Race, Gender And Jamaica: A Critical Analysis Of The Book Of Night Women

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to analyze the role played by race and gender in Jamaica in Marlon James’ novel, The Book of Night Women. Specifically, the research article argues that race and gender are underlying causes of the violence experienced by James's female character Lilith. This article reveals a startling connection between one's gender and race and the susceptibility to violence. Through the novels of Marlon James, the purpose of this paper is to provide a perspective on the world during the postcolonial era. James awakens us from our complacency and shocks us into the realisation of numerous possibilities in his novels through his deliberate exploitation of the impact of racism on the psyche of the Jamaicans. To avoid stereotyping his works, he is aware of a variety of approaches to depicting racial issues, but more significantly, he understands how race and gender issues are intertwined. Marlon James' novels reflect his desire to draw on the people, places, languages, race, slavery, cultural traditions, and politics that have shaped his own life and that of Jamaican people. In Jamaica, racial discrimination is very common and hurts very much. During the slavery era in Jamaica, white people had black people as slaves in their households. Jamaican people have to satisfy their white masters, if the white master were not satisfied, they would try to hurt the Jamaican people. This research paper entitled "Race and Jamaica: A Critical Analysis of the Book of Night Women” focus on how race played a pivotal role in Jamaica and how Jamaicans suffered for their survival in a Jamaican sugar plantation. It also reveals how Marlon James' The Book of Night Women illuminates Jamaican experiences during the slavery era in Jamaica from various perspectives. It also shows how Jamaican Women have been exploited in a white-dominated male chauvinistic society.