The Feast of All Saints
Encyclopedia
The Feast of All Saints (1979
) is a novel
by Anne Rice
.
, who lived in New Orleans before the Civil War
. The gens de couleur libres were the descendants of European settlers of Louisiana, particularly the French and Spanish and people of African descent. It was a common practice for the early caucasian settlers to free these children by their slave mistresses. Their mistresses however, were not all enslaved, some were free women of color whose families had been free for several generations. The novel takes place in the 1840's, at which time there was a large population of free people of color living in New Orleans.
The story centers on Marcel, a young quadroon
whose mother Cecile is the mistress of Philippe Ferronaire, a rich French plantation
owner. Cecile has borne Ferronaire two children, Marcel and his sister Marie. Marie is very light skinned and able to pass as white, but Marcel, who is blonde and blue eyed, but with ethnic hair and darker skin, cannot. The other two major characters in this novel are Christophe, a famous author who returns from Paris
to start a school for the young gens, and Anna Bella, Marcel's childhood friend. Anna Bella loves Marcel, but as he is unprepared to offer her marriage (and too young) she becomes the mistress of Vincent Danzicourt, who is the brother of Philippe Ferronaire's white wife. They have a child together, but split after Marcel, who had been planning to be sent to Paris, learns that his father has betrayed him and wanders to his father's plantation to confront him. In disgrace, he is sent to live with his aunt among many Creole planters on the Cane River. It is here that Marcel learns some of his (African Diasporan) history, including the Haitian Slave Revolt and the fact that his mother was stolen off the street by his adopted aunt during that time.
While Marcel is learning history, his father is in New Orleans drinking himself to death, which he eventually does, depriving the family of their source of income. Marie, who was set to marry Marcel's best friend Richard, is now told that she will follow in her mother's footsteps and take a white protector in order to get money for the family and send Marcel to Paris (Marcel is unaware of all of this). Marie confides this to her slave maid, Lisette. Lisette is also Phillipe Ferronaire's daughter (which Marie does not know) and was promised her freedom by him, but as he did to Marcel, he reneged on his promise. In revenge, Lisette takes Marie to the house of a voodooiene, where she is drugged and raped by five men. Marcel comes home to find that his sister has been raped, Richard has been locked in the family attic (to prevent him from taking revenge on the men, and then, certainly, being tried and convicted of murder and executed) and Vincent Danzicourt has already confronted two of the men, challenged them to duels, and killed them both.
The issue from Danzicourt's perspective is that the five men knew Marie's identity, and therefore knew that she was related by blood to the Ferronaire/Danzicourt family, but raped her anyway. The gens de couleur libre members of the extended family cannot avenge Marie's rape but he can.
Marie takes refuge with a local madam, Dolly Rose. Lisette commits suicide
to avoid Danzicourt's vengeance. Danzicourt find and kills a third man in a duel, but the other two escape from New Orleans before he can call them out and kill them. Richard, who is finally let out of the attic, tells his family that he will marry Marie or face exile with her. The novel ends with Marie and Richard sailing to France (where they will stay until the gossip dies down) and Marcel deciding to become a photographer in order to earn his living (with the implication that once he has some success he will marry Anna Bella).
in 2001
by director Peter Medak
and starring James Earl Jones
, Forest Whitaker
, Ossie Davis
, Ruby Dee
, Eartha Kitt
, Pam Grier
, Ben Vereen
, Jasmine Guy
, Jennifer Beals
, Robert Ri'chard
, Gloria Reuben
, Peter Gallagher
, Daniel Sunjata
, Nicole Lyn
, Jenny Levine
, Rachel Luttrell
, and Bianca Lawson
.
1979 in literature
The year 1979 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-New books:*Douglas Adams - The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy*V.C...
) is a novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
by Anne Rice
Anne Rice
Anne Rice is a best-selling Southern American author of metaphysical gothic fiction, Christian literature and erotica from New Orleans, Louisiana. Her books have sold nearly 100 million copies, making her one of the most widely read authors in modern history...
.
Plot summary
This novel is about the gens de couleur libres, or free people of colorFree people of color
A free person of color in the context of the history of slavery in the Americas, is a person of full or partial African descent who was not enslaved...
, who lived in New Orleans before the Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. The gens de couleur libres were the descendants of European settlers of Louisiana, particularly the French and Spanish and people of African descent. It was a common practice for the early caucasian settlers to free these children by their slave mistresses. Their mistresses however, were not all enslaved, some were free women of color whose families had been free for several generations. The novel takes place in the 1840's, at which time there was a large population of free people of color living in New Orleans.
The story centers on Marcel, a young quadroon
Quadroon
Quadroon, and the associated words octoroon and quintroon are terms that, historically, were applied to define the ancestry of people of mixed-race, generally of African and Caucasian ancestry, but also, within Australia, to those of Aboriginal and Caucasian ancestry...
whose mother Cecile is the mistress of Philippe Ferronaire, a rich French plantation
Plantation
A plantation is a long artificially established forest, farm or estate, where crops are grown for sale, often in distant markets rather than for local on-site consumption...
owner. Cecile has borne Ferronaire two children, Marcel and his sister Marie. Marie is very light skinned and able to pass as white, but Marcel, who is blonde and blue eyed, but with ethnic hair and darker skin, cannot. The other two major characters in this novel are Christophe, a famous author who returns from Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
to start a school for the young gens, and Anna Bella, Marcel's childhood friend. Anna Bella loves Marcel, but as he is unprepared to offer her marriage (and too young) she becomes the mistress of Vincent Danzicourt, who is the brother of Philippe Ferronaire's white wife. They have a child together, but split after Marcel, who had been planning to be sent to Paris, learns that his father has betrayed him and wanders to his father's plantation to confront him. In disgrace, he is sent to live with his aunt among many Creole planters on the Cane River. It is here that Marcel learns some of his (African Diasporan) history, including the Haitian Slave Revolt and the fact that his mother was stolen off the street by his adopted aunt during that time.
While Marcel is learning history, his father is in New Orleans drinking himself to death, which he eventually does, depriving the family of their source of income. Marie, who was set to marry Marcel's best friend Richard, is now told that she will follow in her mother's footsteps and take a white protector in order to get money for the family and send Marcel to Paris (Marcel is unaware of all of this). Marie confides this to her slave maid, Lisette. Lisette is also Phillipe Ferronaire's daughter (which Marie does not know) and was promised her freedom by him, but as he did to Marcel, he reneged on his promise. In revenge, Lisette takes Marie to the house of a voodooiene, where she is drugged and raped by five men. Marcel comes home to find that his sister has been raped, Richard has been locked in the family attic (to prevent him from taking revenge on the men, and then, certainly, being tried and convicted of murder and executed) and Vincent Danzicourt has already confronted two of the men, challenged them to duels, and killed them both.
The issue from Danzicourt's perspective is that the five men knew Marie's identity, and therefore knew that she was related by blood to the Ferronaire/Danzicourt family, but raped her anyway. The gens de couleur libre members of the extended family cannot avenge Marie's rape but he can.
Marie takes refuge with a local madam, Dolly Rose. Lisette commits suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
to avoid Danzicourt's vengeance. Danzicourt find and kills a third man in a duel, but the other two escape from New Orleans before he can call them out and kill them. Richard, who is finally let out of the attic, tells his family that he will marry Marie or face exile with her. The novel ends with Marie and Richard sailing to France (where they will stay until the gossip dies down) and Marcel deciding to become a photographer in order to earn his living (with the implication that once he has some success he will marry Anna Bella).
Film adaptation
The Feast of All Saints was made into a miniseriesMiniseries
A miniseries , in a serial storytelling medium, is a television show production which tells a story in a limited number of episodes. The exact number is open to interpretation; however, they are usually limited to fewer than a whole season. The term "miniseries" is generally a North American term...
in 2001
2001 in film
The year 2001 in film involved some significant events, including the first of the Harry Potter series and also the first of The Lord of the Rings trilogy...
by director Peter Medak
Peter Medak
Peter Medak is a Hungarian-born film director of British and American films.-Early life:He was born in Budapest, Hungary to a Jewish family, but in 1956 fled his native country for England due to the Hungarian Revolution...
and starring James Earl Jones
James Earl Jones
James Earl Jones is an American actor. He is well-known for his distinctive bass voice and for his portrayal of characters of substance, gravitas and leadership...
, Forest Whitaker
Forest Whitaker
Forest Steven Whitaker is an American actor, producer, and director. He has earned a reputation for intensive character study work for films such as Bird and Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai, and for his recurring role as ex-LAPD Lieutenant Jon Kavanaugh on the gritty, award-winning television...
, Ossie Davis
Ossie Davis
Ossie Davis was an American film actor, director, poet, playwright, writer, and social activist.-Early years:...
, Ruby Dee
Ruby Dee
Ruby Dee is an American actress, poet, playwright, screenwriter, journalist, and activist, perhaps best known for co-starring in the film A Raisin in the Sun and the film American Gangster for which she was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.-Early years:Dee was born Ruby...
, Eartha Kitt
Eartha Kitt
Eartha Mae Kitt was an American singer, actress, and cabaret star. She was perhaps best known for her highly distinctive singing style and her 1953 hit recordings of "C'est Si Bon" and the enduring Christmas novelty smash "Santa Baby." Orson Welles once called her the "most exciting woman in the...
, Pam Grier
Pam Grier
Pamela Suzette "Pam" Grier is an American actress. She became famous in the early 1970s, after starring in a string of moderately successful women in prison and blaxploitation films such as 1974's Foxy Brown. Her career was revitalized in 1997 after her appearance in Quentin Tarantino's film...
, Ben Vereen
Ben Vereen
Ben Vereen is an American actor, dancer, and singer who has appeared in numerous Broadway theatre shows. Vereen graduated from Manhattan's High School of Performing Arts.- Early years :...
, Jasmine Guy
Jasmine Guy
Jasmine Guy is an American actress, singer and dancer. She is best known for her starring role as Whitley Gilbert in the television sitcom A Different World.-Biography:...
, Jennifer Beals
Jennifer Beals
Jennifer Beals is an American actress and a former teen model. She is known for her roles as Alexandra "Alex" Owens in the 1983 film Flashdance, and as Bette Porter on the Showtime drama series The L Word. She earned an NAACP Image Award and a Golden Globe Award nomination for the former...
, Robert Ri'chard
Robert Ri'chard
Robert Andrew Ri'chard is an American television and movie actor.-Early life:Ri'chard was born Robert Andrew Richard in Los Angeles, California...
, Gloria Reuben
Gloria Reuben
Gloria Reuben is a Canadian singer and actress of film and television, known for her role as Jeanie Boulet on the popular medical drama ER and for her role of Rosalind Whitman in the TV show Raising the Bar.-Life and career:...
, Peter Gallagher
Peter Gallagher
Peter Killian Gallagher is an American actor, musician and writer. Since 1980, Gallagher has played many roles in numerous Hollywood films. He starred as Sandy Cohen in the television drama series The O.C. from 2003 to 2007...
, Daniel Sunjata
Daniel Sunjata
Daniel Sunjata is an American actor who performs in film, television and in the theater.-Career:...
, Nicole Lyn
Nicole Lyn
Nicole Lyn is a television actress. She is known for her role in Student Bodies, a Canadian teen comedy series.-Biography:...
, Jenny Levine
Jenny Levine
Jennifer "Jenny" Levine is a Canadian actress who debuted on the Canadian series Jake and the Kid as series regular, Molly. She went on to star in the Showtime series Fast Track and has guest starred in numerous shows such as Monk, Doc, The Outer Limits and Nash Bridges.She starred in the Showtime...
, Rachel Luttrell
Rachel Luttrell
Rachel Luttrell is an actress best known for her role as Teyla Emmagan, an Athosian warrior leader on Stargate Atlantis.-Early life:...
, and Bianca Lawson
Bianca Lawson
Bianca Jasmine Lawson is an American film and television actress.-Early life:Lawson was born in Los Angeles, California. She is the daughter of Denise and actor Richard Lawson. Bianca is also the great niece of Motown founder Berry Gordy...
.