Timothy Assel

Anglo-American Perspectives on Post-Colonial Issues

Post-colonial literature provides insight into Anglo-American perspectives of colonization. The United States of America and Canada are different than many other American former-colonies because the majority of their populations are descendants of European settlers. Most of the Caribbean nations consist of a mix of Native American, African, and European ancestry, which made them second-class citizens in a world dominated by European descendants. The history of racial discrimination in former colonies continues to foster deep resentment. This resentment is often expressed in post-colonial literature by authors such as Jamaica Kincaid. Kincaid creates a dialogue of protest against Anglo-Americans who do not acknowledge the history of racial discrimination and the ramifications of racism still lingering in modern American society.

Part of the difficulty Anglo-American society has with understanding post-colonial issues is caused by a tendency towards segregation that can be traced back to the early days of colonization. In the American colonies, Spanish and Portuguese colonizers tended to mix blood lines with natives, however, English settlers tended to bring wives and families with them to the colonies. Defoe exemplifies this pattern as the Spanish and Portuguese castaways take native wives while Crusoe sends English women to the island for the English sailors that were left behind. Crusoe creates an island community with the potential for racial conflict in future generations much like the conflict expressed in the works of Jamaica Kincaid.

Lucy, demonstrates a different aspect of British colonization that affects Anglo-American perspectives. In Kincaid’s novel, the main character, Lucy, is from a British colony where the inhabitants are mostly descended from natives and African slaves, since settlers of European descent have mostly left the island. Lucy leaves her home to live in the United States, where she encounters the contrast of a former British colony in which the European settlers stayed.  Lucy feels that the Anglo-Americans she interacts with do not understand post-colonial issues and show little interest in her culture or history. Anglo-Americans act superior and expect Lucy to comply with the social constructs of Anglo-American society. They do not acknowledge that anyone would desire an alternative lifestyle to their own and can not accept Lucy’s individualism. Anglo-American disregard and reproach for alternative lifestyles cause them to have negative and insensitive perspectives on post-colonial issues.