Posted: November 19th, 2022

choiceThe Farming of Bones – The Archive and the Repertoire

Writer’s choiceThe Farming of Bones – The Archive and the Repertoire
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Paper instructions:
In Chapter 14 of The Farming of Bones, the narrator Amabelle points out that the Haitian priest, Father Romain, “always made much of our being from the same place,” which he describes as “Cap Haitien, the city of Henry Ps great citadel” (73). Amabelle explains that recognizing someone from the same village was “their way of returning home” and that “this was how people left imprints of themselves in each other’s memory” (73). In his sermons, Amabelle continues, Father Romain “often reminded everyone of common ties: language, foods, history, carnival, songs, tales, and prayers. His creed was one of memory, how remembering — though sometimes painful — can make you strong.”

Explain Diana Taylor’s theoretical concept of the archive and the repertoire. Identify which of the common ties mentioned by Father Romain are examples of the archive and which of the repertoire.

Then consider the first half of the novel through the theoretical lens of the archive and the repertoire. The narrator Amabelle alternates between sharing her memories and dreams and recounting her experience as a Haitian domestic worker in an upper class Dominican household in the fictional border town of Alegría in the Dominican Republic. Describe at least 3 examples from the first half of the novel of how Amabelle has gained or transmitted knowledge through the repertoire of Haitian performance. Finally, explain what knowledge is transmitted through the poem “Guinea” by Jacques Romain.

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