The book entitled Stuart Hall is a biography written by Annie Paul which chronicles the
life of one of the most illustrious critical theorists from the Caribbean, Stuart Hall. Hall was born
in 1932 in Jamaica to Herman and Jessie Hall, an accountant, and a housewife respectively. He
spent his formative years with his immediate and extended family and enjoyed a healthy
childhood save for his mother’s obsession with British standards of living. He was gifted both
academically and musically and participated in many extracurricular activities at Jamaica
College including the Cadet Corps and tennis (as leader) and eventually became head boy of the
school. While in school, he developed an interest in religion, poverty, and inequality reflected
through his membership in the Christian organization, Christian Endeavour. Paul discusses
Hall’s upbringing in Jamaica which was critical in shaping his later work. His experiences with
social stratification in the Jamaican society which was combined with the remnants of plantation
life in the forms of racism and colourism, along with his struggle against colonialism,
contributed to the development of his critical theories.
In 1950 he received the Jamaica Scholarship but subsequently turned it in after being
awarded the Rhodes Scholarship a year later, to pursue a degree in English Literature at Oxford
University in England. While in England, there was a growing movement in the Caribbean for
decolonization and independence. Stuart connected with other West Indians through the West
Indian Society and worked on the BBC program Caribbean Voices. He was also a writer for the
Caribbean Journal. Both media outlets allowed him to speak on issues affecting the Caribbean.
He eventually became Professor at the Open University in England and a household name for his
nighttime lectures delivered during the 1980s on BBC2.
In 2014, Hall died at the age of 82 and to this day, continues to be counted among the
great Caribbean scholars such as Frantz Fanon, C.L.R. James and Sylvia Wynter. In addition, a
Ph.D. scholarship has been established at Merton College in his honour for students who through
their work, challenge the status quo and highlight the connections between politics, culture and
society. He is regarded among the “eminent Mertonians”.
The objective of this book report is to critically discuss the book Stuart Hall with
reference to social stratification, education, racism, identity and music. In addition, it will
provide a discussion on the value of the book to the understanding of Caribbean civilization.
Social stratification is one theme that was very evident within the book and constantly
beset Hall during childhood. This concept refers to the existence of a hierarchy of inequality that
1
, becomes institutionalized and is generally accepted by the individuals and groups within a
society (Johnson). Although this hierarchy may not be favored by the majority, individuals
accept that it is the way things are. However, Jessie, being of mixed race, refused to accept her
family’s association with the black strata and implemented deliberate efforts to thrust her
bourgeoise upbringing upon her black Jamaican family, as she aspired to be regarded as a part of
the elite. This highlights the pressure that is sometimes placed on those who may be considered
inferior, to become a part of the upper-class. In Chapter 1, it is evident that Jessie has succumb to
this pressure. Hiring a “retinue of servants”, restricting her children to inviting over friends “of
similar or higher social status” and her continuous quarrels with her husband asking him to
provide more finances, exposed her burden of “aspiring to whiteness”. Notably, Hall was always
unimpressed with his mother, who consciously maintained the boundaries of the class system
and forced the European way of life upon him. Although the class system of, Blacks being
regarded as poor and Whites as rich was supposed to have ended with the abolition of slavery, it
has still found its way within the layout of modern Caribbean societies, and the practice of
associating one’s colour with wealth and power still persists (Simpson). This phenomenon may
not be as prominent as it was during the era that Hall lived in, but it still has superficial
appearance in the modern-day Caribbean region. Unconsciously, colour is sometimes used as the
benchmark or indication of the status of individuals.
Throughout the book’s first and second Chapter, Paul cites that aspects of British culture,
particularly education, was evident in the region during that time. It is clear that during Hall’s
childhood, the British education system was continuously preserved and transplanted within the
curriculum of Caribbean education. “The curriculum was designed to inculcate students into
British ways of thinking and living…” and did not fit nor reflect the evolving social context of
the Caribbean region, which was why, upon arriving to England, Hall was already “well-
schooled in the ways of the mother country.” However, to understand why this was so, one must
examine the history behind the implementation of the British education system in the West
Indies. During the period of slavery, plantation laborers were not taught to read and write.
Although Christian Missionaries urged the plantation owners to allow them to educate the slaves,
they refused and continued to work and torture the slaves. Post-emancipation, the illiteracy of ex-
slaves presented a huge problem and as a result, educating them became the colonizers foremost
responsibility. The passing of the 1833 Slavery Abolition Act, which took effect in 1834,
2
life of one of the most illustrious critical theorists from the Caribbean, Stuart Hall. Hall was born
in 1932 in Jamaica to Herman and Jessie Hall, an accountant, and a housewife respectively. He
spent his formative years with his immediate and extended family and enjoyed a healthy
childhood save for his mother’s obsession with British standards of living. He was gifted both
academically and musically and participated in many extracurricular activities at Jamaica
College including the Cadet Corps and tennis (as leader) and eventually became head boy of the
school. While in school, he developed an interest in religion, poverty, and inequality reflected
through his membership in the Christian organization, Christian Endeavour. Paul discusses
Hall’s upbringing in Jamaica which was critical in shaping his later work. His experiences with
social stratification in the Jamaican society which was combined with the remnants of plantation
life in the forms of racism and colourism, along with his struggle against colonialism,
contributed to the development of his critical theories.
In 1950 he received the Jamaica Scholarship but subsequently turned it in after being
awarded the Rhodes Scholarship a year later, to pursue a degree in English Literature at Oxford
University in England. While in England, there was a growing movement in the Caribbean for
decolonization and independence. Stuart connected with other West Indians through the West
Indian Society and worked on the BBC program Caribbean Voices. He was also a writer for the
Caribbean Journal. Both media outlets allowed him to speak on issues affecting the Caribbean.
He eventually became Professor at the Open University in England and a household name for his
nighttime lectures delivered during the 1980s on BBC2.
In 2014, Hall died at the age of 82 and to this day, continues to be counted among the
great Caribbean scholars such as Frantz Fanon, C.L.R. James and Sylvia Wynter. In addition, a
Ph.D. scholarship has been established at Merton College in his honour for students who through
their work, challenge the status quo and highlight the connections between politics, culture and
society. He is regarded among the “eminent Mertonians”.
The objective of this book report is to critically discuss the book Stuart Hall with
reference to social stratification, education, racism, identity and music. In addition, it will
provide a discussion on the value of the book to the understanding of Caribbean civilization.
Social stratification is one theme that was very evident within the book and constantly
beset Hall during childhood. This concept refers to the existence of a hierarchy of inequality that
1
, becomes institutionalized and is generally accepted by the individuals and groups within a
society (Johnson). Although this hierarchy may not be favored by the majority, individuals
accept that it is the way things are. However, Jessie, being of mixed race, refused to accept her
family’s association with the black strata and implemented deliberate efforts to thrust her
bourgeoise upbringing upon her black Jamaican family, as she aspired to be regarded as a part of
the elite. This highlights the pressure that is sometimes placed on those who may be considered
inferior, to become a part of the upper-class. In Chapter 1, it is evident that Jessie has succumb to
this pressure. Hiring a “retinue of servants”, restricting her children to inviting over friends “of
similar or higher social status” and her continuous quarrels with her husband asking him to
provide more finances, exposed her burden of “aspiring to whiteness”. Notably, Hall was always
unimpressed with his mother, who consciously maintained the boundaries of the class system
and forced the European way of life upon him. Although the class system of, Blacks being
regarded as poor and Whites as rich was supposed to have ended with the abolition of slavery, it
has still found its way within the layout of modern Caribbean societies, and the practice of
associating one’s colour with wealth and power still persists (Simpson). This phenomenon may
not be as prominent as it was during the era that Hall lived in, but it still has superficial
appearance in the modern-day Caribbean region. Unconsciously, colour is sometimes used as the
benchmark or indication of the status of individuals.
Throughout the book’s first and second Chapter, Paul cites that aspects of British culture,
particularly education, was evident in the region during that time. It is clear that during Hall’s
childhood, the British education system was continuously preserved and transplanted within the
curriculum of Caribbean education. “The curriculum was designed to inculcate students into
British ways of thinking and living…” and did not fit nor reflect the evolving social context of
the Caribbean region, which was why, upon arriving to England, Hall was already “well-
schooled in the ways of the mother country.” However, to understand why this was so, one must
examine the history behind the implementation of the British education system in the West
Indies. During the period of slavery, plantation laborers were not taught to read and write.
Although Christian Missionaries urged the plantation owners to allow them to educate the slaves,
they refused and continued to work and torture the slaves. Post-emancipation, the illiteracy of ex-
slaves presented a huge problem and as a result, educating them became the colonizers foremost
responsibility. The passing of the 1833 Slavery Abolition Act, which took effect in 1834,
2
