Every year thousands of tourists visit the islands of Antigua, they come from all over the world to drain their sorrows of reality by ridding their pockets of the cash they strive to work so hard for. Although Antigua seems to be filled with relaxation, sunshine and rainbows, and devoid of anything that could ruin somebody’s week, unfortunately, Antigua is quite the opposite of that of what we imagine. Author Jamaica Kincaid argues this false reality tourists imagine about the island, by addressing many issues she witnessed while growing up in Antigua. Kincaid argues that the typical tourist can be described as a white person, who has a dislike for “black people”, in the book she discusses a club called the Mill Reef Club, which was made by …show more content…
Sometimes the beauty of it seems unreal…” She then goes on to describe its beauty like the clouds couldn’t be any whiter, or how the darkness fades, and the gorgeous sunshine surrounds them all the time. This explanation is capped off by her statement, “And what might it do to the ordinary people who live in this way…what might it do to them to live such heightened, intense surroundings day after day?” I agree with her explanation about Antigua being too beautiful, and how the people who live there, nothing can compare to it, even when they are treated poorly for so …show more content…
But she also talks about the beauty of Antigua as well, and I believe she makes valid points when she argues that Caribbean people are still different from Western Individualism, and they’re culture. After reading Jamaica Kincaid’s A Small Place, I agree with her arguments about why Antigua is different now, then what it used to be when she was growing up, as well as historically. Also, how it’s just a tourist destination, filled with corruption and a poor economy. Despite all the unfortunate history, Antigua’s has incredibly spirted people, and the book gives off a powerful impression, and is a great
Kincaid begins by pointing out to “you,” a tourist what is missing from Antigua in order to first make clear the reality that knowledge is not existent, valued, or accessible in Antigua. She illustrates “your” arrival, when she notes, “You are a tourist and you have not yet seen a school in Antigua, you have not yet seen the hospital in Antigua, you have not yet seen a public monument in Antigua.” But she abruptly interrupts this thought and continues in sarcastic and marked nonchalance, “what a beautiful island Antigua is—more beautiful than any of the other islands you have seen.” (3) Here, Kincaid demonstrates that knowledge is severely lacking or nonexistent in the land of Antigua by providing examples of physical manifestations of a well educated society that are not present. Knowledge is attained by learning information, data, and facts made available to children through education in schools. Knowledgeable people—educated children who grow up to be educated adults who have completed to several ambitious years of extra...
Her evidence and use of pictures brought a sense of an image to this story’s timeline that she created for the reader. She successfully went through the Twentieth Century in complete order, and it gave a sense of organization to Schwartz’s writing, which ultimately led to an easier read for the audience. She makes her case by using factual information, primary sources, secondary sources, and images as sources to show the impact of tourism. She defines tourism in Cuba as an idiosyncratic industry that left influences throughout the history of this country. She in addition makes her case by describing the social change of tourist and the idea of tourism throughout the important decades for the
Hi there! I’m Kaydence, and I will be teaching you about... Jamaica! My topic is the Caribbean Islands, and my island is Jamaica. The main idea I will be sharing with you to start will be Jamaica’s People and Language.
With a focus on articles written by Michele Cliff, Antonio Benitez-Rojo, and Sidney Mintz. Michelle Cliff, "If I Could Write This on Fire, I Would Write This on Fire," and Abeng Antonio Benitz-Rojo, "From plantation to Plantation"; Sidney Mintz, "The Caribbean: A Sociocultural Area";
In part fictional and part autobiographical novel “A Small Place” published in 1988, Jamaica Kincaid offers a commentary on how the tenets of white superiority and ignorance seem to emerge naturally from white tourists. She establishes this by using the nameless “you” depicted in the story to elucidate the thoughts they have when visiting such formerly colonized islands. This inner mentality of the white tourists reveals how tourism is still a form of oppression for the natives of such formerly colonized tourists as it continues to exploit them. I will be focusing primarily on page 10 of the text to illustrate this.
Dean MacCannell explores the concept of “authenticity,” a quality of genuineness that many people spend time searching for. Throughout the chapter “Staged Authenticity” of The Tourist, there are points that explore this common desire for wholesome experience in new places. In the societal structure of today, however, it is becoming more and more difficult to find authenticity, as we get further and further “mystified” looking for a true and sincere reality. MacCannell makes statements regarding how difficult it is to find realness in the modern world, but never makes a claim that clearly defines authenticity. Instead, MacCannell’s use of paradoxical phrases, visual examples that are relevant to readers, and self-contradiction around the ideas of mystification and reality strengthen his point that there is no concrete definition of authenticity.
Jamaica is full of diversity. From religion, to ancestry, and even geography, Jamaica is always evolving. From the towering mountains all the way to the warm and sandy beaches, Jamaica is a sight to see. However, Jamaica was not always a happy and carefree place. The Jamaican people have suffered from war, disease, and slavery. Jamaica is a small and beautiful country that thrives with culture and should be studied by everyone around the world.
A Small Place by Jamaica Kincaid presents the hypothetical story of a tourist visiting Antigua, the author’s hometown. Kincaid places the reader in the shoes of the tourist, and tells the tourist what he/she would see through his/her travels on the island. She paints a picturesque scene of the tourist’s view of Antigua, but stains the image with details of issues that most tourists overlook: the bad roads, the origin of the so-called native food, the inefficiency of the plumbing systems in resorts, and the glitches in the health care system. Kincaid was an established writer for The New Yorker when she wrote this book, and it can be safely assumed that majority of her readers had, at some point in their lives, been tourists. I have been a tourist so many times before and yet, I had never stopped to consider what happens behind the surface of the countries I visit until I read this essay. Kincaid aims to provoke her readers; her style of writing supports her goal and sets both her and her essay apart. To the reader, it sounds like Kincaid is attacking the beautiful island, pin-pointing the very things that we, as tourists, wish to ignore. No tourist wants to think about faeces from the several tourists in the hotel swimming alongside them in the oceans, nor do they want to think about having accidents and having to deal with the hospital. It seems so natural that a tourist would not consider these, and that is exactly what Kincaid has a problem with.
During a recent visit to Jamaica, I observed a number of resorts that themed their golf courses and pools after the old sugar plantations of the island. As the sun-burnt American and British children splashed among the recreation of the 'old mill', local Jamaicans in floral uniforms served drinks to the adults lounging by the pool. The association between the plantation and the modern resort did not appear to disturb the tourists relaxing in the sun. And why should it? This is a different time. The Jamaicans, of whom 91% are descendents of plantation slaves, live and work freely on the Island. As I walked along the beaches which were quickly eroding due to the coastal development by such resorts, I watched the Jamaican employees sweep the seaweed into small piles and carry them off the beach in order to maintain the postcard view of the ocean that the tourists traveled there to see. It occurred to me that something more was at work there. The way in which indigenous cultures, peoples and their land have been commercialized and commodified for the enjoyment of pleasure seeking tourists must have roots somewhere. I began to wonder in what way the acceptance of past exploration and conquest by Europeans of land and people created a justification for today's exploitation of indigenous cultures and environments through tourism and other such devices as transnational corporations and trade.
[1] Accounts of the Caribbean islands from the misdirected crew of the Sea Venture – a colonial ship – who in a 1609 storm landed off the Bermudas and took shelter there for the winter.
However, as well written, successful, classic, and creative as Isabella Bird’s stories are, there are flaws in which she fails to acknowledge in her published works. She falls into the same trap that other travel writers fall into, her errors are just as common. She fabricates her experience to make it seem better than it was. She is also disadvantaged as a woman travel writer making it harder for people to take her work as seriously as a male travel writer’s. However, she is just as much at fault for errors in travel writing just as a male author. As accomplished as she was, she had her own flaws that affected her work as well as her credibility.
Smith, V., & Hughes, H. (1999). Disadvantaged families and the meaning of the holiday. International Journal of Tourism Research, 1(2), 123- 133.
12 Nov. 2013. Brooks, Sheer. “’A Squatter in My Own Country!’ Spatial Manifestations of Social Exclusion in a Jamaican Tourist Resort Town.” New Perspectives in Caribbean. Tourism.
Jamaica is the third largest Caribbean Island, measuring 146 miles at its widest point. The warm weather, high mountains and broad plains provide Jamaica with diversity in climate and agriculture. The population of Jamaica is estimated to be around two million people, with nearly a half-million living in Kingston, the capital and largest city in Jamaica. Of those residing in Jamaica, 90% are of African descent, with the other ten percent made up of mostly Caucasians, East Indians and Chinese (Barrett 1997:3). Popular culture is heavily influenced by the African heritage, while formal behavior is unmistakably British in style. The unofficial language of Jamaica is English; however th...
history: The history of Jamaica is a rich and vibrant that inspire them to move forward as a nation.