"There was no denying the fact that the death of the sugarcane was sounding the knell for something else in the country. What can we call it?"
The villagers are somewhat superstitious, as is Sancher himself. They believe in omens and portents and curses. When the sugarcane crop fails, the locals become afraid of the implications for the rest of their society, not just economically. They suspect a kind of negative energy is responsible, one which is certain to manifest in other areas of life as well. It turns out that may have been Sancher's curse.
"I haven't come here to plant children and watch them walk on this earth. I've come to put an end, yes, an end to a race that's cursed."
Sancher doesn't want to have children because of this awful curse. He's returned to Guadeloupe to make peace with his supposed death. From this quotation it's clear that Sancher has no idea that Mira is pregnant with his baby.
"She waltzed me round and round without music, and yet now I'd willingly go on under her iron rule."
Sancher is impressed by the local culture. Although everything is foreign to him, he hails from Guadeloupe originally, so these are his people. He must be experiencing a sort of deja vu, a return to a place he's never been but has always known existed -- home.
"All they want is boys to keep their man. You, you want a daughter? Is that what you want? I can't believe my ears."
When Mira learns that she's pregnant with Sancher's child, she hopes it is a girl. Out of respect for Sancher's wishes she doesn't want to bring another male Sancher into the world for fear of subjecting him to the curse. She hopes to have a daughter in order to preserve his legacy, as a man who transformed her life.
