Charis H

Name: Charis H. R. Seejattan
Course: FOUN 1011 Caribbean Civilization
Assignment: Book Report “Beyond Massa” by John F. Campbell
John F. Campbell, Ph.D., author of the book “Beyond Massa: Sugar Management in the British Caribbean, 1770-1834” has been a lecturer in the Department of History at the University of the West Indies since 2001. Having earned his Bachelor of Arts degree and Master of Philosophy (majoring in History) at the St. Augustine campus, as well as his second Master of Philosophy and Ph.D. from Cambridge University, England, he focuses on features of modern-day Caribbean civilization and culture. A recipient of awards such as the Vice Chancellor’s Award for Excellence (2007), and the UWI/Guardian Life Premium Teaching Award (2006), he has written a great number of articles and reviews on Caribbean issues and growth. Current research projects being undertaken by Dr. Campbell include topics such as Caribbean gender and sexuality and Historiography, being the center of widespread research into the Caribbean diaspora and present-day historical concerns.
“Beyond Massa” (2012) published by Calaloux Publications focuses on the relationship between European master and enslaved, delving deep into chattel slavery and plantation life. Slavery, as defined in the book, is “the involuntary subjugation of one person by another or others. It involves ownership of the worker in which the master has total control of the life and limb of the slave1.” Campbell argues that cooperation, not compulsion, was the driving factor of production on the estate. It focuses specifically on the British Caribbean, citing Golden Grove plantation in Jamaica as his focal example. Owned by absentee owner Chaloner Arcedekne, it was managed by longtime friend Simon Taylor, who, though he considered himself higher than the slaves, still considered their well-being.
Main topics of investigation and discussion include Human Resource Management (HRM) practices, Jamaican sugar production, complexities of sugar production, labour management, the enslaved elite, the influence of women and the changing environment of sugar production. Chapter 1, “Studying Jamaican Sugar Production” quickly gives a breakdown of HRM and slavery. Chapter 2, “The Complexities of Sugar Production” discusses problems experienced on the plantation as well as the societal hierarchy. Chapter 3, “Considering the Management of Labour” talks about the plantation hierarchy and gave insight on the planting managers such as Simon Taylor. Campbell also discusses “jobbing slaves” (privately owned slaves hired out to work on estates) and how they affected the plantation management, citing a relationship gone sour between Taylor and overseer John Kelly because of it. Chapter 4, “The Enslaved Elite and Sugar Management” discusses how the plantation management sought to elevate some of the enslaved that proved to be “trustworthy” and how that affected plantation life both positively and negatively. Chapter 5, “The Female Dimension of Management” sought to point out that both colonial and enslaved women did have a role in plantation management. Chapter 6, “The Changing Environment of Sugar Management” dug into the process of amelioration and how managers tried to save their plantations by finally introducing more HRM policies, and how it failed. This report is going to examine revisionism and HRM, women and plantation management, the enslaved elite, and it critiques the style of writing and use of examples throughout the book.
Campbell begins the book with an introduction giving a general overview of slavery in the British Caribbean. Here he states that the book “seeks to emphasize the importance of effective planter management of the enslaved personnel on the sugar plantation.”2 He also introduces the term “Human Resource Management (HRM), which is defined as “the effective use of human resources in an organization through the management of people-related activities.”3 Emphasis is placed on the people and believes that they are not part of the peripheral, but rather part of the central process needed for production to occur. HRM falls under the category of revisionism, which refers to any efforts to revise faulty existing historical records or interpretations. The historical concept of slavery, in this case during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, is not exempted from such detailed consideration. What was once referred to as “slaves” are now called “enslaved” because the people were just that, people who were enslaved, and I quote, “the point being that this state of enslavement in no way diminished their intellectual capacity nor did it diminish their humanity and awareness of the crucial labour role they played on the plantation.”4 Campbell viewed slavery from a HRM point of view as opposed to the norm of slaves being completely forced to undertake plantation labour. In Campbell’s example of Golden Grove Estate, General Manager Simon Taylor follows the HRM aspects of management when it came to decision making. He incorporated techniques such as the prevention of flogging, division of labour and specialization, which he believed would stimulate high levels of production as well as squash any notions of resistance and revolt. Simon Taylor was a person who had the view that the enslaved were property, second-rate to Europeans and as a source as labour. Nevertheless he cared for them as they were his means to making a profit. He always sought the advice of his employer when it came to making big decisions. A Jamaican by birth, he was educated in England as an attorney and returned to Jamaica in 1760, marking the start of his career as a planter. He died at the age of seventy-four in 1813. Owning over 2,000 slaves, at the point of his death Taylor was one of the most affluent men in the British Empire.5 By focusing on his management style, field management was observed. HRM was the important systematic tool used for observing the plantation and through these techniques, the enslaved were seen as people, a fact that they were robbed of by planters. Women are another example of revisionism. Plantation management was stereotypically male-dominated but one could see as concepts of female insignificance were transformed as women’s role in sugar management grew. “While their location in management did not mean a vocal admission by white male colonial society of a new understanding of women, it did mean acceptance (albeit grudgingly at times), of new spheres in which male influence and power could be exerted.”6
Another great commendation for Campbell is the fact that he does not center his book on the masculine aspect of slavery alone. Chapter 5, “The Female Dimension of Management” talks about women and their role and influence on the plantation. Plantation management was male-dominated and women were barely acknowledged on the periphery. Colonial women were refused representation in assemblies and testimonies were rarely required from them. However, this chapter saw the heavy involvement of Mrs. Arcedekne, mother of the owner of Golden Grove Estate, Chaloner Arcedekne, as well as her sister. She was well respected and had a great interest in the welfare of the estate, seemingly very inept at business. She was seen as a main contributor and even Simon Taylor held her opinion in high regard, consulting her for advice and sometimes following her directive instead of her son’s. For example, a situation where Chaloner Arcedekne ordered Simon Taylor not to buy twenty enslaved was completely ignored by his mother who told Taylor to proceed with the transaction and paid for it herself, suggesting that she was very wealthy7. Enslaved black women were even more so marginalized and were only referred to in the productive and reproductive sense. A lack of affiliation provided the opening to form new power relations. For example, Mary Prince, a Caribbean slave describes her experience with a free coloured woman who was hired to nurse her mistress’s child. The coloured woman saw herself as free, but Prince saw her as an “oppressed sister laboring against the unfair slave society”.8 The enslaved woman displayed a strong sense of character and self-worth, as well as a resistant spirit, Nanny of the Maroons being one such example. She was such a threat to white society that she was awarded a land grant as a peace offering. Her reputation preceded her and commanded respect.9 Female networks also allowed these women to help and support each other and they also relied on their own medicine women, refusing to utilize the plantation hospitals. During the period of amelioration, they were relied on for childbearing to increase the labour force. Campbell pushes forward the point that women were indeed involved in plantation management, both colonial and enslaved, and had a great impact in a male-dominated society.
Production of sugar during the eighteenth century required willful cooperation between management and enslaved workers, even though the labour was not free. Again, HRM plays a part as the book states that “coerced labour, was far less effective for forcing output in those areas that managers could not readily quantify.”10 Cooperation of the enslaved meant that production would flow more efficiently and less demands on the colonial whites. The planters of that day sought to befriend “trustworthy” enslaved and reward them to ensure a higher work principle. This need to encourage labour promoted certain enslaved to an “elite” status. Titles were given such as “elite slaves, slave drivers, confidential slaves, skilled slaves, head slaves, principal slaves and gang leaders.” Elite slaves were both a benefit and a downfall to a planter. Elite slaves reported denunciations to the planted. A denunciation was an “act of reporting resistance (plans) by an enslaved person to white management…….led to detrimental actions against the enslaved people….helped thwart, organized revolts involving people from different estates.”11 An example given was that in 1675 in Barbados of Fortuna, a house slave, reporting to her master that she had heard rumours of a revolt, which turned out to be true when investigated. As a result, all parties involved were killed. As the eighteenth century progressed, the number of denunciations increased. However, while an elite slave could be of aid to a planter, there were also those who rose to the position and conspired against their masters. Campbell focused on the elite enslaved to show that there were enslaved who were trusted and well treated by colonial whites, utilizing HRM techniques. Elite slaves commanded respect from other enslaved. They also aided in high incidence of miscegenation, leading to the creation of a new race of people. However, when an enslaved achieved the status of elite, it served to further alienate him/her from his/her people, but could also be an asset to the enslaves as a point of opposition to the masters. Elite positioning, however, benefitted the enslaved more than it did the management.
A man of examples, it is evident that Campbell put many long hours of research into the development of this book. However, he laments the fact that there are rare accounts from the enslaved people themselves concerning various topics, saying, “One massive stumbling block has been the lack of firsthand reports and narratives generated by the enslaved themselves”. The inner workings of Golden Grove Estate and the decisions of Simon Taylor clearly fell in line with Campbell’s train of thought and helped to enhance his statements. Many examples are stated throughout the book, helping the reader to understand what point Campbell is trying to make. For example, Campbell refers to a particular incident where a rival plantation owner with which Simon Taylor had a longstanding feud, lured Taylor out to the fields where 150 of his enslaved were waiting in order to have in him killed. In response, Taylor’s own enslaved rose up to defend him and would have killed his rival and enslaved had he not stopped them. This is demonstrating a rare willingness to defend a master, who, even though they were enslaved, treated them well and that would have been lost to them had he been killed. Another example is the purchase of twenty young Ebo women by Taylor for the purposes of breeding, though he referred to them as a jobbing gang. This highlights plans to increase labour resources through fertility when there were shortages of labour. There was also the choice of hiring jobbing gangs but were complained of being too expensive and had a short-term survival rate. The style of writing is also attention grabbing with recounts of various moments in history and how they tied in to the point Campbell was making at the time. Statistics were also provided but to a lesser extent. However, I believe more diagrams and pictures could have been provided, such as the layout of Golden Grove estate so that the reader can visualize what the estate appeared as in its glory days. I believe the price to be a bit on the expensive end. But overall the book was good read and it was interesting to see a humanitarian point of view to the relationship between planters and enslaved. When referencing this book with our Caribbean Civilization course, it was seen that a lot of topics that was presented such as revisionism, gender, and slavery was taught in the course. Attending lectures helped to understand and reinforce the knowledge imparted to us through the lecturers.
“Beyond Massa” has unearthed many discoveries, presenting what really happened in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries when slavery and the slave trade were at its peak. One can now see the nature of the relationship between master and slave, and decipher that not all masters are heartless and cruel, despite the norm and what is taught in schools today. Points and challenges put forward by Campbell were backed up by the examples of Simon Taylor and Golden Grove Estate, evidenced through the many letters exchanged between Taylor and his employer, Chaloner Arcedekne. Revisionism is heavily present throughout the entire book, developing on points such as Human Resource Management (HRM), women and their role in society and the enslaved elites. The book was well written and the author was thoroughly informed about the topics and his points were argued in a way that captured my attention. “Beyond Massa” is clear cut and states the relationship between master and enslaved from a humanitarian, cooperative point of view.
Word Count: 2,387 words

Works Cited
Campbell, John F, “Beyond Massa – Sugar Management in the British Caribbean, 1770-1834”, Massachusetts, Calaloux Publications, 2012.

Harvard Extension School - MGMT E-4240 Human Resource Management 2014-15 - http://www.extension.harvard.edu/courses/human-resource-management (13/11/14)

Slavery and Revolution – Jamaica and Slavery in the Age of Revolution – Simon Taylor 2014 - http://blog.soton.ac.uk/slaveryandrevolution/simon-taylor-and-jamaican-slavery/ (14/11/14)

The Pelican – The University of the West Indies – Celebrating Sixty Years, 2014, https://sta.uwi.edu/pelican/60under60/jcampbell.asp 12/11/2014

The University of the West Indies – Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning – UWI/Guardian Life Premium Events Teaching Awards 2006 - http://sta.uwi.edu/cetl/wshops_events/events/awardees/2006-awardees.asp (12/11/14)

Cited: Campbell, John F, “Beyond Massa – Sugar Management in the British Caribbean, 1770-1834”, Massachusetts, Calaloux Publications, 2012. Harvard Extension School - MGMT E-4240 Human Resource Management 2014-15 - http://www.extension.harvard.edu/courses/human-resource-management (13/11/14) Slavery and Revolution – Jamaica and Slavery in the Age of Revolution – Simon Taylor 2014 - http://blog.soton.ac.uk/slaveryandrevolution/simon-taylor-and-jamaican-slavery/ (14/11/14) The Pelican – The University of the West Indies – Celebrating Sixty Years, 2014, https://sta.uwi.edu/pelican/60under60/jcampbell.asp 12/11/2014 The University of the West Indies – Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning – UWI/Guardian Life Premium Events Teaching Awards 2006 - http://sta.uwi.edu/cetl/wshops_events/events/awardees/2006-awardees.asp (12/11/14)