Description
Book SynopsisAn ethnographic analysis of the cultural meanings of migration and home in three families of West Indian origin whose members are dispersed throughout the Caribbean, North America and Great Britain.
Trade Review“Building on her previous work on historical consciousness, nationalism, and transnationalism, Karen Fog Olwig outlines a new direction for migration studies. By highlighting the ways that individuals’ personal understandings of their migratory experiences are connected to foundational family narratives, Olwig broadens understanding of belonging and diaspora.”—Deborah A. Thomas, author of
Modern Blackness: Nationalism, Globalization, and the Politics of Culture in Jamaica“In this nuanced, sensitive tracing of kinship across borders, Karen Fog Olwig reminds us that most often family ties are at the heart of why migration processes are transnational. An outstanding contribution to kinship, migration, and transnational studies,
Caribbean Journeys is an excellent counterpoint to glib references to transnational or diasporic communities.”—Nina Glick Schiller, coauthor of
Georges Woke Up Laughing: Long-Distance Nationalism and the Search for Home“
Caribbean Journeys is a refreshing look at immigration from an unusual point of view, and it is worth reading and using in courses not only on immigration but also on social networks, family studies, and cultural identity development.” -- Silvia Domínguez * American Journal of Sociology *
“Karen Fog Olwig presents a profound ethnographic study of three transnational Caribbean families. . . . As she describes the nuanced and colourful lives of her participants, it becomes evident that Olwig’s study transcends the fundamental migration related experience. . . .
Caribbean Journeys is a valuable contribution to migration literature.” -- Terry-Ann Jones * Ethnic and Racial Studies *
“This study of three families’ respective histories of migration from the Caribbean holds many points of interest both for Caribbeanists and for those concerned more generally with migration studies. There is also something here for students of identity politics, both in the UK and in the USA. . . . [An] ethnography of extremely dense and rich transnational relations.” -- Diane Austin-Broos * Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute *
Table of ContentsAcknowledgments vii
Introduction 1
Part One: A Jamaican Family
1. Learning to Mix in Society 39
2. Seeking Improvement beyond Jamaica 62
Part Two:A Dominican Family
3. The Village Origins 97
4. In Pursuit of a Proper Livelihood 118
Part Three: A Nevisian Family
5. A Family Home 155
6. To Better Our Condition 176
Part Four: The Family Legacies
7. The First Generation: Migrating for Improvement of Self and the Family 215
8. Generational Perspectives: Negotiating Identities and Origins 244
9. Relating Regional, Family, and Individual Histories of Migration 270
Notes 287
References 297
Index 311
