Suffering and Enslavement

The Kingdom of This World is a novel of suffering and enslavement. The focus of the novel are the black slaves of Santo Domingo, now known as Haiti, during the French colonial period. Throughout his life, Ti Noël longs for nothing but freedom. When he is a slave, he wants to destroy his enslavers. When he can, he returns to his homeland looking for life as a free man. However, Ti Noël finds that the abolishment of slavery as it existed under colonial rule does not mean an end to suffering and enforced labor. Under the black King Henri Christophe, Ti Noël finds himself again enslaved. When King Henri is destroyed, a new regime comes to replace him. Again, labor is to be enforced.

At the beginning of the novel, when Ti Noël is walking back to the plantation with his owner...