According to French poet Alfred de Musset, “My glass is not large, [but] I drink from my glass”.

The aforementioned electrifying quote is often used to refer to the legacy of Beryl McBurnie in

the discerning book titled “Beryl McBurnie”. The book was written by Judy Raymond, a

journalist and editor- in-chief of the Trinidad and Tobago Newsday. Publication of the book was

made possible by the University of the West Indies Press in the year 2018. The book is divided

into five (5) chapters and consists of one hundred and ten (110) pages and its sale price is

$135.00. The book has its setting primarily placed in Roberts Street, Woodbrook, Port of Spain

in Trinidad during the 19th century. The nineteenth century Caribbean can be considered as a

period of in which people of many cultures within the region saw the emergence in keeping a

cultural identity and heritage as the ‘colonialist ideal’ was a major part of the Caribbean.

Explored within the book’s narrative is the inspirational life of the late Beryl McBurnie (1914 –

2000), a Trinidadian dancer and her experiences with family and friends within the multicultural

Caribbean which fueled her self-identity and cultural appreciation. It is through her resilience she

was able to be honored with several awards including the Order of the British Empire (1959), the

Humming Bird Gold Medal (1969), an honorary doctorate from the St. Augustine Campus of the

University of the West Indies (1976), an award at Carifesta (1981) and the Trinity Cross (1989).

The latter being the highest national award in Trinidad and Tobago. This report aims to

investigate prevalent themes in the book which include family, culture, colonialism, identity and

gender as well as its role in today’s Caribbean society.

As the narration of the life of McBurnie begins, we see an immediate theme of family. Family is

the first social institution in which a child is introduced to. “It is an integrated and functional unit

of society” with its role of “influencing and affecting the development, behavior and well-being

of an individual”. It was evident that her family played a role in promoting multicultural
development. Passions for the arts both musical and dance ran through her ancestry. Research

done by Fletcher, states that during the oedipal stage (aged four to adolescent), the child becomes

a full member of the community and identifies her role in society. This was highlighted in the

book when it was stated that her grandfather was considered as her “first music teacher, from

whom she learned about classical music and harmony.” Though rooted in a matrifocal

household, her father was a mentor, “encouraging her in her ambition”, “… carried her on trips

through the islands … studying native songs and dance.” From a young age McBurnie’s family

would host backyard shows which entailed musical and dance performances one of which

included the “Argentine Tango”.

According to Berns, the influence of the family as an agent of socialization never weakens.

McBurnie interests in these topics unknowingly set her apart from the people of Trinidad and led

herself to portray her beliefs through her work within the Caribbean region as well as

internationally (New York, United States). “William Arthur Rollock (McBurnie’s grandfather),

migrated to Trinidad and worked for the Trinidad Government Railway” gave rise to the

historical context of the Caribbean whereby reflecting the mentality of leaving one’s country to

find or in another. This is a strong influence of Caribbean people in present day society and the

idea of creating cultural diaspora. Having come from a multi ethnic family and the referral to the

site of her family home being the “center of her universe” denotes that her early life initialized a

particularly important aspect of development towards the community. One can convey, that the

writer’s intention was to describe the role of the family in contributing to holistic development of

a child as it is through the experiences amongst her family members and such enlightenments

that led young McBurnie to cultural awareness.

Culture has been defined as the way of life of a people. Important to McBurnie was the idea of

cultural heritage and the various traditional, indigenous cultural forms set up by an anti-colonial

mindset. Colonialism is a concept worth mentioning as it played an imperative role throughout

history and this course. Colonialism refers to the period in which the control or governing

influence of a nation is over a dependent country. Colonialism is a major part of the Caribbean as

it has influence in our culture. This was found in the book where it states “… for the enslaved

laborers, the weekend dances were, among other things, a chance to forget the misery of their

lives and lose themselves in the music”. The enslaved incorporated elements of each other’s

traditional dances combined with selected European dances to form a “rich mixture”. Dance can

be commonly described as a way of human expression through movement thereby occupying an

important place in social structure and cultures throughout history. McBurnie not only embraced

the African origins of local culture within the Caribbean region but during her stay in New York,

she performed the Chango, a dance native to Trinidad. Other cultural elements of her dance

performance usually entailed a head tie and a madras skirt (showing no more than an ankle). It is

evident this expression was a way of rejecting colonialism and more so promoting nationalism.

This is supported by the quote “… she spoke illustrating with movements and drums, the folk

arts of the island”.

Dance is used as an affirmative way of self-expression, announcing that an individual has

complete control and power over his body. More references to other aspects of Caribbean culture

included the steelpan, calypso, the food in which McBurnie’s mother will prepare as

refreshments “- whether curry, pelau or just sandwiches”, the performance that involved a

pirogue (fishing boat) and the concert held in her backyard inclusive of African drumming
beating. The writer’s aim was to portray how these practices help the Caribbean to construct

themselves as distinct from a dominant culture.

Consequently, with the beliefs McBurnie inherited through generations and her self-expression

from cultural practices the theme identity is apparent. According to Olson, an individual is

identified on a personal level through persistence of experiences, beliefs and memories. It was

through McBurnie’s process of interaction with others that she got an understanding of herself.

Her national and social identity was not only influenced by her family as previously mentioned,

but too, she was influenced by her friends. McBurnie was a strong nationalists and as such she

surrounded herself with like-minded individuals; notably Dr. Er. Williams and Barney Maurice.

Both are some of the individuals that inspired McBurnie as well and helped McBurnie’s social

identity.

According to Mohanty (1997), “our experiences are mediated by a particular outlook that we

have, this outlook being what we call identity, but that this identity itself arises as a product of

understanding of the social surroundings of which one is a part”. Identity matters in social

constructions and understanding self. Historically, the actual thought of an “individual” was

suppressed by slavery and colonialism but circumstances such as the cultural bond shared on the

plantation (exchange of dance styles and drum sessions etc.,) and slavery experience led to a

shared Caribbean identity. The latter resulted in the affinity of each other’s food, music (reggae,

calypso, soca, dancehall, salsa etc.) dance and social constructs.

According to research done by Polhemus, the gender roles of Caribbean women were often

delegated to lower status as workers based on the legacies of slavery and colonialism, yet women

played a major role within their local communities despite these gender ideologies. Gender was a

crucial role in the historical context within the Caribbean. Before emancipation, gender
determined the experience of a slave. Women were subject to exhaustive work routines and

punishment which over the years led to a trend of men feeling superior. According to .., “after

the abolishment of slavery in the 19th century, Caribbean societies became very stratified and

sexual in equality increased”. Nowadays, there is still a noticeable inequality as to where gender

is concerned. This is evident where men receive a higher pay than women (though they work at

the same level of management) within an organization or narrow-minded comments such as “dah

ha’ to be a woman drivin’ dey”. The latter refers to how women are seen as inferior especially

when on the roadways.

A quote from the book which read “Trinidadians were beginning to be conscious and even

proud, McBurnie was part of a movement… few respectable middle-class girls would have dared

to undertake such expeditions.” McBurnie employed female confidence and self-esteem and

serves as a sign of female emancipation and gender equality. This transformation helped shaped

historical change and reconstructed the historical narratives.

All in all, the book exceeded my initial expectations. One of the major weakness of the book was

the uncertainty of dates such as her date of birth. However, for the most part, it was an enjoyable

read. The way in which the author narrated McBurnie’s contributions through a fine tuned story

line and the relevance of the persons’ she encountered in her life. It’s worth mentioning that

earlier Caribbean books neglect women because early historians looked at colonization and more

so the activities in which men were involved in. As a result, one found this book reinvigorating

as it too delved into themes that are increasingly relevant to Caribbean people. Primary themes

include that of family life, its influences and passing down of beliefs and its general role within

society as a socializing agent. Other themes were that of post-colonial resistance, culture, self-

expression, gender and identity through cultural aspects inclusive of dance, calypso and folklore.
Raymond was able to highlight some of the relevant aspects of McBurnie’s life which led her to

become the person she was then while giving an in-depth insight into the experiences and

challenges of Beryl McBurnie. Too, this book gave recognition to McBurnies’s stellar

contributions in the perrfoming arts. The Caribbean people should adopt the pride and patriotism

in which McBurnie embraced. Moreover, it’s important to note that the colonialist ideal is still a

part of our cultural identity.

Works Cited

Trask BS. New York: Springer; 2010. Globalization and families: Accelerated systemic social

change

erns, Roberta. Child, Family, School, Community: Socialization and Support. Belmont: Cengage

Learning, 2010.

Polhemus, Ted. 1993. Dance, Gender and Culture. In: Helen Thomas (ed.), Dance, Gender and

Culture. London: Macmillan

Bourdieu, Pierre. 1994. Language and Symbolic Power. Cambridge: Polity Press

Olson, Eric T., 2000. “ Personal Identity” The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy

Mohanty, Satya P. 1997. Literary Theory and the Claims of History: Postmodernism,

Objectivity, Multicultural Politics. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press

Richardson, Bonham C. The Caribbean in the Wider World, 1492-1992: A Regional Geography.

Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1992.