This volume recognises that the most challenging aspect of introducing students to anglophone Caribbean literature-the sheer variety of intellectual and artistic traditions in Western and non-Western cultures that relate to it-also offers the greatest opportunities to teachers. Courses on anglophone literature in the Caribbean can consider the region's specific histories and contexts even as they explore common issues: the legacies of slavery, colonialism, and colonial education; nationalism; exile and migration; identity and hybridity; class and racial conflict; gender and sexuality; religion and ritual. This volume considers how the availability of materials shapes syllabuses and recommends print, digital, and visual resources for teaching.

The essays examine a host of topics, including the following:

  • the development of multiethnic populations in the Caribbean and the role of various creole languages in the literature
  • oral art forms, such as dub poetry and reggae music
  • the influence of anglophone literature in the Caribbean on literary movements outside it, such as the Harlem Renaissance and black British writing
  • Carnival
  • religious rituals and beliefs
  • specific genres such as slave narratives and autobiography
  • film and drama
  • the economics of rum
Many essays list resources for further reading, and the volume concludes with a section of additional teaching resources.