Question: What do the reactions to the Haitian Revolution tell us in regards to the cause of the revolution? What do these reactions tell us about Haitian society at the time in regards to race relations?
Answer: The primary sources give us a wide variety of opinions towards what was happening in Haiti at the time. Antoine Dalmas’ reaction, seen in his source on page 77), gives us a colonist’s perspective on the events. Dalmas makes an effort to portray the slaves as barbaric and their revolution lacking a just cause. An example of this is his reaction to the ritual before the revolution was to be carried out which involved the drinking of pig’s blood (78). Dalmas’ account can be seen as attempting to portray the revolution as something done simply out of desire for bloodshed, with his multitude examples of atrocities being committed. By attempting to portray these slaves seeking freedom from their life of servitude, we see a part of colonialist society that demonizes the slaves and finds their desire for freedom as unnecessary and excessive. This opinion is also seen in Olympe De Gouges’ primary source.
Gouges’ reaction to the revolution is similar to Dalmas’ as she directly condemned the actions of the slaves and people of color. Her reaction shows that she views the violent acts as unnecessary despite the horrible conditions met by the slaves (97). Gouges, unlike Dalmas, represents a mainland French perspective of the revolution, showing that those in France were trying to portray the Haitian Revolution as one done out of desire for violence. This was not the only opinion, though, as Thomas Clarkson’s account shifts the cause of revolution to slavery itself.
Clarkson’s reaction to the revolution points to the slave trade “as the real cause of all West Indian Insurrections”(102). Clarkson’s opinion differs heavily from Gouges and Dalmas because it attempts to justify the revolution, stating that the cruelty of slavery is the primary cause of the violence and that this violence is to be expected (102). This opinion reflects part of colonial society that condemned slavery and understood the reasoning behind the Haitain Revolution.