Modern Slavery and Water Spirituality ― A Critical Debate in Africa and Latin America

This book contains close readings of contemporary literary texts and art work by Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking authors from Africa and Latin America. The readings reveal a critical debate that understands reflections on the slave trade and current migrations from Africa to Europe as continuity since early modern history. This part of cultural history is firmly rooted in the Black Atlantic, although the book’s primary concern is a discussion of situations in which water spirituality functions as a backdrop. This critical inquiry of social inequality and injustice is based on a theoretical framework that addresses migrations overseas and forced labor. Therefore, the readings are placed within the cultural tradition of seven countries: Brazil, Angola, Cuba, Equatorial Guinea, Cape Verde, São Tomé and Principe, and Guinea-Bissau.

Ineke Phaf-Rheinberger was University Lecturer in Germany, the USA, and The Netherlands, as well as in Costa Rica, Brazil, Chile, Cuba, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, and Angola. Her research focuses on literature of the Caribbean, Latin America, and Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking Africa.