Make a name tent with:

1. Your first name

2. Draw the first thing that comes to mind when
you think of Jamaica
Why I am here:
Jamaican Post-Colonial Identity

By: Ainsley Merritt

First off, where exactly is Jamaica?

Jamaica
Fill out the K and the W sections of the KWL
charts that are on your table.
 Key Terms:

Multicultural nation: A place that has a variety of different cultures and

beliefs

Slave trade port: A major place where slaves were sold by Europeans in
exchange for American resources.

Prejudice: preconceived opinion that is not based on reason or actual

experience.
Jamaica: a multicultural nation.
A Brief History
● In 1509, Jamaica was taken over by the Spanish shortly after
Christopher Columbus’s voyage
● During the age of exploration, Jamaica was a slave trade port where
slaves were brought to, sold from, and then distributed throughout
Latin America
A Brief History

● Jamaica was invaded by the British in 1655, and gained its independence in
1962.

That’s 307 years under British control!

Ethnic Relations in Jamaica

● The major ethnic division is that between

whites and blacks
● The black majority rule has led to an
emphasis on class relations, shades of skin
color, and cultural prejudices, rather than
on racial divisions
● For the most part, Jamaica has
experienced little ethnic conflict between
blacks and Indians or Chinese
Connection to No Telephone to Heaven

● The main character, Clare, struggles with her identity

● Her father is lighter skinned from the upper-middle class and her
mother is darker skinned from the lower/working class
● She struggles with identifying with her English side or her native
Jamaican side
Dissection of No Telephone to Heaven Passage

Steps:

1. Separate the diction into at least 2 categories

2. List the tone of the piece
3. Write out one possible theme

Diction: the choice/use of words in a piece of writing

Tone: the attitude of a writer toward a subject or an audience

Theme: the underlying meaning of a piece of writing

Jamaica today:

● Jamaica has a parliamentary democracy system under a constitutional

monarchy.
● Andrew Holness is the current prime minister of Jamaica and has been since
March 2016

● Constitutional Monarchy: system

of government in which a
monarch (an absolute ruler)
shares power with a
constitutionally organized
government
Jamaica today:

● The U.S. issued a travel advisory on January 10th, 2018 warning travelers
to avoid areas of Jamaica, including Kingston, because of gun violence.
● The main religion in Jamaica is protestant
● Jamaica’s population is 2.881 million people
● English is the official language
Rivaling Political Parties
The two rival political parties in Jamaica are:

● the People's National Party

● the Jamaica Labour Party

In 1980, Edward Seaga, the Jamaica Labour Party candidate, became prime
minister of Jamaica. This created more violence between the two parties.
● Fill out the L section of your KWL chart
based on what you have learned