Caribbean Transformations

Mintz (anthropology emeritus, Johns Hopkins U.) describes the shifts in perception and the rich interplay of Caribbean cultures and situations that grow into new cultures, in part from his extensive study in Puerto Rico, Jamaica and Haiti. He begins with the introduction of the plantation system in the Caribbean, including the social and political implications of slavery and forced labor, using a site at Puerto Rica as a case study. He shows how those who escaped slavery developed a peasantry consisting of small land holdings and villages that sustained themselves while also trading on the world market, particularly in the case of Jamaica. He also examines national identity and the concept of nationhood from a Haitian perspective. Particularly interesting is Mintz's observations about the development of houses and yards as cultural spaces among Caribbean peasantry. Annotation 穢2008 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)