ABSTRACT
The kweol language spoken on Marie-Galante itself developed in part to facilitate communication between slaves who had been brought from distinct African cultural groups with distinctive languages. A primary source of Aime Cesaire's poetic intensity lies in his imaginative manipulation of the French language. The French language itself was also beneficial in opening doors of opportunity for Cesaire, who eventually left Martinique for Paris to continue his education. Leopold Senghor who is greatly influenced the young Cesaire. It was largely interaction with Senghor that brought about Cesaire's reawakening of perceptions of Africa in the face of complex tensions that emplaced his self-consciousness somewhere between Africa, the Caribbean, and France. Kweol assumes a critical role in musical performance on Marie-Galante. Specifically on Marie-Galante, the subsurreal can emerge in imaginative performances of place that often imbue Marie-Galantais musical practices, themselves yet embedded in the predicament of non-nationhood, with multisensual and multiply meaningful resonance.
