Plantation and Race in the Caribbean
The incredible history of the Caribbean is indeed, one of the most rich, and at the same time troubling, of the New World. Its incredibly heterogeneous population and its social racial base make it a very difficult place to, for instance, live and raise a family.
While some children may have a future because of their light complexion, the others are doomed to a life of poverty in the unforgiving culture and society of the Caribbean.
Three people have taken it upon themselves to portray the Caribbean in their own ways. The opinions of Sidney Mintz, Michelle Cliff and Antonio Benitez-Rojo are made clear in their works and are discussed below in relation to two main issues; race and the plantations.
The Issue of Race
Perhaps out of personal experience and perhaps out of direct experience with people of the Caribbean, Michelle Cliff makes, by far, the biggest deal out of the race issue and the role that it played (and still plays) in Jamaica. Benitez-Rojo and Mintz certainly mention race as a factor in determining social status as well, but they do not base their articles on this. Cliff dedicates both Abeng and her article to this issue. It seems to have touched her in a way that the other issues have not. Her works are far more personal than the other two, and this is certainly the most distinguishing characteristic between her and the others. Her accounts, though fictional, are much more gripping and interesting, because they involve so much more feeling and emotion. The others seem to be nothing more than basic historical accounts of the Caribbean. It is impossible to look at her novel for more than a few moments and not pick up some sort of passage about the tragedy of this issue....
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...ean is presented with, neither is able to portray what Cliff can. Simply reading about the dynamics of plantation and race does not illustrate it enough. Though it is certainly very important to understand these dynamics, and thus read the articles of Mintz and Benitez-Rojo, the study of these issues would be incomplete without Cliff’s works on the subjects of the Caribbean.
Bibliography
Benitez-Rojo, Antonio. "The Repeating Island," Post-contemporary Interventions, Duke University Press, Durham and London, 1992.
Cliff, Michelle. Abeng, Penguin Group, New York, 1984.
Cliff, Michelle. "If I Could Write This In Fire, I Would Write This In Fire," An Anthology of Literature From the Caribbean, The New Press, New York.
Mintz, Sidney W. "The Caribbean as a Socio-cultural Area", as seen in Peoples and Cultures of the Caribbean, Garden City, New Jersey, 1971.
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societies to reexamine their view of the Caribbean. In this paper the following topics in The
8. Shepherd, Verene. Engendering History: Caribbean Women in Historical Perspective. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1995.
Mark Twain’s “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” is said to be one of the greatest American novels to ever be written and is what all other pieces of American literature are based off of. The novel has been debated for over an entire century and will continue to be debated for much longer. Never the less, Huckleberry Finn teaches young students and adults the important life lessons. ”The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” by Mark Twain should remain required reading in American Literature classes because it enlightens students about the horrors of racism and slavery, familiarizes students with the South during time period, and properly portrays the powers of conformity.
In the chapter One Island, Two Peoples, Two Histories: The Dominican Republic and Haiti the present day differences of Haiti and The Dominican Republic are explained through the political, social, and ecological history of both locations. The Dominican Republic, although it is still considered a developing country, is in a objectively worse state than Haiti. Haiti’s environmental policies failed so horrendously in the past that the area is in a visible state of disarray. With only 1% of the country still forested, not only is the visual draw of the country lessened, but the prospect of wood trading that the forests once offered is almost obsolete. This greatly effects the outside world’s image of Haiti which, given the financial gain tourism
Despite all the criticism, of racism and other questionable material for young readers, Mark Twain’s The Adventure of Huckleberry Finn is a superbly written novel, which in the opinion of this reviewer should not be remove the literary cannon. Twain’s novel is a coming of age story that teaches young people many valuable lessons and to some extend makes students reexamine their own lives and morals. The most common argument for its removal from the literary canon is that the novel is too racist; it offends black readers, perpetuates cheap slave-era stereotypes, and deserves no place on today’s bookshelves. However one must ask if Twain is encouraging traditional southern racism or is Twain disputing these idea.
The Caribbean is comprised of a group of island. Jamaica is one of the greatest Antilles. It has a tropical climate. Each country has its own culture, Jamaicans is not an exemption, and they have an assorted and distinctive one. “Their culture is a complex mixture of African, Arabic, European, East Indian, and Chinese roots combining together to create a rich, dynamic heritage” (Gall, 2009).
Set in St. Lucia, Walcott’s Omeros reveals an island possessing a rich past. St. Lucia, a former colony, has a history of ‘pagan’ religion and tradition, a different language, and an economic background based namely on fishing. Locals must try to reconcile their heritage prior to colonization, the influences of colonization, and how to create a new culture from the ashes of the others (Hogan 17).
The majority of the nearly 500,000 slaves on the island, at the end of the eighteenth century endured some of the worst slave conditions in the Caribbean. These people were seen as disposable economic inputs in a colony driven by greed. Thus, they receive...
Laurent Dubois and John D. Garrigus. "Slave Revolution in the Caribbean 1789-1804: A Brief History of Documents.” Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2006.
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One the most heartbreaking times that a mother can have, is when her little girl begins to rebel during the child's teenage years. Mothers often lament, "What have I done wrong?" Or, "doesn't she know that I'm telling her all of this for her own good; why does she have to get so angry with me?" In the post-colonial Caribbean, this problem is compounded by mothers that have been conditioned to raise their daughters to the standards of an outside oppressor. One might ask, "What are the struggles of a teenage girl when she knows she must break the bonds of sexual oppression?"
Slavery and plantation life in the British colonies were especially complex systems when compared to those in areas under Latin rule, and historically have played a large part in molding more modern lifestyles on the island. One can understand many modern social structures by looking into the history of Jamaica and how the large role of sugar and other plantations shaped the island into what it is today. By looking at the historic social structures on plantations in Jamaica one can begin to make sense of the rebellious nature and sense of identity that formed and led to the almost constant stream of rebellions and revolts that took place.
The way in which Benítez-Rojo and Mintz tackle the question of Caribbean identity in their articles, is a removed, objective ideal, in contrast to Michelle Cliff’s portrayal of Jamaican identity. Cliff’s portrayal touches the heart and soul of Caribbean identity. While Mintz and Benítez-Rojo are investigating trends in the Caribbean as a whole, from an outside perspective, Cliff offers the personal, tactile imagery of what it is to live in the Caribbean, utilizing the objective account of history as a background. Furthermore, Cliff deals with Jamaica, one island in the Caribbean, while Mintz and Benítez-Rojo are dealing with the Caribbean on a grand scaled overview. The fact is neither article can be taken as complete truth. In fact, although Cliff uses history in her novel, I believe the account of history from someone who has completely accessed the interior of a place, is always going to be biased. Likewise, Mintz and Benítez-Rojo in making their hypotheses, are lacking an insider’s view. It is the difference between a Caribbean person and Caribbeanist, respectively. Therefore, while on a logical level, an analytical level, Benítez-Rojo and Mintz’s, conclusions as to Caribbean identity could rightly be accepted, these two authors do not possess the experience and intensity to make me as a reader, convinced of their conclusions.
Famed novelist Ernest Hemingway believed that “[a]ll modern American literature comes from one book by Mark Twain called Huckleberry Finn…the best book we’ve had.” The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a classic American tale with all the essentials of a story that feeds our imagination. On the surface, the novel appears to be a very unpretentious tale of adventure, and self-discovery that has earned a place on every high school required reading list. However, if the story is closely examined, it takes on darker undertones of a racist culture replete with derogatory language and glimpses into the ugliness and turmoil that followed in the years immediately after the Civil War, and that still exist today. Controversial and racist are two words commonly used to describe Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. It is considered to be the quintessential American novel, yet it remains in the middle of a debate over whether or not it should be taught in schools.