- Edouard Maunick
Edouard Joseph Marc Maunick (born
September 23 ,1931 ,Mauritius ) was an African poet, critic, and translator.Maunick was a métis or
mulatto , and as such was the subject of discrimination from both blacks and whites. He worked briefly as a librarian inPort-Louis before going toParis in 1960, where he wrote, lectured, and directed forCoopération Radiophonique . He was also a frequent contributor to "Présence Africaine " and other journals.Maunick's work was based not in the more traditional search for roots to establish an individual identity. Instead, he lamented his own isolation and the persecution of his people in poetry collections such as "Les Oiseaux du sang" (1954; "The Birds of Blood"), "Les Manèges de la mer" (1964; "Taming the Sea"), and "Mascaret ou le livre de la mer et de la mort" (1966; "Mascaret or The Book of the Sea and of Death"). His "Fusillez-moi" (1970; "Shoot Me") was written as a protest against blacks killing blacks in
Nigeria . Later works include "Africaines du temps jadis" (1976; "African Women of Times Gone By") and "En mémoire de mèmorable suivi de Jusqu'en terre Yoruba" (1979; "A Memory of the Memorable, Followed by As Far as the Land of the Yoruba").On October 16, 2003, Edouard Maunick received the
Grand Prix de la Francophonie , awarded by theAcadémie française .His son, Jean-Paul Maunick is a record producer and member of the band incognito.
References
* [http://www.lehman.cuny.edu/ile.en.ile/paroles/maunick.html Édouard J. Maunick] , biography, bibliography, links and recordings of the poet reading his work (in French; Île en île).
* [http://www.diplomatie.gouv.fr/label_France/55/gb/02.html Label France] : One hundred creative artists who have chosen France - Edouard Maunick, the marriage of French and Creole.
* [http://jacbayle.club.fr/livres/Nouveau/Maunick.html Review of "Elle & île - Poèmes d'une même passion"]
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