Read the following
This reading will help you understand both the history of the Caribbean region and also nature of history as a discourse. In other words, the telling of history, as the Mohammad states, is not merely about the past. It is about the present. You will also notice that Mohammad writes about myths, particularly myths about the indigenous people of the Caribbean and she assumes her readers would know these myths. This is because the text is written for Caribbean schools – you might be unaware of these myths, however, she presents enough detail that you should be able to get the gist.
Questions:
1. Identify FOUR times in the chapter when Mohammed explains how ethnocentrism impacted the telling of Caribbean history.
How would you relate this ethnocentrism to the lecture on culture, meaning making and power?
2. In your own words explain what Mohammed means when she says that slavery was “a total institution.”
3. According to Mohammed, why did the slave owners seek to forbid African cultural practices.
According to Mohammed, how successful were the Europeans in erasing African culture?
4. List the major groups who settled or were forced to settle in the Caribbean.
5. Using direct information from the chapter explain all of the reaons why we should think of the Caribbean as a multicultural society.
6. Compare and contrast indentureship and enslavement
