Rupert Gray: A Tale in Black and White

by Stephen N. Cobham (Editor), Lise Winer (Editor)

The Caribbean Heritage series is designed to publish new editions of historically significant works of fiction from our region. The first three volumes in the series comprise four Trinidadian novels published between 1838 and 1907. A substantial introduction and thorough annotations contextualize each of the original texts. The first volume in the series is E.L. Joseph's Warner The Adventures of a Creole . The second volume includes two Adolphus, A Tale, and The Slave Son . The third volume in the series presents Stephen Cobham's novel Rupert Gray , first published in 1907. Like the other novels in the series, this work also contains a strong political impetus, typical of West Indian novels, including support for the rights of all races. Together these four texts establish evidence of a much older and deeper local literary foundation than hitherto realized. This novel was written in Trinidad by a black or mixed-race teacher then law clerk, who also wrote poems and gave public lectures on literary topics. Williams, a black lawyer educated in England, who was a major figure in the Pan-African Association. The novel traces the love affair of Rupert Gray, a Negro accountant, and Gwendoline Serle, the daughter of a white businessman in Trinidad. The couple's interracial courtship is marked by parental disapproval, society's scorn and the loyalty of friends. A series of tragic events culminates in a melodramatic courtroom scene.

171 pages, Paperback

First published September 5, 2000

Reviews

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is so wonderful. I live in Trinidad where this book is based and i was so enthralled by the love story between Rupert Gray who is black and the daugther of his boss i think i quite can't remember who is white. I almost cried.

[Kari C. · Rating 4 out of 5]

So my great-grandfather wrote this book and I might be a bit biased, but I thought the plot was well-crafted: intelligent Black man falls for White woman outside his status, set in Port of Spain, Trinidad, in colonial times. Stephen Cobham was mixed. So am I. And my parents are from different races, so it almost seemed like history repeated itself. I guess I identified w/it on a personal level.

[Khrys · Rating 4 out of 5]

A "modern day" Othello set in Trinidad without the gruesome ending of death and despair but rather one filled with hope and redemption. It also uncovers the "clandestine" and unfortunate habit black people have of undermining their own forward movement in the world by their jealousy and attack on each other... A great read for my fellow melanin filled brothren...

[Kay · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome, awesome!! There aren't enough available material from colonial days. This novel is set in the Caribbean and puts an educated black male at the center. It examines the values and views of people in and out of power, not just 'slavery power'.

[Bernice Batson · Rating 2 out of 5]

I would have thought that a book based on Trinidad would have shed more on its culture apart from racial divides, perhaps a little would have added a nice tone.

[Syd · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first book from Trinidad that I have ever read, and it's a somewhat short, older one. Plot-wise it's nothing phenomenal, with a heavy dose of melodrama indicative of the era. The characters are archetypes. Rupert Gray is Good and Noble. Gwendoline is Innocent and Beautiful.
What makes this novel interesting and somewhat exceptional is the way it plays with ideas and expectations of an era. It's an interracial romance. Written at the turn of the 20th century. It plays with ideas of racial categorization and expectations. It toys with Black masculinity in a balance between making him masculine enough but not so masculine as to be 'scary' to white readers. It is definitely in line with the philosophy of the Talented Tenth. Cobham wants the reader to recognize and accept that Gray is not like 'other Black men' and that not all Black men are laborers. Gray is almost too perfect, gentle, and faultless, which is an archetype that is commonly used in interracial fiction because of the societal fear of Black masculinity. The creation of this character argues for educated Black men to be allowed to have status and power.
I will definitely try to read more Trinidadian fiction in the future.