Carnivalesque Construction

“…Negro was the chef, with an ermine tail on his cap, who was receiving a deer borne on the shoulders of several villagers led by the master huntsman; those hussars curvetting about the riding ring were Negroes; that high steward, with a silver chain around his neck, watching, in the company of the royal falconer, the rehearsals of Negro actors in an outdoor theater, was a Negro; those footmen in white wigs, whose buttons were being inspected by a butler in green livery, were Negroes, and, finally, Negro, good and Negro, was that Immaculate Conception standing above the high altar of the chapel, smiling sweetly upon the Negro musicians who were practicing a Salve” (Alejo Carpentier, Kingdom of This World”, pg. 108-109).

In this passage Alejo Carpentier describes a role reversal between blacks and whites. Black people appear to have taken on the roles of the elite whites in Haiti. They are completely reversed. Yet, there is something about the description which seems surreal.  Even the Savior is depicted as having black skin in the painting described in the scene. The setting is even described just like the streets of Europe, even though everyone knows it is really in Haiti.

Another example of the “Carnivalesque Structure” is found in the popular movie “She’s the Man”. The concepts of carnival are evident throughout the movie, but they are most prominent in the actual carnival scene (unfortunately I could not find a clip of this scene online so I included the trailer instead). The protagonist, Viola Hastings is pretending to be her brother, Sebastian Hastings. Just like when Carpentier describes black people in white people’s roles it is obvious to the reader (audience) that Viola is not actually a boy. Yet, for the characters in the movie it is a completely believable scenario. Both Sebastian and Viola are supposed to attend the charity event for their mom’s organization, which happens to be a carnival. Throughout the scene Viola is forced to change back and forth between her actual identity and her disguise as Sebastian over and over again. She changes outfits in a few interesting places, which further develop the carnival concepts, they include a spinning ride and a children’s bouncy house. Ultimately Viola’s changing identities lead to a fistfight between her ex-boyfriend and roommate and cause a disaster at the carnival, which causes major chaos.

Perhaps this author and director choose to include recurring “carnivalesque structures” in their works to reveal something about the societies that they feature. They may be trying to prove that when one steps out of their status quo role in society, they will inevitably bring chaos to their world. When one tries to be something they are not, even if it is for a good reason, tumult follows, but order is always restored.