The "In-Between": caribbean and the white creole in Jean Rys's wide sargasso sea and Phyllis Allfrey's the orchid house

Abstract

The question of identity has long been an impending issue in the branch of Caribbean post-colonial discourses, and many attempts have been taken in defining and theorizing the identity of peoples occupying the Caribbean space. The question is made further tricky by the racial discrepancies of the region. A violent colonial history of plantation slavery plays a significant role in determining the segregation of races based on color, language, and culture. The complexities embedded in this multi-racial society render psychological dilemma for the hybridized creoles who are caught between the racial and historical prejudices. This dissertation attempts to examine the place of the minority white creole in a black/colored dominated community, as depicted in the works Jean Rhys and Phyllis Shand Allfrey. Being white creole West-Indian authors and witnesses to the transitioning societies of the Caribbean, the literary narratives they produce efficiently aid in shaping the white creole's articulation of self identification, and in securing a space in the post-colonial negations of imperial constructs.