Guyanese literature

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Guyanese literature covers works including novels, poetry, plays and others written by people born or strongly-affiliated with Guyana. Formerly British Guiana, British language and style has an enduring impact on the writings from Guyana, which are done in English language and utilizing Guyanese Creole. Emigration has contributed to a large body of work relating the Guyanese diaspora experience. [1]

Contents

History of Guyanese literature

European perspective

The first book written on Guyana, by Sir Walter Raleigh in the 16th century, was The Discoverie of the Large, Rich, and Beautiful Empyre of Guiana (With a Relation of the Great and Golden Citie of Manoa (Which the Spanyards call El Dorado) and of the Provinces of Emeria, Aromaia, Amapaia, and Other Countries, with Their Riulers, Adjoyning (Robert Robinson: London, 1596). Many travelogues have been published by explorers or missionaries from Europe. The sparsely populated, pristine hinterlands of Guyana continue to be a subject of interest for contemporary Guyanese literature - this setting can be traced to one of the nation's earliest novels, In Guiana Wilds: A Study Of Two Women (1899), by James Rodway. [1] [2]

Guyanese voice

Guyana's history has been substantially shaped by immigration, and writings often address the topics of slavery and indenture, as well as reflecting the culture of the various immigrant groups. One of the earliest and most notable Guyanese authors was Edgar Mittelholzer, author of Corentyne Thunder (1941). His works often deal with issues of interracial relations, particularly the strain between European and non-European Guyanese. Kyk-Over-Al literary journal, published in 1945 and edited by A. J. Seymour, collected poetry and other works from Guyana and the West Indies. [1] A major contributor, Martin Carter, is considered Guyana's greatest poet. [3] Mid 20th century, poetry served as a medium to express the Guyanese identity, in light of independence from British colonial rule and creating a style unique to the country. [4]

The political climate of the mid-20th century of anti-colonial and Proletariat attitudes fostered interest in socialism, and subsequently became a matter written about in the Guyanese context. Socialist literature was acquired and disseminated by the People's Progressive Party, leading to legislature to pass an Undesirable Publications Ordinance to ban such books. Political activists at the time, such as Eusi Kwayana, Cheddi and Janet Jagan, taught informal classes among estate laborers, expanding education and political ideology. [5]

Historian and intellectual Walter Rodney is most widely regarded for his book How Europe Underdeveloped Africa (1972). Travelling and teaching widely, he was a proponent of Pan-Africanism and a supporter of the downtrodden. Rodney returned to Guyana in 1974 and was active in the opposition movement, leading to his assassination in 1980. Walter was involved with the New World Group, which was a collection of Guyanese academics notable for producing the New World Quarterly, a journal published from 1963-1972. New World Quarterly was an outlet for academics within the Caribbean to examine development, socialism, and other regional issues, but also the "original publication of poems, reviews and commentaries". [6]

During his presidency, Forbes Burnham promoted literature and art in Guyana, initiating the 1972 Caribbean Festival of Arts which showcased the arts coming from the Caribbean. [7]

Michael Abbensetts was a noted playwright of works for the stage and television in the UK, whose work included the drama series — Empire Road , which BBC TV aired from 1978 to 1979. [8]

Amerindian influence and language

The Indigenous peoples in Guyana did not use written language at the advent of their interaction with the early European explorers, nonetheless, their oral traditions and culture have been documented to varying degrees since that time and continue to have a presence in contemporary Guyanese literature. Older accounts tend to betray the nature of the author's relation to the Amerindians, such as missionaries reframing indigenous spirituality to a Christian context or colonial authorities, however the accounts themselves are of great historical value. W.H. Brett and Walter Roth wrote significantly on their experiences with various Amerindian tribes in the late 1800s to early 1900s. [9]

Indigenous languages have been in decline in favor of English (as well as Guyanese Creole or Portuguese), [10] but revival efforts have included establishing a written standard as well as compiling dictionaries. The government, the bureau of Amerindian affairs, the University of Guyana, as well as various non-government organizations have been involved in language preservation. [11] Christian missionary work has led to bible translations in various Amerindian languages. [12]

Indian influence

The descendants of indentured Indians have also made important contributions to Guyanese literature. [13] Significant writers include Joseph Rahomon and Shana Yardan. [14]

Literature Awards

The Guyana Prizes for Literature were founded by President Desmond Hoyte in 1987, with a view to promoting the development of local literature. Prizes are awarded biennially in categories including best book of fiction, best first book of fiction, best book of poems, best first book of poems, and best play. The Guyana Prizes are managed by a committee consisting of a number of university personnel, and the chief librarian of the Guyana National Library.

The prize returned in 2023 after a seven-year hiatus. [15]

Winners have included, Wilson Harris, Fred D'Aguiar, David Dabydeen, Roy A.K. Heath, D. Gokarran Sukhdeo, Pauline Melville, Ian McDonald, Cyril Dabydeen and Ruel Johnson. [16]

Guyana Poetry Prize

Notable winners include Fred D'Aguiar, Grace Nichols, Ian McDonald.

Guyana Prize for Caribbean Literature

In 2010, the government of Guyana provided funds to the Management Committee of the Guyana Prize for the first Guyana Prize for Literature Caribbean Award, in the categories of fiction, poetry and drama, with published books by citizens of Caribbean countries (CARICOM States, the Commonwealth Caribbean, the Netherlands Antilles) being eligible. [17]

Other

The Wordsworth McAndrew Award, based in New York, awards literary and other achievements relating to Guyanese culture.

See also

Related Research Articles

Guyanese culture reflects the influence of African, Indian, Amerindian, British, Portuguese, Chinese, Creole, and Dutch cultures. Guyana is part of the mainland Caribbean region. Guyanese culture shares a continuum with the cultures of islands in the West Indies.

Martin Wylde Carter was a Guyanese poet and political activist. Widely regarded as the greatest Guyanese poet, and one of the most important poets of the Caribbean region, Carter is best known for his poems of protest, resistance and revolution. He played an active role in Guyanese politics, particularly in the years leading up Independence in 1966 and those immediately following. He was famously imprisoned by the British government in Guyana in October 1953 under allegations of "spreading dissension", and again in June 1954 for taking part in a People's Progressive Party (PPP) procession. Shortly after being released from prison the first time, he published his best-known poetry collection, Poems of Resistance from British Guiana (1954).

Roy Aubrey Kelvin Heath was a Guyanese writer who settled in the UK, where he lived for five decades, working as a schoolteacher as well as writing. His 1978 novel The Murderer won the Guardian Fiction Prize. He went on to become more noted for his "Georgetown Trilogy" of novels, consisting of From the Heat of the Day (1979), One Generation (1980), and Genetha (1981), which were also published in an omnibus volume as The Armstrong Trilogy, 1994. Heath said that his writing was "intended to be a dramatic chronicle of twentieth-century Guyana". His work has been described as "marked by comprehensive social observation, penetrating psychological analysis, and vigorous, picaresque action."

Arthur James Seymour, or A. J. Seymour, was a Guyanese poet, essayist, memoirist, and founding editor of the literary journal Kyk-Over-Al.

Kyk-Over-Al is a literary magazine published in Guyana, and is one of the three pioneering literary magazines founded in the 1940s that helped define postwar West Indian literature. Kyk-Over-Al is indelibly associated with the Guyanese poet and editor A. J. Seymour, the magazine's longtime editor. After Seymour's death in 1989 the editorship was assumed by poet and novelist Ian McDonald.

Ian McDonald is a Caribbean-born poet and writer who describes himself as "Antiguan by ancestry, Trinidadian by birth, Guyanese by adoption, and West Indian by conviction." His ancestry on his father's side is Antiguan and Kittitian, and Trinidadian on his mother’s side. His only novel, The Humming-Bird Tree, first published in 1969, is considered a classic of Caribbean literature.

David Dabydeen is a Guyanese-born broadcaster, novelist, poet and academic. He was formerly Guyana's Ambassador to UNESCO from 1997 to 2010 and the youngest Member of the UNESCO Executive Board (1993–1997), elected by the General Council of all Member States of UNESCO. He was appointed Guyana's Ambassador Plenipotentiary and Extraordinaire to China, from 2010 to 2015. He is one of the longest serving diplomats in the history of Guyana, most of his work done in a voluntary unpaid capacity.

Jan Rynveld Carew was a Guyana-born novelist, playwright, poet and educator, who lived at various times in The Netherlands, Mexico, England, France, Spain, Ghana, Jamaica, Canada and the United States.

Edgar Austin Mittelholzer was a Guyanese novelist, the earliest novelist from the West Indian region to establish himself in Europe and gain a significant European readership. Mittelholzer, who earned his living almost exclusively by writing fiction, is considered the first professional novelist to come out of the English-speaking Caribbean. His novels include characters and situations from a variety of places within the Caribbean, and range in time from the early period of European settlement to the 20th century. They feature a cross-section of ethnic groups and social classes, dealing with subjects of historical, political, psychological, and moral interest. Mittelholzer is "certainly the most prolific novelist to be produced by the Caribbean". Mittelholzer committed suicide in England in 1965.

Peter "Lauchmonen" Kempadoo was a writer and broadcaster from Guyana. He also worked as a development worker in the Caribbean, Africa and Asia. He moved in 1953 to the UK, where he built a career in print journalism as well as radio and television broadcasting, and published two novels, Guiana Boy in 1960 — the first novel by a Guyanese of Indian descent — and Old Thom's Harvest in 1965, before returning to Guyana in 1970. He died in London, aged 92.

Cyril Dabydeen is a Guyana-born Canadian writer of Indian descent. He grew up in Rose Hall sugar plantation with the sense of Indian indenture rooted in his family background. He's a cousin of the UK writer David Dabydeen.

Michael Arthur Gilkes was a Caribbean literary critic, dramatist, poet, filmmaker and university lecturer. He was involved in theatre for more than 40 years, as a director, actor and playwright, winning the Guyana Prize for Drama in 1992 and 2006, as well as the Guyana Prize for Best Book of Poetry in 2002. He was also respected for his insight into and writings on the work of Wilson Harris.

The National Library of Guyana is the legal deposit and copyright library for Guyana. Unlike many national libraries, it is also a public lending library and the headquarters of Guyana's public library service, with branches extending throughout the country. Founded in 1909, the National Library of Guyana is situated on the corner of Church Street and Main Street in central Georgetown. In 2007, the library recorded a collection of 397,893 books and a total of 22,058 members. Its collection includes the papers of A. J. Seymour and Ian McDonald.

Citizens or residents of the United Kingdom whose origins lie in Guyana are a part of the country's British Caribbean community. Guyana was a former British colony, British Guiana, responsible for moving large numbers of Africans and Indians for labor in the sugar industry. British Guyanese are notable for their contributions to literature and music.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Guyanese people</span> South American ethnic group

The people of Guyana, or Guyanese, come from a wide array of backgrounds and cultures including aboriginal natives, also known as Amerindians, those of Indian and African origins, as well as a minority of Chinese and European descendent peoples. Demographics as of 2012 are East Indian 39.8%, Afro-Guyanese 30.1%, mixed race 19.9%, Amerindian 10.5%, other 1.5%.

Elly Niland is a Guyanese-born poet, playwright and teacher.

John Peter Bennett was a Guyanese priest and linguist. A Lokono, in 1949, he was the first Amerindian in Guyana to be ordained as an Anglican priest and canon. His linguistic work centred on preserving his native Arawak language and other Amerindian languages; he wrote An Arawak-English Dictionary (1989).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edwina Melville</span> Guyanese writer and activist

Edwina Melville (1926–1993) was a Guyanese writer, teacher, politician and advocate of the first-nation Wapishana peoples of the Southern Rupununi, Guyana.

Egbert Martin, writing under the alias Leo, was a 19th-century Guyanese poet.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Peepal Tree Press - Feature Display". 2006-07-03. Archived from the original on 2006-07-03. Retrieved 2021-03-13.
  2. ↑ "Four Early Novels". www.landofsixpeoples.com. Retrieved 2022-04-22.
  3. ↑ Al Creighton, "Martin Carter and his poems", Stabroek News, 24 June 2012.
  4. ↑ "AJ Seymour's contribution to the shaping of Guyanese literature was monumental". Stabroek News. 2021-01-31. Retrieved 2021-03-13.
  5. ↑ Robinson, Gemma (2013-02-10). "Textual communities in Guyana: A "nearly go so" literary history". The Journal of Commonwealth Literature. 48: 89–91. doi:10.1177/0021989412471137. S2CID   154054671.
  6. ↑ "Introduction to the New World - New World Journal". newworldjournal.org. Retrieved 2021-03-14.
  7. ↑ "Guyanese Literature Junction". Kaieteur News. 2008-06-22. Retrieved 2021-03-14.
  8. ↑ Michael Coveney, "Michael Abbensetts obituary", The Guardian , 20 November 2016.
  9. ↑ "Amerindian oral literature is a lively part of the Guyanese literary heritage". Stabroek News. 2011-10-02. Retrieved 2021-03-14.
  10. ↑ "Cultural activist from Guyana's Wapishana tribe tries to revive a near-extinct language". Global Voices. 2018-11-17. Retrieved 2021-03-14.
  11. ↑ "Year of Indigenous Languages to be observed in 2019". Kaieteur News. 2018-12-03. Retrieved 2021-03-14.
  12. ↑ "UNESCO/JLU - Caribbean Indigenous and Endangered Languages, The University of West Indies at Mona". www.mona.uwi.edu. Retrieved 2021-03-14.
  13. ↑ "Preserving our literary heritage". Guyana Chronicle. Retrieved 2022-11-29.
  14. ↑ Mahabir, Joy Allison Indira; Pirbhai, Mariam (2013). Critical Perspectives on Indo-Caribbean Women's Literature. Routledge. ISBN   978-0-415-50967-1.
  15. ↑ Creighton, Al (5 February 2023). "Guyana Prize festival next weekend offers literary smorgasbord". Stabroek News. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  16. ↑ Petamber Persaud, "Winners at a glance", Preserving our literary Heritage | Literary Corner, Guyana Chronicle, 29 July 2007, p. IV.
  17. ↑ "The Guyana Prize for Literature", CaribLit, 10 January 2015.

Sources

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