NAME: FERNANDO MATROO Page 1

Foun1101 CARIBBEAN CIVILISATION

Student Name: FERNANDO MATROO

ID Number:

810006477

Faculty:

SCIENCE AND AGRICULTURE

Degree Prog.:

BACHELOR OF SCIENCE BSC

Date:

11TH NOVEMBER, 2011

Title of Book Reviewed

FOR THE LIFE OF LAETITIA

I certify that this is my own work and by attaching this cover sheet certify further that there are no instances of plagiarism contained herein. I submit to any penalty that the Faculty deems appropriate for any instance of plagiarism discovered in this work howsoever caused

Signed:

NAME: FERNANDO MATROO Page 2 THE UNIVERSITY OF THE WEST INDIES

Undergraduate Coursework Accountability Statement (To be completed by student)

ACADEMIC YEAR: ____2010-2011______ SEMESTER: ______I COURSE CODE: ___FOUN 1101________ TITLE: ___Caribbean Civilisation_____________ NAME: FERNANDO MATOO ID: 810006477

1. I hereby certify that I am the author of the attached item of coursework and that all materials from reference sources have been properly acknowledged. 2. I understand what plagiarism is and what penalties may be imposed on students found guilty of plagiarism. 3. I certify that this paper contains no plagiarised material.

4. I certify that this is my own work and that I did not receive any unfair assistance from others (including unauthorized collaboration) in its preparation. 5. I certify that this paper has not previously been submitted either in its entirety or in part within the UWI system or to any other educational institution. 6. a. In the case of group work: I certify that the individual work of each member of the group has been clearly indicated;

b. that where no such indication has been given, I take the responsibility for the work as if it were the section of the paper for which I am solely responsible; and c. that I have not collaborated with any members of the group to breach the Universitys regulations.

Signature: .

Date: 11TH NOVEMBER, 2011

NAME: FERNANDO MATROO Page 3 NAME OF BOOK: FOR THE LIFE OF LAETITIA WRITTEN BY: MERLE HODGE ISBN #: 0374-42444-6 PUBLISHED BY: FARRAR STRAUS GIROUX, AERIAL EDITION BOOK COVER: SOFT PRICE OF BOOK: $105.00 TTD NO. OF PAGES: 214

The book life of laetitia surrounds laetitia, a young female (girl) that has just passed her common entrance exams and is about to enter secondary school. It (the book) takes you through her first two terms at the La Puerta Secondary school and it also represented that of a diary narrative. This was because as the reader we saw through the eyes of laetitia. The main location of the book surrounded that of Sooklal Trace and La Puerta. The locations were within one island which was Trinidad. The two locations was from one extreme to another that is, one location was a rural setting which was Sooklal Trace and the other was an Urban setting which was La Puerta having malls, schools, groceries etc. The book also gave in detail all the issues that plagued the society within the post colonial/post emancipation era (18th-20th century) which was the time frame that the story took place in. Around the post colonial era, patois was widely used in the society as a form of secluded talking. This was one of the factors that led me to believe that of the time period the

NAME: FERNANDO MATROO Page 4 story took place in. The main and supporting characters included that of laetitia herself, Mr. Cephas, Mrs. Wilhemina John, Anjanee, Mrs. Lopez, Mr. Tewarie, Miss Hafiz, and Ma Zelline. Anjanee contributed to the story in many ways. She was the best friend to Laetitia and also she impacted on laetitia life in a very important way due to her (Anjanee) home life. There was also the grandmother, Mrs. Wilhemina John Ma who taught her social skills of the society, how to behave etc. There was her biological father, Mr. Cephas, who tied to dominate her life to teach her a womans role in society. There was also was also Mrs. Lopez who represented the ideologies of the time of what a happy family should be. There was also Mr. Tewarie, who seemed to have racist tendencies and the distinguished educator Mrs. Hafiz whole role was to educate the class as well as the reader on the racist subject matter. There was also Ma Zelline as the patriot who went against the norms and values of the time there for was the lady that no one liked, the macomere as she was called by her good friend and also this reflected the type of language that was used at that time. The main aim of the writer was to introduce the world to the many issues that plagued the society within the era being post colonial. These were mainly Racism, Gender Construction & Family Relationship and Poverty and Education. The general themes/ issues were very much convincing in the way that they were well described within the context of the book. The issue of racism was seen throughout the book but mainly on pages 81 and 82 of the book which referred to the song.(1) The song stigmatized a coolie(2) to being synonymous to roti and a Nigger(3) as being a trouble maker/menace to society and as such only those should go to jail. Also the issue of racism was dealt with the book by showing bias judgment of a teacher Mr. Tewarie on pages 93-96 of the book that went on to educate the class at that time as well as the reader on the issue of racist behavior.

NAME: FERNANDO MATROO Page 5 The issue of Gender Construction and Family Relationship was very well presented throughout the book. This was seen with Anjanee being a young girl who had to do domestic work from the tender age of eight (8) years old, as her father and her brothers insisted that this was womens work in society. They didnt see the point in sending her to school if that was her role/ purpose in life. This was also conveyed in the mentality of Mrs. Velma, Laetitia stepmother, on page 86 You mustnt go against them, you know. And Jump high or jump low you have to please them. That is a womans lot.(4) (HODGE 86).This clearly indicated that the society back then was mainly patriarchal as the male was the dominating figure in society. This was also supported by Sineal Caslin by stating in his writing Both women and natives are minority groups who are unfairly defined by the intrusive male gaze, which is a characteristic of both patriarchy and colonization.(6) Within the family therefore there was a tendency to define a womans role as a domestic slave.(7) and the role of the man was much of a dominating/domineering male that was similar to the master at the plantation society. The issue of Poverty and Education was also one of great importance throughout the book. It cultivated a scene of what poor young children had to endure when they had to go to a secondary school. For example Anjanee father and brothers had the money to send her to school but refused to do so just because she was a woman, therefore she had to earn her keep to come to school on her own accord, as seen in a discourse on pg 57 of the book. (8) (HODGE 57).Also laetitia herself as she had to endure moving out of her comfort zone in her own home town to her fathers home in La Puerta and had to face his domineering behavior as a Hegemonic male in society in order to receive a proper education as she came from a poor background. This poverty took a toll on young Anjanee in the end who thought that there was nothing to live for if she had to become a domestic slave for the rest of her life like her mother expressed on page 64 Im not going to end up like my mother, I rather dead. (9) (HODGE 64).She did indeed drink poison. This was because of her poverty state at home that she could not attend classes at school

NAME: FERNANDO MATROO Page 6 and this affected her greatly at exam time, therefore she thought that because she would not make it in life she would rather die than become like her mother. The main themes/issues of the book were in direct lineage of Caribbean Civilization. The issues dealt with the Caribbean identity. It dealt with the norms and values of a Caribbean society as well as the Gender ideologies that date back to the colonial days. For example that of a broken home where the mother and father are separated bred a rebellious child one that was called a bastard and he/she was stigmatized as an individual who will turn out to be a menace to society. It targeted issues of culture as Christmas was the only time of the year the house was thoroughly cleaned and painted, it also dealt with the festival habits of Carnival. The book also dealt with the norms and values to society as domesticated slaves. It also showed the patriot Ma Zelline who deviated from the norms and values of society and was considered a failure. The book also targeted that of the value of truth telling in the past. They acknowledged that one should always tell the truth rather than lie or you would be punished. Te book also targeted issues of gender a lot as with the female gender construction and what their role in society should be. It clearly defined the ideological norm of the society in the past as being strictly patriarchal. The book overall gave me a lot more knowledge into how it painted a picture within my mind through laetitia eyes of what a young woman or women on the whole faces in society that was then and still is now. The book ad many gaps that needed filling that I was unclear about. For example pg 200 Anjanee drink poison! (10) (HODGE 200).The book did not truly say if she died, but we are left to speculate through laetitia conclusion of the matter. The story however ended rather abrupt and

NAME: FERNANDO MATROO Page 7 seeing that laetitia was now going to lead a life like Anjanee , would she follow in her best friends footsteps? In my opinion the book was overall a great book. It gave a true description of a patriarchal society and dealt with many issues that plague the society. The book was truly worth the money.

NAME: FERNANDO MATROO Page 8 1- Coolie, Coolie Come for roti All the roti done. Nigger is a nation Damn botheration Gi them a kick And send them in the station. 2- A Coolie was referred to as a person of East Indian descent. This was a misconception of what the word meant as the true meaning of the word means a person who carries load. 3- A Nigger was referred to as a person of African descent. 4- Hodge, Merle. FOR THE LIFE OF LAETITIA. New York: Farrar Straus Giroux, 1993. 5- Caslin, Sinead. "Feminism and post-colonialism." The Imperial Archive Key Concepts in Postcolonial Studies. 09 Nov. 2011. <http://http://www.qub.ac.uk/imperial/key-

concepts/feminism-and-postcolonialism.htm>. 6- The term double colonization is a theory that deals with women as a society being first colonized by the Europeans and secondly by males in society 7- The term domestic slave shows the relationship of the woman in the plantation society in comparison to the post colonial era, the same is happening which is abusive behavior and you work all day with no pay. 8- Hodge, Merle. FOR THE LIFE OF LAETITIA. New York: Farrar Straus Giroux, 1993.

NAME: FERNANDO MATROO Page 9 9- Hodge, Merle. FOR THE LIFE OF LAETITIA. New York: Farrar Straus Giroux, 1993. 10- Hodge, Merle. FOR THE LIFE OF LAETITIA. New York: Farrar Straus Giroux, 1993.

NAME: FERNANDO MATROO Page 10

BIBLIOGRAPY

Caslin, Sinead. "Feminism and post-colonialism." The Imperial Archive Key Concepts in Postcolonial Studies. 09 Nov. 2011. <http://http://www.qub.ac.uk/imperial/key-

concepts/feminism-and-postcolonialism.htm>. Gershator, Phillis. The Caribbean Writer. 09 Nov. 2011. <http://www.thecaribbeanwriter.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=6 84&catid=14:volume11&Itemid=2ion=index>. Hodge, Merle. FOR THE LIFE OF LAETITIA. New York: Farrar Straus Giroux, 1993. Southard, John. "The impact of colonial education." Colonial Education. 09 Nov. 2011. Emory. <http://www.english.emory.edu/Bahri/Education.html>.

NAME: FERNANDO MATROO Page 11

The University of the West Indies

Book Report Assessment Sheet

Semester I: 2011 -2012 MARKS

STRUCTURE: Organisation, Introduction, Conclusion. (3 marks) CONTENT: Topic covered in depth, original and creative thought. Uses good relevant evidence, focus and interpretation. (8 marks) STYLE: Fluent, succinct writing, good grammar/ register/expression. (3 marks) MECHANICS: Report layout, footnoting and references. (4 marks) RELEVANCE: Did student relate their argument to information gained from the course? (2 marks) Examiner _________________ PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS IS NOT AN OFFICIAL GRADE SLIP.

TOTAL: __________________