou priest in the Rada rite [...] [is] the Lord of Poison” (22), and he and his thousands of followers mean to exterminate all the white people in Haiti.
Part 1, Chapter 6 Summary: “The Metamorphosis”
After Macandal’s power is revealed, the poison stops spreading. Planters continue to search for him but with decreasing seriousness. The Black residents of Haiti, however, believe his return is imminent: They tell each other “the strangest news with great joy” (25)—they see strange animals and believe that each is Macandal in disguise. He is believed to have been “graced with the power to transform himself” and to be using that power to watch over his followers (26). For four years, his followers wait for news that it is time to rise against the enslavers.
Part 1, Chapter 7 Summary: “In Human Dress”
Lenormand de Mézy marries a rich widow, and as Christmas approaches, Ti Noël plans to go to the Dufrené plantation, where the enslaved workers will be given a glass of brandy each. Enslaved people from nearby plantations congregate, beating drums, and Macandal appears in human form. There is an outpouring of chants and complaints: “Will I have to wash the pots forever? Will I have to eat bamboo forever?” (30). The enslavers hear these complaints and storm the gathering.
Part 1, Chapter 8 Summary: “The Great Flight”
Enslaved people from all over the Plaine du Nord are brought by the enslavers to Cap Français, where Macandal is to be burned at the stake. His enslaved followers are unconcerned, believing that he will transform into an animal and escape at the last moment. Tied to the pole, he indeed transforms into a bird, shooting up into the air. However, moments later, 10 soldiers grab hold of him and force him into the fire. The enslaved people watching are nonetheless happy: “Macandal had fulfilled his promise to remain in the kingdom of this world” (33).
Part 1, Chapters 5-8 Analysis
The latter half of Part 1 traces the results of Macandal’s escape and provides further insight into Racial Violence Under Enslavement and the conflict between enslaved people and enslavers. In earlier chapters, Ti Noël’s desire to see his master dead is hinted at; in these chapters, that desire is confirmed and amplified in Macandal’s ambitious plan to kill all white Haitians and decimate the populations of livestock that keep them rich and well-fed. It is worth noting that these chapters depart from closely following Ti Noël and Macandal, presenting the perspective of enslaved people as a collective and thus underscoring their shared struggle.
These chapters also expand on Vodou beliefs, developing the theme of Catholicism Versus Vodou. While the white enslavers are Catholic and confess themselves to priests, Macandal and his fellow enslaved people believe in an entirely different world. A man can become a lord—and to gain supernatural powers—through Vodou. While the white enslavers believe Macandal is missing, the enslaved workers see him everywhere in animal form and have no fear that he will be captured or killed, so powerful is he. Even when Macandal is burned alive, this is not cause for concern: It is his choice to martyr himself and remain in the earthly realm. One image in this section stands out: The Black Haitians imagine Macandal will transform himself into a mosquito. The choice of animal suggests that enslaved people’s powers and beliefs are invisible to the enslavers but omnipresent.
In addition, these chapters offer further insight into the emotional lives of the enslaved people living in Haiti. The hatred of their enslavers is clear. Their deep sadness at their condition comes out in their collective lamentations at the Dufrené plantation—lamentations so unrestrained that they forget to evade detection. However, these chapters also emphasize the solace they take in their hopefulness. For them, Macandal, the escaped Lord of Poision, is a beacon.
