Slave Women in Caribbean Society, 1650-1832

by Barbara Bush

" . . . pioneering study in an area long neglected by historians." ―Women's Review of Books

" . . . we must admire this as an important and interesting contribution." ―The Times of the Americas

"Bush's well-organized and clearly written book will appeal to readers interested in women's studies and comparative studies of the black diaspora. . . . readable and valuable . . . " ―Choice

" . . . Bush's outstanding contribution is documenting women's unique They did everything they could not to bear children." ―New Directions For Women

" . . . extremely informative and enjoyable to read, performing the valuable contribution of collecting and analysing data about a relatively neglected topic . . . " ―Gender and History

"Both the general reader and the academic specialist should find this book a valuable contribution to the discourse on gender and slave relations in plantation America" ―International Migration Review

This is the first book on black slave women to take into account the complexities of gender, race, and class which made their experience of slavery different from that of the black men. Bush challenges certain myths surrounding black women's lives as workers, mothers, and as activists in the vanguard of resistance to slavery.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Feminism, Race, Gender

208 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 1990

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

born 1946

Reviews

[Tara · Rating 3 out of 5]

I recently took this off my shelf and thumbed through it cause I wasn't quite sure why I held onto it after college. I later remembered. I really enjoyed this book and learning about slavery in the Caribbean. I took a Slavery in the Americas class my last year of college and this book was part of the literature for that class. We had a guest speaker come in who was from Jamaica and was a Black History teacher at UW and he was the one who directed the lecture on slavery in the Caribbean. I don't remember the lecture and I'm sure I don't have my class notes anymore, but I do remember that it was a great class and I always looked forward to going (even though it was at 8am). The professor who actually taught the class recently won an award for this particular class curriculum; I went to a small college in the Pacific Northwest so it was a big enough deal that the school sent out special invites to all of the alumni to come to a special dinner being thrown in his honor. The year I took the class, it was experimental.

[Mary Robinette Kowal · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's a clear, articulate look at issues specific to women that were often overlooked by other narratives of slavery in the Carribbean.

On a personal note, this was bbsolutely pivotal in my research for Of Noble Family and totally reshaped what I'd planned to do with the novel.

[Priscilla Previl · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent an easy read of the world of slave women. Primarily based in British Caribbean nations, the book provides a carefully researched study valuable for historians, anthropologists, those interested in African American studies, women's studies, and a wide range of topics.