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Assignment 2: Book Report

A Critique of Beryl McBurnie by Judy Raymond

Introduction

The name of the author is Judy Raymond and the title of the book is Beryl McBurnie.

The book is about a woman who went through various obstacles throughout her life to spread the

culture of the Caribbean and share it with the world as is her determination. The life of Beryl

McBurnie was lived from 1917 to 2000 where she was born in Trinidad and Tobago and went to

The United States to pursue her dream of becoming a dancer. Throughout her journey of

following her dreams she faced many trials and tribulations such as racial and gender

discrimination, however she followed through with her ambition and dedicated her whole life to

the art of dance and eventually established the Little Carib Theatre in Trinidad. As a result of her

consistent efforts throughout her life she was awarded with an Order of the British Empire, a

Humming Bird Gold Medal, and the Trinity Cross. The points that will be discussed are: Cultural

Identity, Caribbean Identity, Discrimination, Gender, Anti-Colonialism, Colonialism, Family life

and Education.

This essay seeks to analyze and critique the life of Beryl McBurnie as it is in the book

and verify if the author correctly conveyed the appropriate meaning in the book when discussing

the themes chosen and if the perspective of the author correctly justifies the titular figure of the

book.
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Caribbean Identity

Caribbean identity is something that Beryl McBurnie very much displayed in the form

her performances and determination for the Little Crib Theatre to flourish so as the spread the

cultural of music and dances to more audiences. Also McBurnie made it a point to never dance in

an in appropriate manner and would often make it a point to never “wine” which is a very

suggestive dance which is to presumably preserve the integrity of the heart of the dances origin,

this is supported when the author said “She never wined, and she disapproved of her dancers

doing so. Her dancing was proper and no doubt based on traditional steps, with no suggestive or

erotically inclined moves”i. This shows that she has a certain pride your displaying the culture of

the Caribbean and would like people watching to appreciate what they see in the aspect of

culture.

Beryl McBurnie influence on modern dance in Trinidad And the entirety Caribbean is

undeniable and she also influenced many of her friends and dancers especially Pearl Primus who

was quoted in her biography by Peggy and Murray Schwartz as saying “I was influenced by

Beryl McBurnie, who is the cultural dance teacher and driving force from Trinidad, so Trinidad

is strongly in me”ii. This shows the impact McBurnies legacy left on them and continued to

inspire them even after her passing.

Cultural Identity

It is said that when slavery ended the slaves that stayed in the Caribbean they kept their

cultural and traditions, it is because of this that the modern aspects of dance and Caribbean

cultural revolve around the traditions and practices that were brought here by the slaves who

were then freed which defines todays Caribbean culture.

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Beryl McBurnie was eager to spread the culture of the West Indies in the United States,

as when the author quotes “McBurnie became very active in teaching the music and dances of

the West Indies and in particular, those of Trinidad and Tobago”iii, this displays her willingness

to teach and have other cultures learn about the culture of the Caribbean.

As a child McBurnie enjoyed dancing and who converted her parents' backyard into a

theater, McBurnie resented the British colonial school system that promoted a "foreign" culture,

as opposed to her own culture. The native culture and influences were shunned during her time

and was considered subpar. It was because of this McBurnie was motivated to change that way

of thinking a promote and share the culture of the Caribbean and Trinidad and Tobago so as to

let people have pride in their own culture.

Discrimination

Its is clearly seen in the book and especially given the period in which she was born that

Trinidad and Tobago faced discrimination and segregation when still occupied by the British this

is supported when the author says “They would have considered themselves and been considered

not black but coloured, an important class distinction in those days and in preceding

generations”iv, this is because during that time race was an identifier of class and would often

determine what rights or privileges you would have in society.

During Beryl’s early life there was no coloured children in the performing arts, she was

aware of this and the author quoted her saying “The coloured child in dance or theatre was never

really thought about, and something had to be done. What happened with me – it emerged,

really; I didn’t set out to make a political question of it; it just happened naturally”v.
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And also, one aspect of McBurnie’s personality is that she would often not notice race

and said that she’s only be interested in the performance, is supported when she says quoted by

the author “I just believe in ignoring prejudices. . . I am interested in good music”vi, this clearly

displays McBurnie’s will to just appreciate the culturee of whatever she sees and doesn’t see the

aspect of race.

It is clearly seen that McBurnie had to endure all of these perspectives about race and

there expected role in society however because of McBurnie and her efforts, people of colour are

much more represented in the performing arts world today displaying pride and confidence along

with that representation a stronger role in society.

Gender

The book clearly shoes that Beryl McBurnie was often stereotyped due to being a woman

who occupied the public sphere of society where which was predominantly occupied by men

whereas most women would have occupied the private sphere barely even being seen by the

public, but McBurnie didn’t waver at this realization in fact that it is one of the things that gave

her boundless confidence and charisma that completely shaped her commanding attitude and as

well to over adversity when the odds were against her.

When dancing in New York she was viewed as “exotic” probably because of her origins

being from the Caribbean and this is supported when the author says “As a performer, her

success may have been hampered by her middle-class ideas of propriety and her methodist

upbringing, since, being black and West Indian, she was expected to be seductive”vii, but she

circumvented that that way of thinking by being graceful and confident when she dances, this
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supported when the author says “Nor does she make the slightest attempt to portray a seductive

‘island girl’ ”viii.

“Although McBurnie enjoyed performing, she was anything but a showgirl. But it was

difficult to break out of the stereotype Americans wanted her to fit, and at least as hard to prove

herself as a serious artist”. This displays the perspective the Americans had about women

performing at that time and about what they expected from a black West Indian dancer this

closely mirrors an androcentric point of view.

It can be said that due to the determined efforts of Beryl McBurnie she very much

popoularized the aspect of women being more represented in the public sphere in a more positive

and respected light, and as well as having a major role in the performing arts further inspiring

other artists during and after her generation.

Education

This is also reflected in the early days of McBurnie’s life particularity after WWI, where

in which that education in Trinidad during that time was not as prevalent as it is today, the due to

the segregation and discrimination of the time education would be mandatory only in heavily

populous areas and nothing of the more rural areas due to widespread poverty, which was

reflected in the statics at the time where 43.1% of the population was regarded as illiterate while

the other 56.9% were properly educated or literate to some extent. This is supported by

Trinidad’s then governor Sir Murchison Fletcher who was quoted by English writer Arthur

Calder-Marshall as saying, “When I arrived in Trinidad I was somewhat painfully struck by the

poverty here” and Calder-Marshall also wrote “Though Great Britain has ruled the island for

over a hundred and forty years, educational facilities are scandalously backward. Compulsory
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education exists only in San Fernando and Port of Spain, and the all-over percentage of illiteracy

is 43.1 percent”ix.

Also, when McBurnie set out to the United Sates for the very first time her father had

intended her to study medicine but her father died shortly after arrival to the States to which

McBurnie seemed distraught and took it upon herself to study dance and become a dancer, where

she was quoted as saying after her father died “I must do exactly as I want to do”x where she

expressed her true desire to pursue the performing arts.

Family Life

It was shown in the book that McBurnie had a sense of pride when it comes to her family

and not just blood relatives she would often regard those who served an important part of her life

especially if you were part of her dancing group and part of the Little Carib Theatre she would

often regard you as her family. In the aspect of her actual family she was close with them notably

to her father who the author said “Her father had been her mentor, encouraging her in her

ambition”xi, so it would be safe to assume that she values the idea of family very highly and will

always keep the connection between family strong.

Because of the encouragement McBurnie had from her father she was fully determined

the accomplished her dream of dancing and to bring the culture of Trinidad and showcase it to

other countries.

Anti-Colonialism

Given her confidence in terms of facing racism and discrimination she would often show

a harrowing display of patriotism especially when she was away in New York performing she
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would often have pride in her culture and where she came from, this supported when the author

said “Dance played a special part in Caribbean and perhaps especially in Trinidad and Tobago’s

culture; in exploring it, McBurnie was not only casting off a colonial mindset but also reclaiming

a far older artistic heritage”xii. This showed that McBurnie was determined in creating an

environment where colonial ideals didn’t exist and show the rich culture and traditions of the

Caribbean.

Colonialism

This can also be seen in the life of McBurnie in the book where Trinidad was still under

British Rule at the time and so mostly British ideals and customs were present in Trinidad at the

time such when she says “We would be dancing nothing Trinidadian, nothing West Indian”xiii,

this shows that during her early life she noticed that there was nothing remotely representative of

Trinidad from a cultural perspective and the most of the education from that time was British

oriented.

“Independence was also about shedding a colonial culture and reclaiming a TT

culture,”xiv said Judy Raymond, who says that McBurnie was a part of the independence

movement in the aspect of culture, which further gives her merit in the way of break the idea of

colonialism in Trinidad and replacing it with the culture of the performing arts.

The book was moderately enjoyable and it was very good descriptive biography

presented in the form of introspective narrative, of a figure who heavily influence and changed

the course of Caribbean theatre and the performing arts, and so is the to be given high regard in

terms of her contributions to the world of Caribbean performing arts which is to be respected,
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and also the obstacles she had to overcome to create the Little Carib Theatre is to be greatly

commended. The themes most apparent in the book was the aspect of Caribbean and Cultural

identity due to the widespread colonialism during that time, as that was the most prevalent idea

that had made McBurnie determined to bring back a native heritage of the performing arts back

to it roots in Trinidad and in the Caribbean.

Conclusion:

The life of Beryl McBurnie was lived from 1917 to 2000 where she was born in Trinidad

and Tobago and went to The United States to pursue her dream of becoming a dancer.

Throughout her journey of following her dreams she faced many trials and tribulations such as

racial and gender discrimination, however she followed through with her ambition and dedicated

her whole life to the art of dance and eventually established the Little Carib Theatre in Trinidad.

Beryl McBurnie influence on modern dance in Trinidad and the entirety of Caribbean is a

indisputable fact and she also influenced many people around her such as Pearl Primus and the

even the past prime minster Dr. Eric Williams this shows the impression that McBurnies legacy

left on them and continue to inspire people.

As a child McBurnie enjoyed dancing and resented the British colonial school system

that promoted a "foreign" culture, as opposed to her own heritage. The native culture and

influences were shunned and was considered inferior. It was because of this McBurnie was

motivated to change that way of thinking a promote and share the culture of the Caribbean and

Trinidad and Tobago so as to let people have pride in their own culture.

It is clearly seen that McBurnie had to endure all of these perspectives about race and

there expected role in society however because of McBurnie and her efforts, people of colour are
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much more represented in the performing arts world today displaying pride and confidence along

with that representation a stronger role in society.

It can be said that due to the determined efforts of Beryl McBurnie she very much

popularized the aspect of women being more represented in the public sphere in a more positive

and respected light, and as well as having a major role in the performing arts further inspiring

other artists during and after her generation

Because of the encouragement McBurnie had from her father she was fully determined

the accomplished her dream of dancing and to bring the culture of Trinidad and showcase it to

other countries.

This showed that McBurnie was determined in creating an environment where colonial

ideals didn’t exist and show the rich culture and traditions of the Caribbean.

McBurnie was a part of the independence movement in the aspect of culture, which

further gives her merit in the way of break the idea of colonialism in Trinidad and replacing it

with the culture of the performing arts.

As a result of her consistent efforts and contributions to the country throughout her life

she was awarded with an OBE (Order of the British Empire) in 1959, the Humming Bird Gold

Medal in 1989, and the highest honor in the country the Trinity Cross in 1989.
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Works Cited

Raymond, Judy. Beryl McBurnie. The University of the West Indies Press, 2018.

Munro, Hope. What She Go Do: Women in Afro-Trinidadian Music. 2016.

Schwartz, Peggy, and Murray Schwartz. The Dance Claimed Me: A Biography of Pearl Primus.

Yale University Press, 2011.

The Flowering Of La Belle Rosette. 2008, http://caribbean-beat.com/issue-94/flowering-la-belle-

rosette-beryl-mcburnie.

“BERYL MC BURNIE.” The Caribbean Memory Project,

http://www.caribbeanmemoryproject.com/mc-burnie-beryl.html. Accessed 12 Nov. 2019.

Issue 20, Judy Raymond |. “Beryl McBurnie: The First Lady of Dance.” Caribbean Beat

Magazine, 1 July 1996, https://www.caribbean-beat.com/issue-20/beryl-mcburnie-first-lady-

dance.

McBurnie, Beryl | Encyclopedia.Com. https://www.encyclopedia.com/history/encyclopedias-

almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/mcburnie-beryl. Accessed 13 Nov. 2019.

“Saviour of Folk Dance.” Trinidad and Tobago Newsday, 3 Feb. 2019,

https://newsday.co.tt/2019/02/03/saviour-of-folk-dance/.

Banham, Martin, et al., editors. The Cambridge Guide to African and Caribbean Theatre. 1st

pbk. ed, Cambridge University Press, 2004.

ivetteromero. “Review of Judy Raymond’s ‘Beryl McBurnie.’” Repeating Islands, 26 Jan. 2019,

https://repeatingislands.com/2019/01/25/review-of-judy-raymonds-beryl-mcburnie/.

The Life of La Belle Rosette. http://www.guardian.co.tt/neo/NeoProxy.dll?

app=NeoDirect&com=6/2/761000/17f8652285. Accessed 13 Nov. 2019.

Endnotes
i
Raymond, Judy. Beryl McBurnie. The University of the West Indies Press, 2018. Pg. 18
ii
Schwartz, Peggy, and Murray Schwartz. The Dance Claimed Me: A Biography of Pearl Primus. Pg.

119
iii
Raymond, Judy. Beryl McBurnie. The University of the West Indies Press, 2018. Pg. 23
iv
Raymond, Judy. Beryl McBurnie. The University of the West Indies Press, 2018. Pg. 4
v
Raymond, Judy. Beryl McBurnie. The University of the West Indies Press, 2018. Pg. X
vi
Raymond, Judy. Beryl McBurnie. The University of the West Indies Press, 2018. Pg. 27
vii
Raymond, Judy. Beryl McBurnie. The University of the West Indies Press, 2018. Pg. 33
viii
Raymond, Judy. Beryl McBurnie. The University of the West Indies Press, 2018. Pg. 19
ix
Raymond, Judy. Beryl McBurnie. The University of the West Indies Press, 2018. Pg. 10
x
Raymond, Judy. Beryl McBurnie. The University of the West Indies Press, 2018. Pg. 21
xi
Raymond, Judy. Beryl McBurnie. The University of the West Indies Press, 2018. Pg. 20
xii
Raymond, Judy. Beryl McBurnie. The University of the West Indies Press, 2018. Pg. 13-14
xiii
Raymond, Judy. Beryl McBurnie. The University of the West Indies Press, 2018. Pg. X
xiv
“Saviour of Folk Dance.” Trinidad and Tobago Newsday, 3 Feb. 2019,

https://newsday.co.tt/2019/02/03/saviour-of-folk-dance/