The Modern Caribbean is a collection of original, analytical, interdisciplinary essays suitable for both the general public and college- level courses. Written by twelve of the foremost Caribbean scholars representing five academic disciplines, this book covers a number of issues relevant to an understanding of the Caribbean islands and the mainland enclaves of Belize, Guyana, French Guiana, and Suriname during the past two hundred years.
Together the authors provide a broad, comprehensive analysis as they consider the comparisons and contrasts, the uniformities and contradictions, the convergences and divergencies that have plagued the difficult attempts at social construction, adaptation, and reconstruction in this exciting and important region of the tropical Atlantic World.
The essays cover the history, politics, economics, and culture of the region, and provide intellectually stimulating reading not only for regional specialists but also for the general public. The references and citations have been deliberately kept to a minimum, but the bibliography appended provides a guide for further reading as well as the source material for the individual chapters.
In the overview essay, Franklin Knight and Colin Palmer outline some of the salient features of the region, indicating characteristics that are common or peculiar to all or some territories. David Geggus describes the trajectory of the Haitian Revolution--the beginning of the period of state formation in the Caribbean--and its impact on Atlantic, American, and imperial history as well as its relationship to the demise of the system of slavery in the New World. Francisco Scarano explores the disintegration of the Caribbean slave systems and the rise of free peasantries during the nineteenth century, noting the problems of labor adjustment endured by the plantation structures as they tried to find a satisfactory substitute in contracted or indentured Africans, Asians, and East Indians. In her essay Bridget Brereton discusses the relationship between material culture, including forms of dance and popular entertainment, and the various segments of society in the British and French West Indies. She shows how race, color, and economic status continually affected community relations.