Christer Petley, editor of S&R, presented a paper about the material culture of the Jamaican planter class at the Association of Caribbean Historians annual conference in Martinique. This is a version of the paper:
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Author Archives: cp16v07
Historiens de la Caraïbe
The 46th annual conference of the Association of Caribbean Historians will take place between 11 and 17 May at the Universite des Antilles et de la Guyane in Martinique. Christer Petley (editor of S&R) will present a paper about the material culture of Jamaican slaveholders.
Agency of the Enslaved
Review by Christer Petley of Agency of the Enslaved, a book about slave resistance in Jamaica by Daive Dunkley. Click here
Scandal of Colonial Rule
Dr Christer Petley, editor of the Slavery and Revolution website, reviews The Scandal of Colonial Rule, a book by Professor James Epstein of Vanderbilt University about the Caribbean, slavery and the British empire. It is an imaginative and innovative new take on these subjects. Important and unique not just because of its focus on Trinidad (often overlooked in favour of Jamaica or Barbados), Epstein’s book shines new light on the place of Caribbean slavery within wider debates about the transformation of the British empire in the Age of Revolution. It is ‘an imaginative and engrossing study, a model of painstaking scholarship, which is marked by its compelling arguments and incisive writing.’ Click here for the full review.
12 Years a Slave on BBC History Extra
Dr Christer Petley, editor of the Slavery and Revolution website, answers questions on slavery and on the new movie, 12 Years a Slave, directed by Steve McQueen and based on the narrative of Solomon Northup. Click here for the ’60-second guide’.
Northup was a free man born in New York in 1808 who was kidnapped and sold into slavery in 1841 before reclaiming his freedom in 1853. Read his story, the basis for the film, here: http://docsouth.unc.edu/fpn/northup/northup.html
Improvements to S&R
Since the site went live over a year ago, several new letter excerpts have been added along with other enhancements and additions. The menu now contains links to information on slavery and on Jamaica, useful to anyone studying (or teaching!) these subjects for the first time.
Student Essays about S&R Letters
This month, students in History at the University of Southampton, on the Year 2 Option Module, The British Atlantic World, have been using the letters to frame seminar discussions. Students have brought excerpts of the letters to class, relating these to their wider reading on related topics like the transformation of the British empire and the fall of the planter class. Several students will choose to write assessed essays in response to the question ‘In what ways can Simon Taylor’s letters help us to understand the fall of the planter class in the British Caribbean?’
Last Caribbean Frontier
Review by Christer Petley of The Last Caribbean Frontier by Kit Candlin, about Trinidad, Guyana and Grenada at the beginning of the nineteenth century. Click here
Proslavery Priest
Review by Christer Petley of a book by B.W. Higman about a proslavery Anglican clergyman in eighteenth century Jamaica. Click here
S&R Resources in Use @ UoS
This year several students in History at the University of Southampton have been using the letters and other resources on the site in their work. The letters have provided a focus for seminar discussions on the conflict over slavery and proslavery politics in the Year 3 Special Subject module on slavery and freedom.