Discussion Questions for Buxton Spice

1. Is folk tradition inferior?
2. Does the novel present or re-present a hybrid form?
Referring here to both race and the mixing of orality and print.
3. Does the novel mix Standard English with Creole to make a new identity?
4. Is the passage to maturity a Creole one or is it universal?
5. Is there a psychological need for bonding or is it purely physical?
6. Does the story celebrate or vilify the female experience/voice?
7. Is there a colonial ambivalence present?
Consider the description of the parents and the way they raise their children.
Does the novel speak for or against old rearing traditions?
8. Are women who enjoy themselves “unrespectable”? Why? Is it because of class, race or culture?
9. How is a woman defined? Vs. How is a “ho” defined?
10. How does the book challenge the representation of women? If such is present.
11. Which is the ruling class? Why?
12. Who is at the top of the economic heap? Why?
Note: 11 & 12 are not the same, they imply different things.
13. Why is the tree so important? Why would it be keeping secrets? Can it?
14. Is there a sense of solidarity among the characters?
15. Can the style be called poetics of the oppressed?
For instance in considering post-colonial theory, who would fit best?
Fanon, Said, Spivack, Bhabha, Foucoult, Derrida, or other.