Jan Rynveld Carew (24 September 1920 – 6 December 2012) was a

Guyana Guyana ( or ), officially the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern mainland of South America. Guyana is an indigenous word which means "Land of Many Waters". The capital city is Georgetown. Guyana is bordered by the ...

-born novelist, playwright, poet and educator, who lived at various times in The Netherlands, Mexico, England, France, Spain, Ghana, Jamaica, Canada and the United States. Carew's works, diverse in form and multifaceted, make Jan Carew an important intellectual of the Caribbean world. His poetry and first two novels, ''Black Midas'' and ''The Wild Coast'' (both published in 1958 by

Secker & Warburg Harvill Secker is a British publishing company formed in 2005 from the merger of Secker & Warburg and the Harvill Press. History Secker & Warburg Secker & Warburg was formed in 1935 from a takeover of Martin Secker, which was in receivership, ...

in London), were significant landmarks of

West Indian literature Caribbean literature is the literature of the various territories of the Caribbean region. Literature in English from the former British West Indies may be referred to as Anglo-Caribbean or, in historical contexts, as West Indian literature. Most ...

then attempting to cope with its colonial past and assert its wish for autonomy. Carew worked with the late President

Cheddi Jagan Cheddi Berret Jagan (22 March 1918 – 6 March 1997) was a Guyanese politician and dentist who was first elected Chief Minister in 1953 and later Premier of British Guiana from 1961 to 1964. He later served as President of Guyana from 199 ...

in the fight for Guianese independence. He also played an important part in the Black movement gaining strength in England and North America, publishing reviews and newspapers, producing programmes and plays for radio and television. His scholarly research drove him to question traditional

historiographies Historiography is the study of the methods of historians in developing history as an academic discipline, and by extension is any body of historical work on a particular subject. The historiography of a specific topic covers how historians hav ...

and the prevailing historical models of the conquest of America. The way he reframed

Christopher Columbus Christopher Columbus * lij, Cristoffa C(or)ombo * es, link=no, Cristóbal Colón * pt, Cristóvão Colombo * ca, Cristòfor (or ) * la, Christophorus Columbus. (; born between 25 August and 31 October 1451, died 20 May 1506) was a ...

as an historical character outside his mythical hagiography became a necessary path in his mind to build anew the Caribbean world on sounder foundations.

Biography

Childhood in British Guiana

Jan Rynveld Carew was born on 24 September 1920 at

Agricola Agricola, the Latin word for farmer, may also refer to: People Cognomen or given name :''In chronological order'' * Gnaeus Julius Agricola (40–93), Roman governor of Britannia (AD 77–85) * Sextus Calpurnius Agricola, Roman governor of the mid ...

, a coastal village also called Rome, in

British Guiana British Guiana was a British colony, part of the mainland British West Indies, which resides on the northern coast of South America. Since 1966 it has been known as the independent nation of Guyana. The first European to encounter Guiana was S ...

, the South American colony of the British Empire that would become the present-day Guyana. He was the middle child and only son of Ethel Robertson and Alan Carew. From 1924 to 1926, the Carews lived in the United States but Jan and his elder sister Cicely, returned to Guyana after the kidnapping of his younger sister Sheila, in New York in 1926. The child would be recovered and reunited with her family in 1927.Carew, Joy Gleason, and Hazel Waters (eds), ''The Gentle Revolutionary: Essays in Honour of Jan Carew''. ''Race & Class'', vol. 43, no. 3, 2001, p. 81. Carew's father lived on several occasions in the United States and Canada, working for a while with the

Canadian Pacific Railway The Canadian Pacific Railway (french: Chemin de fer Canadien Pacifique) , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadi ...

, and thus crossing the American continent from Halifax to

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

. His memories would fuel the imagination of the young Carew. From 1926 to 1938, he was educated in Guyana, first attending the Agricola Wesleyan School, then the Catholic elementary school and then

Berbice High School Berbice High School is a school in New Amsterdam, Guyana, New Amsterdam, Guyana. Enrolment in 1966, the year control of the school was handed over to the Government, was 741. References External linksAerial view
{{Education in Guyana High ...

, a Canadian

Scottish Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...

School, in

New Amsterdam New Amsterdam ( nl, Nieuw Amsterdam, or ) was a 17th-century Dutch settlement established at the southern tip of Manhattan Island that served as the seat of the colonial government in New Netherland. The initial trading ''factory'' gave rise ...

. He passed his

Senior Cambridge Examination The Senior Cambridge examinations were General Certificate of Education examinations held in India, Jamaica, Malaysia, Pakistan, and Singapore. They were preceded by the Junior Cambridge and Preliminary Cambridge examinations. History India The ...

in 1938. After leaving education in 1939, he became a part-time teacher at Berbice High School for Girls, but was called up to the British Army as the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

broke out in Europe. He served in the Coast Artillery Regiment until 1943. From 1943 to 1944, he was a customs officer in Georgetown. At that time, he published his first text in the Christmas Annual and was working a lot on his painting and drawing. From 1944 to 1945, he worked at the Price Controls Office in

Port-of-Spain Port of Spain (Spanish: ''Puerto España''), officially the City of Port of Spain (also stylized Port-of-Spain), is the capital of Trinidad and Tobago and the third largest municipality, after Chaguanas and San Fernando. The city has a municip ...

Trinidad Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands of Trinidad and Tobago. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is often referred to as the southernmos ...

. Carew felt himself to be part of the Caribbean world that for him included "the island archipelago, the countries of the Caribbean littoral and Guyana, Surinam, and

Cayenne Cayenne (; ; gcr, Kayenn) is the capital city of French Guiana, an overseas region and Overseas department, department of France located in South America. The city stands on a former island at the mouth of the Cayenne River on the Atlantic Oc ...

." He found the paradoxical unity of the Caribbean way of life in the "successive waves of cultural alienation" that shaped the Caribbean frame of mind from "a mosaic of cultural fragments -

Amerindian The Indigenous peoples of the Americas are the inhabitants of the Americas before the arrival of the European settlers in the 15th century, and the ethnic groups who now identify themselves with those peoples. Many Indigenous peoples of the Am ...

, African, European, Asian."

The university years

At the age of 25, he left Guyana for the United States, where he studied science at

Howard University Howard University (Howard) is a private, federally chartered historically black research university in Washington, D.C. It is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity" and accredited by the Middle States Commissi ...

and

Western Reserve University Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

(1945–1948), the predecessor of

Case Western Reserve University Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) is a private research university in Cleveland, Ohio. Case Western Reserve was established in 1967, when Western Reserve University, founded in 1826 and named for its location in the Connecticut Western Reser ...

but left without graduating. Later, Carew attended

Charles University ) , image_name = Carolinum_Logo.svg , image_size = 200px , established = , type = Public, Ancient , budget = 8.9 billion CZK , rector = Milena Králíčková , faculty = 4,057 , administrative_staff = 4,026 , students = 51,438 , undergr ...

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...

(1948–1950) and the

Sorbonne Sorbonne may refer to: * Sorbonne (building), historic building in Paris, which housed the University of Paris and is now shared among multiple universities. *the University of Paris (c. 1150 – 1970) *one of its components or linked institution, ...

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

Exile and later years

In what he described as his "endless journeyings",Author page at Peepal Tree Press.
he lived at different times in the Netherlands, Mexico, England, France, Spain, Ghana, Canada and the United States. In 1951, while in the Netherlands, he was editor of ''De Kim'' (multilingual poetry magazine in Amsterdam). In England, he acted alongside

Laurence Olivier Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier (; 22 May 1907 – 11 July 1989) was an English actor and director who, along with his contemporaries Ralph Richardson and John Gielgud, was one of a trio of male actors who dominated the Theatre of the U ...

Margaret Busby Margaret Yvonne Busby, , Hon. FRSL (born 1944), also known as Nana Akua Ackon, is a Ghanaian-born publisher, editor, writer and broadcaster, resident in the UK. She was Britain's youngest and first black female book publisherJazzmine Breary"Let' ...

"Jan Carew obituary"
''The Guardian'', 21 December 2012. and edited the ''Kensington Post'' in 1953. He also worked as a broadcaster and writer with the

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...

and lectured in race relations at

London University The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree- ...

. He was the first editor of the black-oriented publication ''Magnet News'', launched in London in February 1965. He always maintained his Caribbean links, and in 1962 served as director of culture in British Guiana under the Jagan administration. According to York University Professor Emeritus Dr. Frank Birbalsingh, "He was a strong supporter of the late Dr.

and the People's Progressive Party. He was quite fearless when it came to politics.""Jan Carew ‘had a remarkable facility for narrating stories’"
, ''Share'', 12 December 2012. Between 1962 and 1966 Carew lived in Jamaica with his then wife

Sylvia Wynter ''The Honourable'' Sylvia Wynter, O.J. (Holguín, Cuba, 11 May 1928) is a Jamaican novelist, /sup> dramatist, /sup> critic, philosopher, and essayist. /sup> Her work combines insights from the natural sciences, the humanities, art, and anti-co ...

, subsequently moving to Canada for some years before settling in the USA. During this period he served as editor of '' African Review'' in 1965, and in 1969 became publisher of ''Cotopax'' (a Third World literary magazine). Carew taught at

Princeton Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the nine ...

Rutgers Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College, and was a ...

, Illinois Wesleyan,

Hampshire College Hampshire College is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Amherst, Massachusetts. It was opened in 1970 as an experiment in alternative education, in association with four other colleges ...

, Northwestern and

Lincoln Lincoln most commonly refers to: * Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the sixteenth president of the United States * Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England * Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S. * Lincoln ...

Universities and was

Emeritus Professor ''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...

of African American Studies at Northwestern University. Jan Carew died at his home in

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...

, USA, at the age of 92,"Renown Guyanese author Jan Carew dies"
''Guyana Chronicle Online'', 8 December 2012. survived by his widow Dr Joy Gleason,Eusi Kwayana

''ChickenBones: A Journal''. his daughters

Lisa St Aubin de Terán Lisa St Aubin de Terán (born 2 October 1953) is an English novelist, writer of autobiographical fictions, and memoirist. Her father was the Guyanese writer and academic Jan Carew. Life and career Lisa St Aubin de Terán was born in 1953 to ...

and Shantoba Eliza Carew, and his son, David Christopher Carew.Obituary: Jan R. Carew
''The Courier-Journal'', 9 December 2012. Carew's memoir ''Potaro Dreams: My Youth in Guyana'' was posthumously published in 2014. Envisaged as a first volume, covering the period from birth in 1920 to 1939 when Carew was drawn into the Second World War, the book was described by the author as "the prism" through which he would approach life.

Activism

The black movement and the problem of culture

Carew was a pioneer in the field of

Pan-African Studies Pan-Africanism is a worldwide movement that aims to encourage and strengthen bonds of solidarity between all Indigenous and diaspora peoples of African ancestry. Based on a common goal dating back to the Atlantic slave trade, the movement ext ...

. Some of the noted figures to whom Carew has been connected are

W. E. B. Du Bois William Edward Burghardt Du Bois ( ; February 23, 1868 – August 27, 1963) was an American-Ghanaian sociologist, socialist, historian, and Pan-Africanist civil rights activist. Born in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, Du Bois grew up in ...

Paul Robeson Paul Leroy Robeson ( ; April 9, 1898 – January 23, 1976) was an American bass-baritone concert artist, stage and film actor, professional football player, and activist who became famous both for his cultural accomplishments and for his p ...

Langston Hughes James Mercer Langston Hughes (February 1, 1901 – May 22, 1967) was an American poet, social activist, novelist, playwright, and columnist from Joplin, Missouri. One of the earliest innovators of the literary art form called jazz poetry, Hug ...

Malcolm X Malcolm X (born Malcolm Little, later Malik el-Shabazz; May 19, 1925 – February 21, 1965) was an American Muslim minister and human rights activist who was a prominent figure during the civil rights movement. A spokesman for the Nation of Is ...

Kwame Nkrumah Kwame Nkrumah (born 21 September 190927 April 1972) was a Ghanaian politician, political theorist, and revolutionary. He was the first Prime Minister and President of Ghana, having led the Gold Coast to independence from Britain in 1957. An in ...

Shirley Graham Du Bois Shirley Graham Du Bois (born Lola Shirley Graham Jr.; November 11, 1896 – March 27, 1977) was an American writer, playwright, composer, and activist for African-American causes, among others. She won the Messner and the Anisfield-Wolf prizes f ...

Maurice Bishop Maurice Rupert Bishop (29 May 1944 – 19 October 1983) was a Grenadian revolutionary and the leader of New Jewel Movement – a Marxist–Leninist party which sought to prioritise socio-economic development, education, and black liberation ...

Cheikh Anta Diop Cheikh Anta Diop (29 December 1923 – 7 February 1986) was a Senegalese historian, anthropologist, physicist, and politician who studied the human race's origins and pre-colonial African culture. Diop's work is considered foundational to the the ...

Edward Scobie Edward Vivian Scobie (23 May 1918 – 14 November 1996) was a Dominican-born journalist, magazine publisher and historian. He is best known for his research into the history of black people in Western Europe and his 1972 seminal book ''Black B ...

John Henrik Clarke John Henrik Clarke (born John Henry Clark; January 1, 1915 - July 16, 1998) was an African-American historian, professor, and pioneer in the creation of Pan-African and Africana studies and professional institutions in academia starting in the ...

, Tsegaye Medhin Gabre, Sterling D. Plumpp and Ivan Van Sertima.

The invasion of Grenada and the redefinition of colonial history

In his book ''Grenada: The Hour Will Strike Again'' (1985), published two years after the American

invasion of Grenada The United States invasion of Grenada began at dawn on 25 October 1983. The United States and a coalition of six Caribbean nations invaded the island nation of Grenada, north of Venezuela. Codenamed Operation Urgent Fury by the U.S. military, ...

, "Carew unearthed and revealed sources of independence in the country itself.

he book He or HE may refer to: Language * He (pronoun), an English pronoun * He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ * He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets * He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' in ...

went back to and beyond the struggles of the rebellious African captives, but to the epic resistance of the island's indigenous population."

The environmental issue

As noted by

Eusi Kwayana Eusi Kwayana, formerly Sydney King (born 4 April 1925), is a Guyanese politician. A cabinet minister in the People's Progressive Party (PPP) government of 1953, he was detained by the British Army in 1954. Later he left the PPP to form ASCRIA (A ...

, Carew "was an environmentalist long before it become fashionable" and made a recommendation to the government of Guyana for an international involvement for a million acres of forestland in Guyana, which inspired an Act on the Guyanese statute book to provide for approximately 360,000 hectares of tropical rainforest for the purposes of research "to make available to Guyana and the International Community systems, methods, and techniques for the sustainable management and utilisation of the multiple resources of the Tropical forest and the conservation of biological diversity and for matters incidental thereto."

Selected literary works

Carew wrote novels, short stories, plays, memoirs and other non-fiction, as well as children's stories and books, but he remains best known for his first novel, ''Black Midas'' (1958). He was a contributor of reviews, articles, short stories and essays to many periodicals, including ''

John O'London's Weekly ''John O'London's Weekly'' was a weekly literary magazine that was published by George Newnes Ltd of London between 1919 and 1954. In 1960 it was briefly brought back into circulation (writer Peter Green's biography lists him as having been fil ...

Time and Tide Time and Tide (usually derived from the proverb ''Time and tide wait for no man'') may refer to: Music Albums * ''Time and Tide'' (Greenslade album), 1975 * ''Time and Tide'' (Basia album), 1987 * ''Time and Tide'' (Battlefield Band album), ...

Art News and Review ''ArtReview'' is an international contemporary art magazine based in London, founded in 1948. Its sister publication, ''ArtReview Asia'', was established in 2013. History Launched as a fortnightly broadsheet in February 1949 by a retired country ...

New England Review The ''New England Review'' is an American quarterly literary magazine published by Middlebury College. It was established in 1978 by Sydney Lea and Jay Parini. From 1982 till 1990, the magazine was named ''New England Review & Bread Loaf Quart ...

and Bread Loaf Quarterly,

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

, Saturday Review,

New Statesman The ''New Statesman'' is a British political and cultural magazine published in London. Founded as a weekly review of politics and literature on 12 April 1913, it was at first connected with Sidney and Beatrice Webb and other leading members ...

, African Review, The Listener, Journal of African Civilizations, Black Press Review, New Deliberations, Journal of the Association of Caribbean Studies, Black American Literature Forum, Pacific Quarterly,'' and ''

Race & Class ''Race & Class'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal on contemporary racism and imperialism. It is published quarterly by Sage Publications on behalf of the Institute of Race Relations and is interdisciplinary, publishing material across the human ...

.'' His many works include:

Novels / novellas

* ''Black Midas'' (London:

, 1958;

Peepal Tree Press Peepal Tree Press is a publisher based in Leeds, England which publishes Caribbean, Black British, and South Asian fiction, non-fiction, poetry, drama and academic books. It was founded after a paper shortage in Guyana halted production of new bo ...

, 2009, ); published as ''A Touch of Midas'' in US (New York: Coward, 1958, ) *''The Wild Coast'' (London: Secker & Warburg, 1958; Peepal Tree Press, 2009, ) *''The Last Barbarian'' (London: Secker & Warburg, 1961, ) *''Moscow is Not My Mecca'' (London: Secker & Warburg, 1964, ); published as ''Green Winter'' (

Stein & Day Stein and Day, Inc. was an American publishing company founded by Sol Stein and his wife Patricia Day in 1962. Stein was both the publisher and the editor-in-chief. The firm was based in New York City, and was in business for 27 years, until clos ...

, 1965, ) *''The Riverman'' – novella (Trenton, NJ: Africa World Press, 1987) * ''The Sisters'' – novella (Trenton, NJ: Africa World Press, 1987) * ''The Sisters and Manco's Stories'' (Oxford: Macmillan Caribbean Writers, 2002, ) *''The Guyanese Wanderer: Stories'' (Louisville, KY:

Sarabande Books Sarabande Books is an American not-for-profit literary press founded in 1994. It is headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky, with an office in New York City. Sarabande publishes contemporary poetry and nonfiction. Sarabande is a literary press whos ...

, 2007, )

Poetry

* ''Streets of Eternity'' (privately printed, 1952, ) * ''Sea Drums in My Blood'' (Trinidad: New Voices,1981, ) * ''Return to Streets of Eternity'' (Smokestack Books, 2015, )

Juvenile / young adult fiction

* ''Sons of the Flying Wing'' (Toronto:

McClelland & Stewart McClelland & Stewart Limited is a Canadian publishing company. It is owned by Penguin Random House of Canada, a branch of Penguin Random House, the international book publishing division of German media giant Bertelsmann. History It was founded ...

, 1970) * ''The Third Gift,'' illus.

Leo and Diane Dillon Leo Dillon (March 2, 1933 – May 26, 2012) and Diane Dillon (''née'' Sorber; born March 13, 1933) were American illustrators of children's books and adult paperback book and magazine covers. One obituary of Leo called the work of the husba ...

(New York: Little Brown & Co., 1974, ) * ''Children of the Sun'', illus. Leo and Diane Dillon (New York: Little Brown & Co., 1980, ) * ''Stranger than Tomorrow: Three Stories of the Future'' (London:

Longman Longman, also known as Pearson Longman, is a publishing company founded in London, England, in 1724 and is owned by Pearson PLC. Since 1968, Longman has been used primarily as an imprint by Pearson's Schools business. The Longman brand is also ...

, 1976, ) * ''Save the Last Dance for Me, and Other Stories,'' (London: Longman, 1976, ) * ''The Twins of Ilora'' (New York: Little, Brown 1977, ) * ''The Lost Love, and Other Stories,'' Longman (London: Longman, 1978) * ''The Man Who Came Back,'' Longman (London: Longman, 1979, ) * ''The Cat People,'' Longman (London: Longman, 1979, ) * ''Dark Night, Deep Water'' (London: Longman, 1981, ) * ''Dead Man's Creek: Two Stories'' (London: Longman, 1981, ) * ''House of Fear: Two Stories'' (London: Longman, 1981, ) * ''Don't Go Near the Water'' (London: Longman, 1982, ) * ''Time Loop'' (London: Hutchinson Education, 1983, ) * ''Death Comes to the Circus'' (London: Hutchinson Education, 1983, ) * ''Computer Killer'' (London: Hutchinson Education, 1985, )

Non-fiction

*''Cry Black Power'' (Toronto:

, 1970) *''Rope the Sun'' (Third Press, 1973) *(Editor) ''Out of Time,'' illus. Howard Phillips (Cardiff: Adult Basic Education Centre, 1975, ) *''Indian and African Presence in the Americas'' (Atlanta: Georgia State University, 1984, ) *'' Grenada: The Hour Will Strike Again'' (Prague: International Organization of Journalists Press, 1985, ) *''Fulcrums of Change: Origins of Racism in the Americas and Other Essays'' (Trenton, NJ: Africa World Press, 1988, ) *''Ghosts in Our Blood: With Malcolm X in Africa, England and the Caribbean'' (Chicago: Lawrence Hill Books, 1994, ) *''Rape of Paradise: Columbus and the Birth of Racism in the Americas'' (Brooklyn: A & B Publishers, 1994; Seaburn Publishing, 2006, ) *''Potaro Dreams: My Youth in Guyana'' (

Hansib Publications Arif Ali (born 13 March 1935)Asher & Martin Hoyles, ''Caribbean Publishing in Britain: A Tribute to Arif Ali'', Hansib Publications (2011), 2015, p. 97. is a Guyanese-born publisher and newspaper proprietor who migrated to London in 1957. The com ...

, 2014, ) *''Episodes in My Life: The Autobiography of Jan Carew'' — edited by Joy Gleason Carew (

, 2015, )

Essays

* "Being Black in Belorussia is Like Being from Mars" (''

'', 19 September 1971) * "Look Bwana, in East Africa you carry a bicycle on the bus, eat crocodile tail and get to know the people who married the wind" (''The New York Times'', 24 October 1971) * "The Caribbean writer and exile" (''

Journal of Black Studies ''Journal of Black Studies'' is a bimonthly peer-reviewed academic journal that publishes papers in the fields of social sciences and ethnic studies concerning African and African diaspora culture, with particular interest in African-American cultu ...

'', Vol. 8, No. 4, 1978, pp. 453–475) * "The fusion of African and Amerindian folk myths" (''

Caribbean Quarterly ''Caribbean Quarterly'' is a quarterly peer-reviewed academic journal covering studies on the culture of the Caribbean. It is published for the University of the West Indies by Taylor & Francis. It was established in 1949. The editor-in-chief is K ...

'', Vol. 23, No. 1, 1977, pp. 7–21 and ''

Bim ''Bim'' is a 1974 Trinidad and Tobago film written by Raoul Pantin and directed by Hugh A. Robertson. It was described by Bruce Paddington as "one of the most important films to be produced in Trinidad and Tobago and... one of the classics of Ca ...

,'' Vol. 16, No. 64, 1978, pp. 241–257) * "Estevanico: The African Explorer" ('' Journal of African Civilizations'', Vol. 3. No. 1, April 1981, pp. 86–99, ) * "Columbus and the origins of racism in the Americas: part one" (''

'', April 1988, Vol. 29: pp. 1–19) * "Columbus and the origins of racism in the Americas: part two" (''Race & Class'', April 1988, Vol. 30: pp. 33–57, ) * "United We Stand! Joint Struggles of Native Americans and African Americans in the Columbian Era" (''

Monthly Review The ''Monthly Review'', established in 1949, is an independent socialist magazine published monthly in New York City. The publication is the longest continuously published socialist magazine in the United States. History Establishment Following ...

'', Vol. 44, No. 3: July–August 1992) * "Columbus: a harbinger of slavery and racism" (''

The New York Amsterdam News The ''Amsterdam News'' (also known as ''New York Amsterdam News'') is a weekly Black-owned newspaper serving New York City. It is one of the oldest newspapers geared toward African Americans in the United States and has published columns by s ...

'', 11 July 1992, pp. 2 & 29) * "Moorish Culture-Bringers: Bearers of Enlightenment" (in Ivan Van Sertima, ed., ''Golden Age of the Moor'', New Brunswick: Transaction Press, 1992, pp. 248–277, ) * "Culture and Rebellion" (''Race & Class'': Special issue – Black America: the street and the campus, Vol. 35, No. 1, July – September 1993) * "Jonestown revisited" (

, ''A New Look At Jonestown: Dimensions from a Guyanese Perspective'', Carib House, 2016, ) * "The

Ivory trade The ivory trade is the commercial, often illegal trade in the ivory tusks of the hippopotamus, walrus, narwhal, mammoth, and most commonly, African and Asian elephants. Ivory has been traded for hundreds of years by people in Africa and Asia, ...

: The cruelest trade of all, white gold" * "The Synergen project" * "The Amaranth project"

Radio plays

* 1957: ''The River Man,'' BBC * 1958: ''The Legend of Nameless Mountain,'' BBC * 1958: ''Anancy and Tiger,'' BBC * 1960: ''The University of Hunger'' (with Sylvia Wynter) BBC * 1968: ''Song of the Riverman,''

BBC Radio 3 BBC Radio 3 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It replaced the BBC Third Programme in 1967 and broadcasts classical music and opera, with jazz, world music, Radio drama, drama, High culture, culture and the arts ...

Television plays

* 1961: ''The Big Pride'' (with Sylvia Wynter),

ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of: ** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...

Associated Television Associated Television was the original name of the British broadcaster ATV, part of the Independent Television (ITV) network. It provided a service to London at weekends from 1955 to 1968, to the Midlands on weekdays from 1956 to 1968, and ...

* 1961: ''The Day of the Fox,'' Associated Television (starring

Sammy Davis Jr. Samuel George Davis Jr. (December 8, 1925 – May 16, 1990) was an American singer, dancer, actor, comedian, film producer and television director. At age three, Davis began his career in vaudeville with his father Sammy Davis Sr. and the ...

) * 1963: ''Exile from the Sun,'' Associated Television (never performed) * 1963: ''The Baron of South Boulevard,'' Associated Television * 1963: ''No Gown for Peter,'' Associated Television * 1963: ''The Raiders,'' Associated Television * 1963: ''The Smugglers,'' Associated Television * 1963: ''A Roof of Stars,'' Associated Television * 1963: ''The Conversion of Tiho,'' Associated Television * 1969: ''Behind God's Back,''

Canadian Broadcasting Company The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (french: Société Radio-Canada), branded as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian public broadcaster for both radio and television. It is a federal Crown corporation that receives funding from the government. ...

Stage plays

* ''Black Midas'' – screenplay * 1962: ''Miracle in Lime Lane'' (adaptation of a play by Coventry Taylor) – produced in

Spanish Town Spanish Town ( jam, label=Jamaican Creole, Panish Tong) is the capital and the largest town in the parish of St. Catherine in the historic county of Middlesex, Jamaica. It was the Spanish and British capital of Jamaica from 1534 until 1872. Th ...

, Jamaica * 1966: ''The University of Hunger'' (three-act) – produced in Georgetown, Guyana, at Georgetown Theatre * 1967: ''Gentlemen Be Seated –'' produced in

Belgrade Belgrade ( , ;, ; Names of European cities in different languages: B, names in other languages) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers a ...

Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...

* 1970: ''Black Horse, Pale Rider'' (two-act) –

University of the West Indies The University of the West Indies (UWI), originally University College of the West Indies, is a public university system established to serve the higher education needs of the residents of 17 English-speaking countries and territories in th ...

, Extra-Mural Department * 1975: ''Behind God's Back –''

Carifesta Caribbean Festival of Arts, commonly known as CARIFESTA, is an annual festival for promoting arts of the Caribbean with a different country hosting the event each year. It was started to provide a venue to "depict the life of the people of the Regio ...

, Volume 2 * 1987: ''The Peace Play''

Selected awards

Amongst the many awards that Carew received during his lifetime, of note are: * 1964: ''

Daily Mirror The ''Daily Mirror'' is a British national daily tabloid. Founded in 1903, it is owned by parent company Reach plc. From 1985 to 1987, and from 1997 to 2002, the title on its masthead was simply ''The Mirror''. It had an average daily print ...

'' Award for Best Play (for ''The Big Pride'') * 1974:

Illinois Arts Council The Illinois Arts Council is a government agency of the state of Illinois formed to encourage development of the arts throughout Illinois. Founded in 1965 by the Illinois General Assembly, the Illinois Arts Council provides financial and technica ...

award for fiction (for the short story "Ti-Zek") * 1974:

American Institute of Graphic Arts The American Institute of Graphic Arts (AIGA) is a professional organization for design. Its members practice all forms of communication design, including graphic design, typography, interaction design, user experience, branding and identity. T ...

Certificate of Excellence (for ''The Third Gift)'' * 1977:

Casa de las Américas Prize The Casa de las Américas Prize (''Premio Literario Casa de las Américas'') is a literary award given by the Cuban Casa de las Américas. Established in 1959, it is one of Latin America’s oldest and most prestigious literary prizes. The award ...

for poetry, * 1979:

Pushcart prize The Pushcart Prize is an American literary prize published by Pushcart Press that honors the best "poetry, short fiction, essays or literary whatnot" published in the small presses over the previous year. Magazine and small book press editors are ...

(for the essay "The Caribbean writer and exile") * 1985: The

Walter Rodney Walter Anthony Rodney (23 March 1942 – 13 June 1980) was a Guyanese historian, political activist and academic. His notable works include ''How Europe Underdeveloped Africa'', first published in 1972. Rodney was assassinated in Georgetow ...

Memorial Award from the Association of Caribbean Studies * 1985: National Film Institute Award (for screenplay of ''Black Midas)'' * 1990: The

Hansib Arif Ali (born 13 March 1935)Asher & Martin Hoyles, ''Caribbean Publishing in Britain: A Tribute to Arif Ali'', Hansib Publications (2011), 2015, p. 97. is a Guyanese-born publisher and newspaper proprietor who migrated to London in 1957. The com ...

Publication Award * 1991: The Franz Fanon Freedom Award * 1998: The Paul Robeson Award (for "living a life of art and politics") * 2002: The

Clark-Atlanta University Clark Atlanta University (CAU or Clark Atlanta) is a private, Methodist, historically black research university in Atlanta, Georgia. Clark Atlanta is the first Historically Black College or University (HBCU) in the Southern United States. Foun ...

Nkyinkyim Award * 2003: The Caribbean-Canadian Lifetime Creative Award from the Caribbean Canadian Literary ExpositionHilary Hurd Anyaso
"Jan Carew, Leader in Black Studies, Dies at 92"
Northwestern University, 10 January 2013.Lauren Caruba
"Northwestern African American studies professor, noted novelist dies at 92"
''The Daily Northwestern'', 10 January 2013. * 2008: Independent Publisher Bronze Prize for Multicultural Fiction (for ''The Guyanese Wanderer'')

External links

Jan Carew website

Plays by Jan Carew
* Al Creigton

Arts on Sunday, ''

Stabroek News The ''Stabroek News'' is a privately owned newspaper published in Guyana. It takes its name from ''Stabroek'' , the former name of Georgetown, Guyana. It was first published in November 1986, first as a weekly but it later changed to a daily prin ...

'', 5 May 2002. * N. D. Williams
"Jan Carew: Rewind & Last Hurrah"
5 September 2007. * David Austin
"The gentle revolutionary: Jan Carew at 90"
''Stabroek News'', 27 September 2010. * Joy Gleason Carew
"Black Midas in Moscow - Conversations with Jan Carew"
SX Salon, '' Small Axe'', 16 December 2011. * Eusi Kwayana
"Remembering Jan Carew (September 1920 - December 2012"
''Stabroek News'', 10 December 2012. * Literary archival documents by Carew are held at th
General Manuscripts Miscellaneous Collection
Princeton Library, Special Collections.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Carew, Jan 1920 births 20th-century dramatists and playwrights 20th-century Guyanese writers 20th-century novelists 2012 deaths Academics of the University of London Expatriates in Ghana Expatriates in Mexico Expatriates in Spain Guyanese activists Guyanese artists Guyanese expatriates in Canada Guyanese expatriates in France Guyanese expatriates in Jamaica Guyanese expatriates in the Netherlands Guyanese expatriates in the United Kingdom Guyanese expatriates in the United States Guyanese novelists Guyanese writers Howard University alumni Male non-fiction writers