Carnival and the Formation of a Caribbean Transnation (review)

In this interpretative study, Philip Scher examines the "transnation" qualities of carnival in Trinidad and Brooklyn. By transnation, Scher refers to the symbolic aspects of carnival that are "commodified" as a kind of economic capital of identity in both a Trinidadian and Brooklyn setting. That is, Trinidadians create their national identity in carnival and take that "nationality" with them through performance of carnival in Brooklyn. Carnival becomes a way of continuing the sense of homeland away from home. Thus, Trinidadian creole identity has as many voices as there are interpretations of that identity.

As I understand Scher, carnival—especially masquerade—is a mechanism whereby the sense of "Trinidadness" is represented in individual understandings: in masquerade-makers' themes, in the act of masquerading, in official renderings of carnival, and in many other ways. Each view of carnival is as "authentic" as any other and it is the "conversation" generated by these many voices that constitutes carnival. As such, carnival is a way Trinidadians can be Trinidadians at home or abroad, while at the same time engage their increasing "American-ness" in the Brooklyn setting.

Scher opens with a heavy dose of postmodern theory, followed by a quick look at the history of Trinidad's carnival. In subsequent chapters he examines the basics of Brooklyn carnival and the "Mas' Camps" where the carnival masquerades are crafted. He zeros in on the sense of multiculturalism expressed in the Labor Day carnival of Brooklyn and examines the character of Carnival King and Queen competitions. Finally, Scher notes in the Trinidadians who return from abroad for carnival an act of spiritual renewal and the strengthening of identity.

This book stands more as an important contribution to postmodern theory than as a descriptive (objective) study of carnival per se. Indeed, I think that was the author's intent for Scher uses the topic of carnival to express his theoretical ideas about transnations, framing the voices of carnival and exploring the notion of "authenticity," as well as other rhetorical themes. But alas! As an old man trained during the last gasp of objective epistemology, I find it hard to understand literary approaches to ethnography. For me, "objectivism" does not mean "objectifying," and the search for truth does not negate relativism. Once, relativism meant that knowledge was viewed as situational and that if one could reproduce the context then one could come to know the truth of that context. By assembling this contextual analysis, you would arrive at an objective view of a culture, with the welcomed aid of interpretation as technique and not simply as a theory of knowledge. The resulting ethnography is not "truth," but it approaches truth.

This is not the same as postmodern subjectivism where every stance, every voice, every frame is as valid as every other and relativism means that culture is a sea of quicksand with each stance as (un)stable as the other. What Gertrude Stein once said of Oakland, California, can be applied as well to postmodernism: "There is no there there." But this is more a critique of postmodernism than it is of this fine book.

The author treats the symbols of Trinidad and Brooklyn carnival as a kind of dialog into the nature of nationality from a creole perspective. This is a first start at understanding carnival from a broader framework that includes the large East Indian population of the island, for example, by explaining Chutney calypso competitions and the idea of transnation. In New York City as well, the transnation theme is but one of many symbolic arenas played out in Brooklyn carnival. There is the integration of various Caribbean nationalities into a "West Indian" persona. There is the relationship between carnival as a West Indian source of cultural identity and as a New York City festival. There are the relationships between the various elements of carnival: steelband...