Caribbean History
According to Orlando Patterson it "is astonishing how the Washington and New York elites, the people who benefit most from the improvement of the United Sates, are so out of sync with it, endlessly talking about how things are getting worse when the country is clearly improving." (Patterson). He feels that in order for Caribbean culture to prosper and grow they must be "cautious." Patterson feels the Caribbean culture should be cautious not fall into the same patterns and repeat past mistakes of history. He furthers that to the extent favorable trends are remarked upon, they are often treated as ephemera of a strong economy.
A large majority of the Caribbean islands are very much well developed and the others that have not attained that status are very close in making strides towards reaching it. Every island does celebrate its cultural heritage in similar ways. According to V.S. Naipaul "the culture of the Caribbean is quite a vast and unique experience for anyone wishing to travel or even contemplating living there. Whether your choice is exotic cuisine, colorful and exuberant carnival atmospheres, arts and craft to an exploration of the religion and history, the Caribbean cultural experience is one that will be sure to enlighten you." (Naipaul).
Naipaul draws honestly from the margins of society and addresses the growing sense of displacement experienced by newly dependent Third World nations. Naipaul is a writer who examines newly free nations and is concerned with them. Naipaul feels Third World Nations are doomed. Not surprisingly his pessimistic opinion is not very popular. However, most critics tend to agree with Naipaul's outlook. He tells the truth, no matter how much it hurts though. Although Naipaul obviously loves the Caribbean and its culture he feels to develop, as a nation may very well be a very slow process if not impossible. Patterson and Naipaul do not have optimistic forecasts however they are truthful and realistic. Both Patterson and Naipaul are viewed by many to be controversial yet the development of the Caribbean financially may be difficult. Naipaul and Patterson are concerned with the effects to the existing Caribbean cultures if the nation changes and develops. They fear something may be lost in the effort to gain.
