In this 2005 article from the UK Guardian, Guyanese novelist/poet/journalist David Dabydeen examines the interplay of politics and literature in the life of Dominican writer Phyllis Shand Allfrey.
David Dabydeen on Phyllis Shand Allfrey
Moko
caribbean arts and letters
I remember Phyllis Allfrey, sounding very bitter as I think she became late in her life, telling me that she was the author of The Wide Sargasso Sea and that her manuscript had been used by Jean Rhys without her permission. She also described personal situations, places she had lived – including the “Orchid House” in Goodwill – and people in her own life that were an integral part of the novel.
Fascinating Geoffrey. I find her life story incredibly interesting even if some of how Dabydeen framed it here jarred with my sensibilities a little bit. I wonder if she felt jealous of the success of WSS even if the life of Jean Rhys is not known for being a fairytale story either. I would think that political engagement (rather than writing fiction) would be the happier path for women in their historical situations, but perhaps not.
I must admit that I found “Wild Sargasso Sea” much closer to Phyllis Alphrey’s style than Jean Rhys’s – which I found sometimes to be very complex.
Interesting indeed. I’ll have to revisit those two particular books (Wide Sargasso Sea and The Orchid House) some time soon.