Explorations into the `feminism' of Jan Carew.(Critical Essay)

Images play a crucial role in defining and controlling the political and social power to which both individuals and marginalized groups have access. The deeply ideological nature of imagery determines not only how other people think about us but how we think about ourselves.

-- Pratibha Parmar (1)

All peoples have the right to share the waters of the River of Life and to drink from their own cups but our cups have been broken.

-- an anonymous Afro-Carib woman (2)

Our problem today, as we contemplate the challenge of culture and development, is, first of all, a conceptual one. We are the victims of a fragmented vision.

-- Jan Carew (3)

Jan Carew, artist, writer, political activist, historian, academic, and storyteller, has never been shy about blending art and politics. For him, art that avoids the political is hollow -- form without substance. Art cannot be separate from life, and life itself is political. As he puts it, `I don't make any differences between literature and politics. I think that is an absolute fantasy ... my own thing is to write with clarity to illuminate the struggle.' (4)

A central feature of Carew's desire to `illuminate the struggle' has been to give voice to the most marginalised in society and to use whatever device available -- whether it be the essay, the novel, the children's story, the historical text or the podium -- as a tool for accomplishing this goal. A particular strength comes from his sense of personal history, the familial line from which he draws inspiration and role models:

 
   My great-gran Belle used to tell me that there are ghosts in our blood, and 
   that we're lucky because the lowliest, the ones who suffer the most in the 
   world of the living, are always top dogs in the spirit world ... African 
   and Amerindian spirits rule that spirit world. And those ancestral spirits 
   whisper warnings whenever we're about to do something reckless or 
   foolhardy. (5) 

For him, these ancestral spirits are the fount from which he draws strength and purpose. They provide both comfort and security; but, in return, he must respond and let them `speak' through his works. That women, as some of the most marginalised, are of central concern is not inconceivable. Ever mindful of the key role women played in his life, Carew seeks to give voice to those historically silenced by patriarchal tradition.

In the early 1980s, Jan Carew received a letter, inviting him to participate in an international women's conference to be held in Scandinavia. This major gathering was to bring together women from across the globe, intellectuals and practitioners alike, to debate strategies for addressing the many concerns of women in the final quarter of the twentieth century. When Carew wrote to them, stating that he was, in fact, a man, not a woman -- but still welcomed the invitation -- it was withdrawn. Regrettably, at the time, women still tended to be self-segregating and avoided having any male presence at their gatherings, for fear that this might influence their deliberations. Perhaps now, as women have come to understand the value of strategic alliances in which men, formerly perceived as adversaries, can become allies, they might have appreciated Carew's contributions. Nonetheless, the fact that they invited Jan Carew stemmed, no doubt, from having read his work. They appreciated the fact that Carew offers women not as `backdrop' to the scenes of human life, but as integral players. It is this feature -- what I term the `feminism' of Jan Carew -- that sets his work apart from others of his generation of Caribbean writers.

Parameters of analysis

Jan Carew's feminism is defined not only by its sensitivity to the role of women in society, but also by a special effort to counter the prevailing perception that the contributions of women fall within a narrow range and are limited. This is particularly troublesome when considering the roles played by women in developing and less industrialised sectors. I offer two brief examples as a means of defining the parameters by which to look at Jan Carew's work.

In 1980, I was invited to conduct research in Geneva, under the auspices of the Institute for International Labour Studies (IILS), on the role of women and agricultural technology in the Third World. Some of my findings were then presented as part of an article I did for the IILS's journal Travail et Societe, entitled, `A note on women and …