WE ARE still unearthing material (printed and otherwise) in respect to some of  the evils that transpired during the days of slavery; episodes that were better left unwritten by the first chroniclers of our history.

Recently, we were gifted a very useful book on a particular aspect of slavery. That book, ‘Hearing Slaves Speak’ by Trevor Burnard, is a compilation of ninety-two cases from tons and tons of material to show that enslaved people deserve more respect than is generally accorded them.
Burnard, in his introduction to the book, says that the record “revealed enslaved people as real people, as individual who often quarrelled with each other but whom, it seems, shared similar aspirations and dreams about the lives they might be able to fashion for themselves.”
While hard facts are slow in surfacing, many of our imaginative writers have taken the liberty to reconstruct, oftentimes romanticising the past.

‘Stedman and Joanna – A Love in Bondage’, by Beryl Gilroy

The novel, ‘Stedman and Joanna – A Love in Bondage’, by Beryl Gilroy is a heart wrenching love story of a romance that could not be. Set in 18th Century England, Suriname and the Netherlands, with the main action taking place in Suriname. That main action was a slave revolt happening against the backdrop of an economic downturn in the economy of Suriname and increased hostilities among runaway slaves: The Maroons.
The main male player, John Stedman, who was born in Scotland of Dutch and Scotch extraction, was at the time a professional soldier in the service of the Dutch Government in Suriname.
Here, while on duty, he met and fell in love with the female main character, Johanna, a beautiful mulatto slave girl, who was well educated, well-spoken and well mannered.
This is how she was described in the novel: She was taller than middle size and elegantly shaped. She moved her well-formed limbs with more than common gracefulness. Her face was full of the modesty of her people, and her black eyes were large and full of expression. In spite of her dark skin, her cheeks showed a vermilion tinge.
Her nose was well formed and small, and when she spoke she showed two rows of regular and wonderfully white teeth. Her hair was dark brown with lighter streaks and formed a crest of ringlets in which she had worked flowers and gold spangles.
Round her neck, her arms, and her ankles she wore gold chains, rings, amulets, and medals, all presents from her father before his death…A shawl of Indian muslin thrown around her polished shoulders partially covered her bosom. A petticoat of rich chintz completed her apparel and acted as a mirror for her shapely hips.
That was not the only attraction she held or portrayed for Stedman, who saw the enslaved people through a different and more humane perspective. This perspective caused Stedman on numerous occasions to run counter to existing accepted treatment of the enslaved.
On one occasion, he confessed, I had learned to love the black people. I had come to know their kindness, their loyalty and their humanity, and could not understand why they were treated in such an unchristian way by those who claimed an enlightened life as their heritage.
But their love was doomed to failure because the law of the land and social norms. The law read that a White male couldn’t marry a slave unless she was freed by manumission. In this story, garnering the required monies for manumission was improbable for an ordinary soldier.
Although married, John and Joanna couldn’t sleep under one roof. And the married couple was not accorded the social acceptance accorded to other married people. Eventually, Stedman was posted back home; Joanna refused to go with him because, as she  explained, she would not be accepted by that society, and she was too attached to her loved ones who were elderly and in need of her care…
The history of slavery is replete with stories, good, bad and indifferent. And our scholars and creative writers will reconstruct those stories for us as time goes by, and sooner rather than later as more leads become evident.
On another occasion, we would take a look at the novel, ‘The Cost of Sugar’ by Surinamese writer, Cynthia McLeod, which made use of the same historical background as ‘Stedman and Johanna’.

(To respond to this author, either call him on (592) 226-0065 or send him an email: oraltradition2002@yahoo.com)

What’s Happening:
•    The current issue of The Guyana Annual magazine will be dedicated to Braithwaite. Tributes, reviews of his publications, and related articles are invited for possible inclusion in the magazine.