Edwidge Danticat

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Edwidge Danticat
Edwidge Danticat by David Shankbone.jpg
Danticat, September 2007
Born (1969-01-19) January 19, 1969 (age 44)
Port-au-Prince, Haiti
Occupation Writer
Nationality Haitian American
Period 1994 - present
Genres Novels, short stories

Edwidge Danticat (Haitian Creole pronunciation: [ɛdwidʒ dãtika]; born January 19, 1969) is a Haitian-American author.

Contents

Biography[edit]

Danticat was born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. When she was two years old, her father André immigrated to New York, to be followed two years later by her mother Rose.[1] This left Danticat and her younger brother, also named André, to be raised by her aunt and uncle. Although her formal education in Haiti was in French, she spoke Kreyòl at home.[2]

While still in Haiti, Danticat began writing at 9 years old.[3] At the age of 12, she moved to Brooklyn, New York, to join her parents in a heavily Haitian American neighborhood. As an immigrant teenager, Edwidge's disorientation in her new surroundings was a source of discomfort for her, and she turned to literature for solace.[2] Two years later she published her first writing in English, "A Haitian-American Christmas: Cremace and Creole Theatre," in New Youth Connections, a citywide magazine written by teenagers. She later wrote another story about her immigration experience for New Youth Connections, "A New World Full of Strangers". In the introduction to Starting With I, an anthology of stories from the magazine, Danticat wrote, “When I was done with the [immigration] piece, I felt that my story was unfinished, so I wrote a short story, which later became a book, my first novel: Breath, Eyes, Memory…Writing for New Youth Connections had given me a voice. My silence was destroyed completely, indefinitely.”[4]

Career[edit]

After graduating from Clara Barton High School in Brooklyn, New York, Danticat entered Barnard College in New York City. Initially she had intended on studying to become a nurse, but her love of writing won out and she received a BA in French literature in translation.[5] In 1993, she earned a Master of Fine Arts in creative writing from Brown University—her thesis, entitled "My turn in the fire – an abridged novel",[6] was the basis for her novel Breath, Eyes, Memory, which was published by Soho Press in 1994.[5] Four years later it became an Oprah's Book Club selection.[7]

Since completing her MFA, Danticat has taught creative writing at the New York University and the University of Miami.[8] She has also worked with filmmakers Patricia Benoit and Jonathan Demme, on projects on Haitian art and documentaries about Haïti.[1] Her short stories have appeared in over 25 periodicals and have been anthologized several times. Her work has been translated into numerous other languages, including French, Korean, German, Italian, Spanish, and Swedish.

Danticat is a strong advocate for issues affecting Haitians abroad and at home. In 2009, she lent her voice and words to Poto Mitan: Haitian Women Pillars of the Global Economy, a documentary about the impact of globalization on five women from different generations.[9]

Personal life[edit]

Edwidge Danticat is married to Fedo Boyer. She has two daughters, Mira and Leila.[5] Danticat is a member of the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority.

Awards[edit]

Danticat has won fiction awards from Essence and Seventeen magazines, was named "1 of 20 people in their twenties who will make a difference" in Harper's Bazaar, was featured in the New York Times Magazine as one of "30 under 30" people to watch, and was called one of the "15 Gutsiest Women of the Year" by Jane Magazine.

Bibliography[edit]

Books[edit]

Short stories[edit]

A Wall of Fire Rising

Film[edit]

  • Poto Mitan - Writer/Narrator, 2009

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b Maya Jaggi (2004-11-20). "Island Memories (Profile: Edwidge Danticat)". Retrieved 2013-05-12. 
  2. ^ a b "Behind the Books: A Conversation with Edwidge Danticat". Random House. 1998. Archived from the original on 2008-11-04. Retrieved 2013-05-13. 
  3. ^ Munro, Martin (2010-10-05). "Inside Out: A Brief Biography of Edwidge Danticat". In Munro. Edwidge Danticat: A Reader's Guide. University of Virginia Press. p. 16. Retrieved 2013-05-13. 
  4. ^ Starting With I, edited by Andrea Estepa, 1997, p. xii.
  5. ^ a b c Charlotte Bruce Harvey (January 2011). "Haiti's Storyteller". Brown Alumni Magazine. Retrieved 2013-05-10. 
  6. ^ Theses & Dissertations Record from a Brown University website
  7. ^ 'Breath, Eyes, Memory by Edwidge Danticat from Oprah Winfrey's official website
  8. ^ Name Search › (2009-01-26). "Rackstraw Downes — MacArthur Foundation". Macfound.org. Retrieved 2013-05-10. 
  9. ^ "Haitian women pillars of the global economy". Poto Mitan. Retrieved 2013-05-10. 
  10. ^ Hua, Cynthia; Julia Zorthian (20 May 2013). "University Confers 3,084 Degrees at 312th Commencement". Yale Daily News. Retrieved 2013-05-21. 

External links[edit]

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