A Haiti c. 19th century

Honoré Daumier created this lithograph entitled 'A Haiti' amidst a 19th-century France grappling with its colonial legacy and the rise of abolitionist movements. The image portrays a skeletal figure, adorned in military garb, confronting a European gentleman. This caricature evokes the history of Haiti, the first free black republic, which emerged from a bloody revolution against French colonial rule. Daumier uses the trope of the grim reaper to cast Haiti's independence as a macabre jest, thus revealing the racial and colonial anxieties pervasive in French society. The title of the piece references Gesler, the tyrannical figure from the William Tell story, who demanded a symbolic act of submission to his authority. The visual pun suggests that France expected a similar level of subservience from Haiti. The drawing offers a glimpse into the complex interplay between political power, racial stereotypes, and the struggle for self-determination. It serves as a stark reminder of the enduring impact of colonialism on the collective psyche.