Written by Dr. Akosua Fadhili Afrika (FKA Marie Leticée)
The Creole garden is a metaphor used in Creole literature to describe the cultural diversity of our region. In fact, the Caribbean basin is a place of cultural blends that encompasses influences and origins from all over the world, whether Indigenous, African, European, Indian, or others. The concept of the Creole garden is rooted in the reality of domestic spaces, where various types of medicinal plants, fruit trees, protective plants, vegetable gardens, and diverse flowers and shrubs are cultivated in symbiosis and harmony around the family home. The family garden, with all these plant species coexisting harmoniously, becomes a reflection of the cultural, spiritual, and physical space of Guadeloupe; it forms the foundation of the Creole garden theory promoted by many Caribbean thinkers and writers—and beyond.
In Antillean literature, the Creole garden theory is often used as a motif to illustrate how different cultural traditions can coexist, interact, and enrich one another while respecting each other.
Furthermore, by using the Creole garden as a testament to the salvific value of creating a Caribbean world through Creole language and its connection to the Creole space, Guadeloupean authors present themselves as linguistic, cultural, and spiritual architects. They suggest that the use of Creole, a vehicle for communication, like the creative space of the Creole garden, would generate an energy that roots the people of Guadeloupe in the creative Caribbean space of Creole expression. This rootedness would enable the manifestation of a Creole "self" within the creative space of the Creole garden, serving as a source of authentic nourishment for the community.
In her novel The Bridge of the Soul, Simone Schwarz-Bart presents the character of Reine Sans Nom, who teaches her granddaughter Télumée the vital importance of cultivating a garden. Reine Sans Nom's garden includes vanilla pods, coffee beans, pigeon peas, plantains, tubers, oranges, Congo sugarcane, and marigolds. These fruits and vegetables represent the richness of Guadeloupe. The vanilla pods embody the island’s essence and spirituality; the coffee, its strength and intensity; the Congo sugarcane, its tenderness and flexibility; and the peas and tubers symbolize its diversity, rootedness, and abundance. These fruits and vegetables aptly illustrate Guadeloupe’s Creole culinary and cultural identity. Most of these fruits and vegetables, like the island's inhabitants, were transplanted from other continents and symbolize the multicultural nature of our Afro-descendant societies. By tending her garden with its diverse origins, Reine Sans Nom encourages Télumée to believe in a vision of a multicultural, spiritual, and harmonious world.
Francophone Caribbean literature offers a rich palette of reflections on nation-building, revealing the different facets of the search for identity through personal, linguistic, and cultural experiences, using the Creole garden as a prototype.
Translated by Open Scene. To read the original version of this article, visit: https://issuu.com/openscene/docs/august2024zine15?fr=xKAE9_zU1NQ
This is such an insightful exploration of the Creole garden as both a literal and metaphorical space! I love how the garden becomes a beautiful representation of Guadeloupe’s multicultural tapestry, with each plant symbolizing the island’s diverse cultural roots and traditions. It reminds me that honoring our heritage—like tending a garden—is about nurturing, protecting, and celebrating the richness of our collective identity. Truly inspiring!