In Omeros, though the characters in the present timeline haven't experienced slavery directly, they live with the memories of their ancestors and a legacy of poverty, both spiritually and economically speaking. They struggle to thrive under colonial rule and in the face of a tourist invasion that threatens to consume the island. Walcott confronts the fallout of slavery by moving backward through time, bringing Achille to his ancestral home to see the process of captivity with his own eyes and also taking the narrator on a long journey to write about the lives of those lost to hard labor and the indifference of history.
Questions About Slavery
- How does the memory of slavery affect the present timeline and the characters of this work?
- What images are most closely associated with slavery in Walcott's poem? Are there any unusual objects or situations that provoke associations with slavery?
- Achille has a more direct experience with slavery than any of the characters in the present timeline. Why do you suppose Walcott chose this character for such an experience? Why not send Philoctete? Or even the narrator?
- What does Walcott mean when he says that captives inevitably become captors? What are some examples of this? Are there any exceptions, in his experience?
Chew on This
Epic poetry is the perfect medium for exploring captivity and colonialism.
St. Lucia is still being colonized, which is clear because the island is being developed for tourism instead of its permanent inhabitants.