User:Shanecia brown/Ascot

Gender Theory in 'Ascot'
“That Ascot goin go far,” Mamma say,” “mark my word”. -Ascot.

Ascot is a short literary piece found in " summer lightning and other stories" as well as " over our way". Both collections of Jamaican heritage were published in 1986 and 1980, respectively. The short fiction story entitled 'Ascot' was written by Olive Senior (1941). Olive is one of Jamaica's creative writers and her settings are normally based in rural Jamaica, as was Ascot. In creating her short story “Ascot”, Olive incorporates her experience of living in rural Jamaica. The story is written in both the Jamaican standard English and the Jamaican creole. Olive's story 'Ascot' can be analyzed from a gendered perspective. This analysis will detail the main themes that emerged from the story, the challenges of patriarchy in the Caribbean as well as linguistics and culture. The language in the text will be discussed as it regards how it shapes contemporary beliefs about masculinity and femininity within the Caribbean region. Ascot's journey from childhood toward manhood will be traced, in doing so characteristics traits that are similar to that of Anancy will be revealed as this is what he utilities to his advantage to achieve his American dream.

Olive Senior
Olive Senior is a decorated Jamaican-born journalist, author, and poet. Senior blends her literacy skills with her professional knowledge to illustrate some of the prominent themes in Jamaican society. She is regarded as one of the Caribbean's best creative writing talents and has been awarded multiple accolades such as the Commonwealth Writers’ prize in 1967; Gold, Silver, and Bronze medals for poetry and fiction, Institute of Jamaica Centenary medal for creative writing, 1979; Commonwealth Writers Prize in 1987. Olive as a feminist utilizes her platforms to promote gendered theories and more. Her works, encompass both the English as well as the influence of the region's patois. She transports her pieces through the traditional storytelling method as she reveals the cultural distance there is between her speakers and a discarded African legacy. In general, Senior's literary collection is a combination of stories that reflect her perspective on cultural sensitivity, wit, ambition, and even self-articulation in Jamaica and the Caribbean by extension.

In the story Ascot, Senior highlights the themes of race, class, and cultural identity.

Ascot
Ascot is the story of a boy who grew up in rural Jamaica. He is depicted as a young trickster who sets out to fulfill his dream of dressing in white and driving a big white car. His family lives a life of penury hence the reason why Ascot spent most of his time at the narrator's home where he became known for his idleness and constant looting. Despite those qualities, he was time and again forgiven for his action as they all believed in his ability to reap the benefits of the "white community". After multiple actions of deception, determination, and even perseverance he was on a mission in pursuit of his dreams. A mission of leaving behind his roots and defining his identity as he was mix raced and an outside child. He eventually achieved it and visits his home along with his wife who acquired a master's degree. Ascot's traits, still prevalent, comes into play as he deceived his wife that the house of the narrator was his own in comparison to that of his impoverished mother. At the end of Ascots' misleading journey from adolescence to manhood, he is portrayed as a success, just like the trickster usually is, attaining an economically improved and married life in the United States. Ascot is a modern trickster tale by Olive that portrays a lesson of cultural resistance .

Gender Theory and Language
Language shapes contemporary beliefs about masculinity and femininity within the Caribbean region ~. Language is a part of and is used as a carrier of culture, it is through this method Jamaica's oral tradition is maintained. Identity factors played a role in influencing linguistic change. This part is evident by the word choice made by the characters in the story. The one-way language is to depict the perspective of Caribbean masculinity is seen with Ascot being described as being "ginnal" by the Papa and other men in the town. The context of the word could be assessed as a description of how Caribbean men use their tricks and guile to attain what they desired. This description of Ascot is further fleshed out on his return to his hometown with his wife. The use of the word ginnal shows how language is used as a marker for sexual differentiation in the Caribbean These trickster ways are revealed when he asked Lily to play along with his lies to impress his American wife.

Ascot’s 3 letters to his mother depicted Basilect, Mesolect, and Acrolect as follows: “ is big plase and they have plenty car yr lovin son ascot”, “ dear mother here I am in connrcticut is big plais ”, “ dear mother Chicago is big place”. Ascots English improved over the years, due to his new social background. The process of socialization influenced the linguistic change depending on masculinity and femininity. Ascot was more accustomed to the Jamaican creole whilst Cousin Lilly spoke the Jamaican standard English. Language played a major role as Olives' comparison of Ascot to a “shame me lady macca” is of significance. The shame me lady Macca is a type of herb or macca that is popular in the Jamaican culture. As a defense mechanism, the Macca drops and folds inwards whenever they sense any physical interference. It was a plant used in the colonial period as a tracking device for runaway slaves. The underlining meaning was Ascot's constant need to be freed of his culture and uses his dream as a defense mechanism in doing so. The term 'backra', used by Cousin Lilly, refers to a white person or one who lives like a white person. It is rather coincidental or ironic how they had prepared such a meal on the day Ascot, who seems to believe in white supremacy, and his white wife arrived.

Masculinity in the Caribbean
The story reflects two masculinity types, that of Ascot and Papa which are shown to be quite the opposite. Papa in the story is a stern, hardworking man while Ascot is described as being a "ginnal". The word ginnal used by Papa in the story highlights the guile and trickster ways of Ascot. These qualities are also what Ascot uses to swoon the women of the town. The use of the word ginnal in the story is one way the writer illustrates how language is used as an identity marker for a specific masculinity type. Living in a community that promotes hegemonic masculinity, Papa as the head of the house demanded that his masculinity was not overlooked. Patriarchy as captured by Allan Johnson refers to a society that is male cantered, male-dominated, and male-identified. Papa's constant reference to his wife by "woman" is suggestive of the blatant disregard he has for his wife, as women are subordinates in the eyes of the men of the patriarch. Patriarchy not only guided how decisions were made but also afforded males like papa the privilege of being absent from the kitchen and other Gendered spaces. . After ascot returned home with his wife, we recognized that manhood was not judged based on a man's ability to decide within the family, like papa, but it was also judged on the man's intellectual competence. Talbot research shows that females are less likely to have language-related issues such as stutters and reading difficulties. Because Ascot's schooling ended in grade 3 and his wife acquired a master's degree his intellectual capacity paled in comparison to hers, therefore, Ascot's wife earned a lot more respect from Ascot's family than he did. Senior highlights that she writes to reflect her society and the role of gender plays in its functioning society.

The differences between Ascot and Papa could represent the dichotomy between masculinity types in the Caribbean. Papa is the representation of the orthodox patriarchy masculinity type and Ascot displays a new age masculinity type, being influence by factors like age. The differences between the masculinity types could be linked to the age differences between the characters and changes in prioritization of rural-urban migration for the betterment of one's life during the 1970s. Ascot's drive to leave his rural upbringing behind resides with the conceptualization of his self-image versus his then rural reality.

Femininity in the Caribbean
According to Talbot gender is an important division in all societies and affects how we act and how others treat us. Woman and manhood can be defined as the state of being a woman or a man, respectively. It is more of an identity marker of an individual. Within contemporary Caribbean society women and men are expected to act according to their gender. "Church harvest”; a reference to the physicality of the Caribbean and, more precisely, Jamaican masculinity. Gendered characteristics are posited in the sense that women are caring creatures and males are providers. A depiction of some traits of Caribbean women and men was imparted especially in relating to how the males of the story would act in comparison to the females, the females had to clear the table and clean up after everyone had a feast. Papa was a farmer whilst mama was a stay-at-home mother, as was the same for the other neighbors it seemed. There were instances where papa would listen to his wife’s opinion and abide by it, which is not highly expected of Caribbean Prominent Themes Caribbean Masculinity and Femininity.

The contrast between Mama and Ascot's wife also reveals differences in cultural ideals as it pertains to femininity. The differences in age and cultural perspective of both women could impact their views on femininity overall. Mama being a Jamaican housewife and Ascot's American wife having a master's degree is one difference that highlights the contrast in cultures of the two characters. Social constructionist posit that gender is fluid and its social construction can be changed or contested. Gender assessed from this viewpoint would suggest that social factors in each country affect how gender is formed and perpetuated. Ascot's wife, in being a holder of a master’s degree challenged the representation of Caribbean womanhood, women were not expected or most times allowed to be educated, however, she was. Studies of gender attitudes in the English-speaking Caribbean show that men expect their female partners to perform household tasks and act a certain way when in public.

When linked to the real-life social climate of the decade in which the story was written, the differences between American and Jamaican/Caribbean women's rights are evident. Between the 1960s and 1970s, women in the states were vocalizing and protesting for their rights in society via Women's Strike for Equality. Jamaica, during that same timeframe, was just newly becoming an independent nation. The post-colonial patriarchal system had its effects on gender/femininity norms. Theories related to postcolonialism postulate that the European colonial rule has had retroactive effects on post-colonial countries affecting their society and history.

Race and Identity in the Caribbean
In the short story, Race is seen to intertwine with factors like identity and culture. Senior, in her novel, posits both as they play a significant part in Ascot's life. Ascot's father is believably a white man, hence his physical appearance:" fair skin and straight nose". Ascot as an outside child was treated like the "black sheep", pun intended, which is quite common within the Caribbean culture. The way how race intertwines with the aforementioned factors is depicted in Ascot's dream to ascertain all the things he desired. Ascot's conceptualization of who he wants to be is drawn from his perception of race and identity. Ascot sees himself in the mold of a white man and projects to attain the plaudits which he considers to represent the ideal man. This type of perceived ethno-racial homogeneity has suggested being present in the country and shows links to the nation's colonial past. This could explain Ascot's search for his identity and could be the determinant that made him so driven, thus is Senior's representation of him as a wide-eyed idealist in her story. The word "Aunty", within the Jamaican culture an Auntie is an older woman who is not a blood relative but rather referred to as a form of respect. It is not the same for males as they are referred to as sir or their actual name accompanied by the Title Mr. " Best clothes", Culture presents itself yet again upon Ascot's arrival with his wife and throughout his masquerade. In some rural communities of Jamaica, when visitors are present, it is expected that the hosts make the best impression by wearing their best suit of clothes. Common law marriages are practiced within Jamaica, Ms. Clemmy lives with Mr. Daggoman and has his children without the seal of a wedding band.

Language correlates with culture. In critiquing Olive's work, it is safe to say that, it consists more of the Jamaican standard English than the Jamaican creole. Though some characters speak the patois, her narrations are in English based as she tries to incorporate the old and the new as a means of promoting our cultural heritage " out of many one people." It is ironic that the narrator " cousin Lilly", speaks fluent English whilst her household speaks the basilect throughout the short story. Speakers communicate with each other through different codes .There seems to be a language barrier as Ms. Clemmy always asked Lilly to read her letters, the creole is best understood when spoken as it is difficult to read.

Ascot has always wanted that "American Dream", expecting to rise above what he came from to something more glamorous. Ascot's hybridity was what determined his success in life, according to his community members “him bound to go far”. Race plays a major role in social mobility within society. It can be inferred that it was both Ascot's hybrid race as well as his determination that led to his achievement of social mobility. Both outside of his community and country. Ascot's prevalent racist traits surface throughout the story as he constantly disregards anything that has to do with black and aspires the white supremacy.

Culture
Caribbean literary writers are unique in their writing. Literary icons such as Louise Bennett Coverley and even Olive Senior herself use skills such as animal imagery or even anthropomorphism to display human characteristics in animals to have charming and memorable characters. The protagonist Ascot embodies, behavioral traits of his folk alter ego, Anancy. Their actions are a mixture of slyness, deception, trickster, and even selfishness. Just as how Anancy would outwit his friends to come out all successful in the end, this was Ascot. Blatant lies were what Ascot specialized in and deceived Papa, his cousin, the government, and even his wife; all this was in pursuit of Ascot's end goal.

In justifying Ascots trickster and selfish ways papa sanctions him by saying: “No matter how hard yu wuk an how much money yu make yu will nevva find shoes for dem doan mek in fe yu size”. His feet are what gave him away as the thief of the banana, in stating this papa allows him to know that even if he tries to hide his true nature it will always show. His white outfit which is used as a display is American when in truth the essence of it is truly Caribbean. Ascot is always known for putting on a show. Ascots trickery is not only used as a means of survival from hegemonic masculinity but also as a means of resistance. Olive's use of " mass Jackie", as Papa's name is significant as Jackie is the name for a donkey. The title itself is suiting as not only is mass Jackie a farmer who uses the aid of a donkey to transport his crop but also the head of the house. Being the head of the house, he is expected to manage and bear the burdens of his family, which is the role of a donkey. The cat is also another sly animal that is used to compare Ascot too, his thieving lifestyle is proof of such actions. Ascot would constantly steal from his neighbors as would neighborhood cats with no regard for the consequences.

'That Ascot goin go far,' Mamma say, 'mark my word'. These words are the motto of Olive's piece, it is what started and ended the short story. This gender theory of Ascot depicts patriarchal challenges throughout Ascot's journey to be a man, whether internally or externally. The language itself had its significance in the perception of Caribbean culture. Hegemonic masculinity is still prevalent within the Caribbean society and as such gender roles remain the same. The use of animal imagery in Olive's piece was used as a cushion to aid with the perception of Ascot and other characters whose traits reflected that of folklore creatures. The novel itself was a true representative of Caribbean culture and linguistics as a gender analysis was achieved. Ascot depicted not only, Caribbean masculinity through folklore but also social mobility and the breakage of cultural barriers.