Aime Césaire (1913-2008)was born in Basse-Pointe, Martinique. Though educated in Paris, he was deeply involved in the struggle for French West Indian rights. He is the author of several volumes of poetry and plays, including Putting in Fetters; Lost Bodies, Decapitated Sun; and The Tragedy of King Christophe. Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak is University Professor in the humanities and director of the Institute for Comparative Literature and Society at Columbia University.