ABSTRACT
In Die Verlobung in St Domingo — a story based on actual historical events of 1803-04 — civil war has broken out between the French colonizers of the Caribbean island of Santo Domingo and the island's indigenous inhabitants. Die Verlobutig in St Domingo can therefore be understood as a game with a bi-matrix structure in which neutralization of the opponent is the preferred outcome of one side; survival is the pay-off at each stage of the game. The game reveals an underlying contingency in the sense that the critical player, Toni, is both white and black and so without any predictable or necessary allegiance. The game of trust at the heart of Die Verlobung in St Domingo moves ahead in distinct stages. The first stage begins with Gustav's arrival at the house and his reception by Babekan and Toni, and extends to the point of his first close contact with Toni.
