The Viceroy of Ouidah by Bruce Chatwin (.ePUB)
File Size: 0.3 MB
The Viceroy of Ouidah by Bruce Chatwin
Requirements: .ePUB reader, 0.3MB
Overview: A Tale of Trade and Tyranny
The Viceroy of Ouidah is a haunting, semi-fictional account of Francisco Manoel da Silva, a Brazilian slave trader who rises to power in 19th-century Dahomey (present-day Benin). Set in a decaying West African outpost, the novel traces a brutal legacy of ambition, betrayal, and cultural collision.
History Distorted by Memory
Based loosely on a real historical figure, Chatwin paints a surreal, feverish portrait of colonial exploitation, where religion, commerce, and savagery intermingle. His prose is rich and baroque, depicting tropical rot, moral decay, and the ghosts of imperialism with a cold, hypnotic detachment.
Moral Complexity and Literary Precision
More stylized and symbolic than his travel works, this short novel explores the darkness at the heart of empire, told with the dispassionate clarity of a fable. It’s both grotesque and elegant—an early example of Chatwin’s gift for distilling vast themes into slim, potent volumes.
Genre: Fiction > General Fiction/Classics
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