Giselle Mills novel “Through It All’, looks at the complex life of a teenage Caribbean girl and her journey through the turbulent and strained years of teenage life. It follows the life of Andreide, a sixteen year old as the deals with life experiences throughout the novel through her different relationships with her family, friends and love interests. While the book is mainly based on the life of Android, the supportive characters such as her mother Rose Marie, father Charles, Love interest Dominick and her friends Alisa, Harietta and Keisha, also played a significant role in the overall effectiveness of the novel. Although the novel is fictionally based, it represents aspects of Caribbean Society as it explores a plethora of themes that everyday
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Racism refers to any prejudice or discrimination someone faces solely because of their skin colour, physical features and areas of origin. It is the belief that one’s race is more superior than any other. Reddock stated that racism in the Caribbean has been shaped by radicalized constructs since the beginning of its modern history(3). Reddock also stated that racism in the Caribbean can be recorded or dated subsequent to the interaction and concurrence of Europe, Africa and the New World (3). One technique used by the writer to demonstrate this dynamic theme is through the use characterization. The text consisted of different races of people, with the Andreide, her friends and family being of African descent, Dominick of a European descent with African roots seen in Andreide’s description of him as “ His skin was not as pale as his fathers- it had more of a creamy hue” and her reference to him as “mixed,” and also the boys who attended Duncan Academy who were described as being white with “golden blonde hair and piercing blue eyes.” Racism was prominently seen through Keisha’s characterization especially as she verbally expressed her dislike for white people stating “he’s white and that’s all I need to know,” while referring to Mr. Michaels as a “snooty-looking white man.” Keisha also eluded to the idea of whites being superior to blacks with reference to past events in the line “stop letting them white boys rule you- slavery done.” Harietta’s views on Andreide’s relationship with Dominick as “ struck gold” exclaiming “You got a rich white boy into you,” which delves into the stereotypical aspect of racism. Mill’s highlight of racism therefore agrees with the research and statements made by Reddock and the definition of racism. This therefore perpetuates a view of whites being superior to blacks and is an example of ethnocentricity in the Caribbean. It
Racism refers to any prejudice or discrimination someone faces solely because of their skin colour, physical features and areas of origin. It is the belief that one’s race is more superior than any other. Reddock stated that racism in the Caribbean has been shaped by radicalized constructs since the beginning of its modern history(3). Reddock also stated that racism in the Caribbean can be recorded or dated subsequent to the interaction and concurrence of Europe, Africa and the New World (3). One technique used by the writer to demonstrate this dynamic theme is through the use characterization. The text consisted of different races of people, with the Andreide, her friends and family being of African descent, Dominick of a European descent with African roots seen in Andreide’s description of him as “ His skin was not as pale as his fathers- it had more of a creamy hue” and her reference to him as “mixed,” and also the boys who attended Duncan Academy who were described as being white with “golden blonde hair and piercing blue eyes.” Racism was prominently seen through Keisha’s characterization especially as she verbally expressed her dislike for white people stating “he’s white and that’s all I need to know,” while referring to Mr. Michaels as a “snooty-looking white man.” Keisha also eluded to the idea of whites being superior to blacks with reference to past events in the line “stop letting them white boys rule you- slavery done.” Harietta’s views on Andreide’s relationship with Dominick as “ struck gold” exclaiming “You got a rich white boy into you,” which delves into the stereotypical aspect of racism. Mill’s highlight of racism therefore agrees with the research and statements made by Reddock and the definition of racism. This therefore perpetuates a view of whites being superior to blacks and is an example of ethnocentricity in the Caribbean. It