One hundred fifty years ago, on October 15, 1876, Jean Price-Mars was born in Grande-Rivière-du-Nord. A doctor, diplomat, and politician, he is best remembered as a writer and ethnologist. Until his death in Pétion-Ville on March 1, 1969, he published essays on history, anthropology, and literary criticism, along with more than a hundred articles, speeches, and conferences. His books are studied and translated into several languages.

It all began under American Occupation. In April 1917, he delivered his first lecture, "The Postulates of a Social Education." More followed, aimed at a youth he described as "completely bewildered in the face of the occupier." In 1919, Price-Mars compiled these public interventions into a work titled "The Vocation of the Elite," which he dedicated to the poetess Ida Faubert.