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Selling Sex, Supressing Sexuality: A Gigolo's Economy in Kettly Mars's L'heure Hybride

2015; Routledge; Volume: 19; Issue: 5 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1080/17409292.2015.1092238

1740-9306

Lindsey Scott,

Vietnamese History and Culture Studies

The Duvalier family controlled and redefined Haitian society from 1957–1986 with economic and political corruption, and a systematic violation of civil liberties. Especially notable of their rule were a drastic redistribution of wealth and the increased stigmatization of non-heteronormative sexuality. Kettly Mars explores economic disparity and sexual stigmas during the final years of Jean-Claude Duvalier's regime in her 2005 novel, L'heure hybride. The novel follows a gigolo, Jean-François Eric L'Hermitte “Rico,” his struggles in a low socioeconomic class, his sexual exploits, and his discomfort with his same-sex desires. In this article, I explore Mars's representation of Rico's personal economy, both through his prostitution and through his self-repression, considering the economic and political impact of Rico's profession as a means to interrogate the relationship between the personal and the political in Jean-Claude Duvalier's Haiti.