Barbados - in the Castle of My Skin

Barbados

"In the Castle of My Skin"

Societal and Cultural Effects of Barbados Postcolonialism in general, has proven to have such long-term effects on a colonized country, forever altering its culture and way of life. Customs, language and tradition are significantly influenced, often molding the people of one country to assume the customs and habits of those of a more powerful state. George Lamming is very privy to this fact and began observing how the cultures of the West became so quickly absorbed into his home nation-island of Barbados. In his novel, In the Castle of My Skin, he takes note of how British occupation affected the African slaves and their descendents, changing their culture and personal views of themselves. Barbados was discovered and colonized by the English in the early 1600s. Large tracts of land were set aside to farm valuable crops such as cotton, tobacco and especially sugar. Slaves were then captured from areas all over Africa to provide the cheap labor necessary for agricultural production. Slavery continued in the area until it was officially abolished in 1834. For four years after that, newly-freed slaves continued to work a 45-hour week without payment, in exchange for living in the small huts provided by the plantation owners (Barbados Culture). In this postcolonial text, George Lamming provides an in-depth analysis of how these ex-slaves were affected. In the Castle of My Skin examines the effects of Postcolonialism on a macrocosmic level, through the eyes of the main character, G. Through the observations of G. and certain events that he is witness to, we are able to see how the villagers were ultimately affected. Throughout the novel, Lamming focuses heavily on the relationships within the society of Barbados, rather than centering on the lives of the characters themselves. There is a period of about one hundred pages in which this boy character disappears altogether. He is more of a background prop to societal events and is not expressly involved with what is going on. Critic Neil ten Kortenaar also notes the boys frequent absence throughout the story: "It is as though the G of the boy's name stood for Ghost: he hovers around the scenes he describes, not taking part and even going unseen" (Kortenaar 3). It seems that Lamming was more concerned with how the society as a whole was influenced, and merely used characters as a device to convey the larger effects upon the communal society. In carefully detailing the antagonistic relationship between the occupiers and these ex-slaves and also the relationship among the villagers, George Lamming attributes an inferiority complex and cultural alienation within Barbados as the effects of the British occupation. Lamming characterizes a community that develops feelings of inferiority to its white occupiers, as a result of being oppressed and exploited by a more powerful nation. Early on, we notice that there is a definite distinction between the Africans of the island and the British occupiers. The whites essentially enjoy a much easier existence, while the ex-slaves must constantly battle for a future and a life. It is almost as if the two cultures are existing on two separate planes of reality; unaware and completely ignorant to the lifestyle and culture of the other. This difference is equally noted by critic Richard Wright: And it is up the shaky ladder of all the intervening stages between these two cultures that Negro life must climb. Such a story is, above all, a record of shifting, troubled feelings groping their way toward a future that frightens as much as it beckons (Wright 1226). This cultural block exists because the natives bear a much darker appearance than the Brits and easily notice that all the power and authority rests in the hands of those with a much lighter complexion. These ex-slaves began to feel as though they are lesser beings, unworthy of the glory and luxurious pleasures enjoyed by the whites. The custom of the British is exalted and considered the supreme law of the land, as with the case of Mr. Creighton. He is a white man and the plantation owner of a small rural village in Barbados. His position as landlord entitles him to a feudal-relationship with his people, where they are ultimately providing for his perks and pleasures. He is highly envied by all peasants and indeed, even the positioning of his house is a symbol of his great power and prestige, something supposedly unattainable by the villagers. G. notices this clear difference early on, as he examines the grandeur of Mr. Creighton's abode: To the east where the land rose gently to a lull, there was a large brick building surrounded by a wood and a high stone wall that bore bits of bottle along the top. The landlords lived there amidst the trees within the wall (Lamming 17-18). The home of the landowner is described in all of its splendor--indeed, not as a house, but as a building. The homesteads of the poverty-stricken peasants are incomparable in size or beauty to his mansion. They reside in hut-like structures, barely worthy of being labeled a house. "The village was a marvel of small, heaped houses raised jauntily of groundsels of limestone, and arranged in rows on either side of the multiplying marl roads" (Lamming 2). As opposed to Mr. Creighton's house, which is hoisted upon a hill high above any other house, implying superiority and power for those dwelling inside. The peasants can only look upon it with awe and a wishful eye. This description of the house as being separated from the peasants depicts the barrier that exists between the landlord and the people. He is isolated from their cares and concerns; ignorant to their pain and suffering. This causes the villagers to immediately presume that their poor, run-down homesteads are representative of their cultural inferiority. They assume that they must imitate the ways of the white British, in the hopes of ever enjoying a similar status. The name of the island itself even suffers a change at the hand of British occupiers. Barbados is often referred to as "Little England." There are inspectors, or white British men, that frequent school buildings and other areas to see that British values are being instilled in the young children. Red, white and blue flags are flown and national songs and anthems sung, highlighting upon Britain's greatness and strength. This day is referred to as Empire Day, and solely reserved for the total appreciation and admiration of British culture. On one such day, the inspector visits G.'s school and addresses the