I think there is definitely a sense in which this novel
deals with failures in relationships. Of course, centrally, the novel deals with
inter-racial relationships and the various failures that they represent. Note how the
novel begins with the newly freed slaves and former slaveowners hoping to receive some
form of compensation from the British government. Such a context points towards the very
delicate nature between blacks and whites in the West Indies. This conflict literally
engulfs the plantation house in Coulibri, which of course symbolises white mastery and
oppression, and likewise the newly arrived English colonists in the form of the
Rochesters are profoundly prejudiced against blacks. Note the way in which Antoinette is
told she must disown her black relatives.
Likewise failed
relationships are shown through the irrational fears of miscegenation. Insanity is
thought to be a product of Antoinette's relationship with her black cousin just as
Annette Cosway's relationship with a black man is the mark of her madness. It is highly
significant that in a dream at the end of the novel, Antoinette conjures up a society
which is characterised by peace between blacks and whites, signifying just how prominent
failed relationships because of racial discrimination is a major theme in the
novel.
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