Two Jamaicas; the role of ideas in a tropical colony, 1830-1865

Philip Curtin’s Two Jamaicas:The Role of ideas in a Tropical Colony, 1830-1865 (published 1955) offers detailed insight for a crucial period in Jamaica’s history. Divided into two sections, ‘The Eve of the Revolution: Jamaica in the 1830’s’ and ‘The Road to Morant Bay: 1834 - 1865,” Curtin examines the interplay of economic, social, and religious ideas against the divisions in Jamaican society at the time. The first section explores Jamaica as it transitioned from slavery looking at the experience of African Jamaicans (slaves), European Jamaicans (the planting class), and those of mixed descent (creoles). Jamaica’s status as a colony while England is undergoing rapid developments in the areas of economic thought and the show more rise of the anti-slavery movement is of interest. The book charts how the different classes responded to the introduction of new ideas. Of special interest is the religious history of Jamaica and the rise of different churches within the country. The rise and decline of different sects, their integration into African-Jamaican culture, and conflicts with local politics are given ample space. The end of slavery, the introduction of the apprentice system, and the rise of free trade thought along with local reactions and local policy failures chart the decline of the ruling class. As the ruling class attempted to maintain its status with the end of slavery they failed to create an economy or society with appeal to African-Jamaicans. As the Jamaican economy, based on sugar, could no longer compete with other sugar exporting (and slave-holding) nations, Curtin narrates a nation in transition. Eventually this led to the Morant Bay incident and repression from the local government. Curtin’s history is insightful and well sourced. Tracing the thoughts of the day and their impact on Jamaica is fascinating. While I am not sure if this history is indicative of longer trends in Jamaica, the origins of class and religious stratification make the book interesting. show less

A social history of Jamaica between the abolition of slavery and the abandonment of the Old Representative Constitution.