The Science of Illusion-making in Aimé Césaire's <em>La tragédie du roi Christophe</em> and <em>Une tempête</em>

Abstract

This essay considers Cesaire’s theater from the point of view of performance, by focusing on two works from his trilogy on decolonization: La tragedie du roi Christophe and Une tempete . The ability to create illusions, including the scientific knowledge necessary to do so, is portrayed as a European instrument, which can be used either negatively, to deceive the characters with the objective of exploiting them, or positively, as a means of raising consciousness in a manner that provokes development. The making of illusions by the different characters unlocks a game of mise en abyme , which leads to the establishment of a metatheatrical discourse about the role of theater in economic development. Ultimately, the frequent representation of illusion-making as a scientific or technical practice reflects Cesaire’s views about the transfer of Western cultural elements—including both theater and modern technologies—to the former colonies in the era of decolonization.