A Small Place.A Small Place by Jamaica Kincaid Ferrar Straus and Giroux, April 2000 $10.00, ISBN ISBN abbr. International Standard Book Number ISBN International Standard Book Number ISBN n abbr (= International Standard Book Number) → ISBN m 0-374-52707-5 There are places worth revisiting not to relive joyful memories, but to allow for the catharsis catharsis Purging or purification of emotions through art. The term is derived from the Greek katharsis (“purgation,” “cleansing”), a medical term used by Aristotle as a metaphor to describe the effects of dramatic tragedy on the spectator: by that comes from exposing festering fes·ter v. fes·tered, fes·ter·ing, fes·ters v.intr. 1. To generate pus; suppurate. 2. To form an ulcer. 3. To undergo decay; rot. 4. a. wounds so that cleansing, and perhaps healing, can begin. This is the kind of journey Jamaica Kincaid allows us to witness. In this essay, orginally published in 1988 and recently released in paperback, she takes us behind idyllic countrysides and sun-kissed beaches to examine the underbelly of life in Antigua, the tiny island in the West Indies where she grew up. It is a place she lovingly describes as "too beautiful. But Antigua also elicits bitter memories for our tour guide, who makes it clear she has an ax to grind in this short but powerful billyclub of a book. In masterfully lucid language her anger is laid bare. What makes A Small Place bigger than just a delicious rant by a skilled wordsmith word·smith n. 1. A fluent and prolific writer, especially one who writes professionally. 2. An expert on words. Noun 1. is that Antigua is a microcosm. Those of Carribean descent from the many islands and landlocked landlocked adj. referring to a parcel of real property which has no access or egress (entry or exit) to a public street and cannot be reached except by crossing another's property. places where corrupt politicians and greedy businessmen flout flout v. flout·ed, flout·ing, flouts v.tr. To show contempt for; scorn: flout a law; behavior that flouted convention. See Usage Note at flaunt. v.intr. natural and civil laws to amass power and fortune, will be touched by Kincaid's rendering because it is all too familiar. Long time fans will recognize the Kincaid touch as she weaves words the way a sorcerer weaves spells, imbuing ordinary language with extraordinarily textured and multilayered meaning. As with her works of fiction, she will draw you into her world, and you will emerge not quite the same way you went in. Milca Esdaille is a Caribbean-born freelance writer living in New York and working to complete her first novel. |
|
||||||||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion