Culture of Caution Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Culture of Caution - Essay Example ects of the culture they were raised in to illustrate the various ways in which the Caribbean culture has grown up as a culture of caution, although not necessarily a culture of inaction. One reason for this insecurity is derived from the origins of the islands’ peoples. Their slave origin automatically introduces a strong element of caution in that no one was able to make their own decisions, driven to work hard on the grueling process of raising sugar cane and extracting the sugar with little to no distinction made between male and female workers. All were expected to work their share and then some. Survival was little more than an accident of chance, forcing many to plan two or three steps ahead in terms of taking care of their families or helping their fellow workers. It was this tendency to pool together their resources as a means of hedging against the uncertainty of the future that started the slaves of the islands on the path to revolution. Slave revolts, at first brought on by the extreme conditions and the great majority of slaves to plantation owners present in the islands, eventually brought many new freedoms and opportunities to the slave class, but were insufficient to provide a stable future. Partially driven by the British tendency to select some few promising individuals from among the black population to act as intermediaries, minor functionaries and educators, the subsequent rights and freedoms that were won continued to support the drive for yet further revolts and revolutions as a means of gaining even greater freedoms. Yet these freedoms, such as education, remained available for only a minority of West Indians, as is evidenced in the fact that Colin Powell’s mother, educated at a high school level, was part of only 2 percent of the population that had attained such high levels of academic training. Although Mrs. Powell’s education was higher than the educational levels achieved by many black Americans at the time, this is no