Mary Seacole and the Empire: A Subaltern’s Representation in Three Texts

Abstract

This thesis deals with the representation of Mary Seacole across three different texts, which are: Wonderful Adventures of Mrs. Seacole in Many Lands, Seacole’s own autobiography (1857); Mary Seacole, a libretto by SuAndi (2000); and Soul Tourists, a novel-with-verse by Bernardine Evaristo (2005). The texts are given a postcolonial reading of with a focus on Spivak’s subaltern.
The different authors’ voicing of characters and their use of register and racial/ethnic stereotyping is compared, as is their choice of récit with regards to the histoire of Mary Seacole when eliding or highlighting events of her life in scenes and chapters.
The representation of the center and the margins across three texts (London vs. Jamaica, Central America and Crimea) is analyzed, taking into account recurring themes such as medical expertise, racism, religion and cultural hybridity.
The conclusion lays out the different versions of Seacole that have been presented by these three authors as it reflects on Seacole’s relationship to the dominant discourse.

Date of Award	2015
Original language	English
Supervisor	Elisabeth Bekers (Promotor)