Mutual weariness between ethnic groups

Mutual weariness between ethnic groups

As Fola recollects, the Ceremony of Souls has its roots in West Africa, and was brought to San Cristobal by the slaves imported here in the 16^th century. The Ceremony represents a strong connection to the African roots of the Caribbean people, and offers escape from the all-consuming western world that is eating away from the African heritage in the Caribbean identity. As a white man, Charlot is regarded as an intruder to the ritual. It is because in the minds of Crim and Powell, the white man is always standing on the other side of the barricade, and because of that, Crim and Powell instantly jump to conclusion that Charlot is trespassing in a world that is theirs.

The distance that remains between the two ethnic groups is also discussed in In the Castle of My Skin, when Mr. Foster comments on the fact that the landlord lives in a big mansion on the hill above the village.

“He couldn’t feel as happy anywhere else in this God’s world than he feel on that said same hill lookin’ down at us.” (Lamming, In the Castle of My Skin, 97)

The landlord is a descendant of the plantation owners that have owned the land where the village is standing for years, and naturally, he inhabits the mansion that was built by his slave-owning ancestors. Although the landlord is not unkind to the villagers, he is still unable to shake the image of the slave master that is associated with the mansion he occupies, as well as his ancestry. This image is etched in the collective memory of the villagers, as the shoemaker remarks in his reply to Mr. Foster, saying that “a place gets in the blood.” (Lamming, In the Castle of My Skin, 97)

Another example of the gap that has remained between the worlds of the white and the non-whites on the island is shown in villager’s disregard for the law when it comes to the landlady.

“Many a day poverty, adventure or the threat of boredom would drive them into the woods where the landlady’s hens lay and the rabbits nibbled the green weed.” (Lamming, In the Castle of My Skin, 26)

The fact that the villagers would steal from the white lady simply because they were bored illustrates the distance between the two ethnic groups in the Caribbean. The villagers do not hesitate to steal from the landlady, because they do not consider her one of their people, they feel no loyalty towards her, only hostility that remained imprinted in their mind from a long history of oppression.

Although social stratification on the basis of color is not legally sanctioned anymore, it has left its mark on the mentality of the Caribbean people, and, the image of the enemy that the white man represents is still etched in the collective unconsciousness of the Caribbean society, as it is presented in In the Castle of My Skin. This attitude is shown in the scene of the school parade, when the boys are observing the white inspector and the black head teacher as they are having a conversation. First of all, the mere fact that the head teacher and the school inspector are talking to each other as equal to equal is surprising to the boys. However, the boys get the impression that while talking to each other and maintaining a friendly tone, both of them remain cautious of the other one. Their smiles are just a façade, a spectacle they put on for the sake of maintaining appearances, but the mutual distrust between them is obvious. (Lamming, In the Castle of My Skin, 39)

Lamming then uses an elaborate metaphor to describe the dubious relationship between the two men. He comments on the smoothness of the inspector’s face, and compares it to inflation of the skin that has been infected by parasitic chigoe fleas. The parasite digs in under the flesh in order to hatch, and when it succeeds, a capsule containing its future offspring is formed. If the parasite is left unattended, the capsule swells and the pus spills out. The skin on the top of the capsule is unnaturally smooth, and it is the same smoothness the boys see in the face of the school inspector.

“You couldn’t forget it when you saw the inspector smile. Smooth like the surface of pus. It gathered and secreted so much so quietly and so stealthily.” (Lamming, In the Castle of My Skin, 40)

The message the author is trying to convey is that the school inspector is not to be trusted, because even though he might act friendly in the outside, nobody really knows what his true intentions are. His “smoothness”, both in his appearance and his conduct, is an indicator that he is hiding something unpleasant underneath.

Lamming also compares the head teacher to a different kind of parasite, a leech. As the two men smile at each other, the way the head teaches thrives in the inspector’s favor is compare to the fattening of a leech that sucks blood out of its victim. (Lamming, In the Castle of My Skin, 40)

By means of a similar metaphor, the head teacher is criticized for his familiarity with the school inspector. In order to gain higher status in society, the head teacher is playing the game of appearances that is typical of the western culture, and by doing so, he has detached himself from the common people in the village.

The social stratification that still persists in the Caribbean society is characterized by yet another metaphor, in which G. likens the social dynamics of the ethnic groups on the island to behavior of birds. While he is observing the birds, it occurs to him that sparrows and blackbirds are seldom joined by the doves. (Lamming, In the Castle of My Skin, 111) Same as with people on the island, the doves, who represent the whites, are reluctant to join with the other birds, representing the common villagers. As a result of the unwillingness to associate with members of the other ethnic group, the distance that already exists between the two groups grows even larger.