(Her)stories written: The construction of identity through politics, culture and education in the novels of contemporary Indo-Guyanese women

Issues such as a lack of education, gender restrictions and limited access to publication have contributed to a dearth of published literary fiction by Indo-Guyanese women. Until recently, there has also been a lack of scholarship on Indo-Guyanese women writers. For this reason, I have chosen to explore three particular novels by Indo-Guyanese women: The Last English Plantation by Janice Shinebourne, A Silent Life by Ryhaan Shah and Tomorrow is Another Day by Narmala Shewcharan. Each writer captures the lives of Indo-Guyanese women, whether rural or urban, local or diasporic. The economic, political and social timeframe of Guyana from the 1950's to early 1980's is central to each author's portrayal of Indo-Caribbean female identity. In each novel, the identity of the Indo-Guyanese woman is constructed in relation to gender ideologies, education and race relations. These factors all come together to shape and define the lives of the main characters of each novel.